Feb 12, 2014

RhoDeo 1406 Aetix

Hello, still stuck in Minneapolis ? Nah it's the westcoast coming up, Paisley Underground is an early genre of alternative rock, based primarily in Los Angeles, California, which was at its most popular in the mid-1980s. Paisley Underground bands incorporated psychedelia, rich vocal harmonies and guitar interplay in a folk rock style that owed a particular debt to The Byrds, but more generally referenced the whole range of 1960s West Coast pop and garage rock. The term "Paisley Underground" originated in late 1982, with a comment made by Michael Quercio of the band The Three O'Clock, during an interview with the LA Weekly alternative newspaper.

Paisley Underground bands frequently shared bills, socialized and collaborated. Members of Rain Parade, The Bangles, The Dream Syndicate and The Three O'Clock joined together to form Rainy Day, releasing an eponymous album of cover versions of songs by The Velvet Underground, Buffalo Springfield, Bob Dylan, The Beach Boys, Big Star, Jimi Hendrix, and The Who. As "Danny and Dusty," Steve Wynn of The Dream Syndicate and Dan Stuart of Green on Red made the album The Lost Weekend (A&M, 1985) backed by members of each band along with most of The Long Ryders. Clay Allison was an offshoot band composed of David Roback and Will Glenn (Rain Parade), Kendra Smith (The Dream Syndicate), Sylvia Juncosa (Leaving Trains) and Keith Mitchell (Monitor).


Today's artists were never a stable line up too informal perhaps however they did release some work of note. . ....N'Joy

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Among the L.A. groups dubbed Paisley Underground (Dream Syndicate, the Bangles, Three O'Clock), Rain Parade were the closest to being the real deal for their use of psychedelic flourishes throughout their first album. Formed in Los Angeles in the early '80s, the group consisted of David Roback (vocals, guitar), Steven Roback (vocals, bass), Matt Piucci (vocals, guitar), Will Glenn (keyboards), and Eddie Kalwa (drums). Their first single, "What She's Done to Your Mind," was a certifiable hit on college radio, and the band quickly followed with a full-length LP for Enigma in 1983, Emergency Third Rail Power Trip..

The band was founded by college roommates Matt Piucci and David Roback in 1981, originally as The Sidewalks. David's brother Steven Roback joined the band shortly thereafter. David and Steven had been in a band called The Unconscious with neighbor Susanna Hoffs (who went on to lead the most famous of the Paisley Underground bands, The Bangles.) The band soon added Will Glenn and later Eddie Kalwa. They self-released their debut single, "What She's Done to Your Mind" on their Llama label in 1982. In 1983 they released the debut album Emergency Third Rail Power Trip on the Enigma/Zippo label.

David Roback left to form a new band, Opal, the rest of the band continuing to record as a four piece, releasing the mini-LP, Explosions in the Glass Palace in 1984. After a single, "You Are My Friend", Kalwa left, his replacement being Mark Marcum, and John Thoman (guitar, vocals) was added to the line-up. The band signed to Island Records, and a live album (Beyond The Sunset) recorded in Japan, and a third album, Crashing Dream, came out in 1985.

The band split in 1986, with Piucci going on to release the LP Can't Get Lost When You're Goin' Nowhere with Tim Lee under the band name Gone Fishin', and later joining Crazy Horse. The band reformed in 1988 to finish off a double album they had started, but it was never released. Steven Roback went on to form the band Viva Saturn whose releases appeared on the San Francisco label Heyday Records which was run at the time by Pat Thomas. (Pat Thomas made waves of his own in the Rochester New York band Absolute Grey). Cashing in releases Demolition (1991) Outtakes and unreleased material and Perfume River (2002) Live in New York, November 1984.

After making the album Rainy Day, featuring cover versions performed by various leading lights of the Paisley Underground, David Roback formed The Clay Allison Band and Opal with ex Dream Syndicate bassist Kendra Smith, and later formed Mazzy Star with Hope Sandoval.

The Rain Parade reformed in 2012, performing their comeback gig on December 20, 2012 at Cafe Du Nord in San Francisco on a sold out bill with Powder and The Bang Girl Group Revue. The current Rain Parade line-up includes original members Matt Piucci, Steven Roback and John Thoman, augmented by Mark Hanley, Alec Palao and former Game Theory drummer Gil Ray. In December 2013, Rain Parade played two nights with three other reunited Paisley Underground bands — The Bangles, The Dream Syndicate, and The Three O'Clock — at The Fillmore in San Francisco (Dec. 5) and The Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles (Dec. 6 benefit concert)

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Rain Parade fashioned traditional, gentle psychedelic pop on Emergency Third Rail Power Trip, including the dreamy "What's She Done to Your Mind" and the Byrds-ish "This Can't Be Today" (with the Dream Syndicate's Kendra Smith). They were clearly way ahead of their time, and it would take years before sleepy music (à la founding Rain Parade member David Roback's Mazzy Star) would catch on. This record sounds no more made in the '80s than in the '60s or '90s.  Listeners who were enraptured by this band's first effort should enjoy this follow-up, even though principal member David Roback had already quit. Explosions In The Glass Palace mini , clocks in at a mere 20 minutes, but it's still superior to other recycled psychedelia from L.A.'s Paisley Underground. Layered guitars, special effects, droning vocals, catchy hooks -- they're all here. The Rain Parade never broke any barriers during their brief existence, but they really captured the spirit of '60s psychedelic rock better than most.



Rain Parade - Emergency Third Rail Power Trip + Explosions EP  (flac 372mb)

01 Talking In My Sleep 3:47
02 This Can't Be Today 4:35
03 I Look Around 3:05
04 1 HR ½ Ago 4:12
05 Carolyn's Song 4:05
06 What She's Done To Your Mind 2:55
07 Look At Merri 6:33
08 Saturday's Asylum 3:44
09 Kaleidoscope 5:34
10 Look Both Ways 3:06
Explosions In The Glass Palace
11 You Are My Friend 3:05
12 Prisoners 3:50
13 Blue 2:54
14 Broken Horse 3:42
15 No Easy Way Down 6:54

Rain Parade - Emergency Third Rail Power Trip + Explosions EP  (ogg 148mb)

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This marvelous psychedelic trip from the eighties aged very well. The live-in-Japan Beyond the Sunset (originally released in Japan as Behind the Sunset — that's geography for you), which introduces a new drummer as well as a replacement for guitarist David Roback, is a mite redundant — five songs are from the two previous discs, with three more originals and covers of Television and Green on Red — but not badly executed. Recorded live at Shibuya Public Hall, Tokyo, Japan, December 16, 1984.



Rain Parade - Beyond The Sunset  ( flac 264mb)

01 Night Shade 2:50
02 Prisoners 3:26
03 This Can't Be Today 4:14
04 Blue 2:37
05 Eyes Closed 2:38
06 Ain't That Nothing 4:12
07 Don't Feel Bad 3:21
08 1 1/2 Hours Ago 4:17
09 No Easy Way Down 6:36
10 Cheap Wine 5:09

Rain Parade - Beyond The Sunset  (ogg 87mb)

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The group's final album and its first for a major label was no way to end a career that started out so promising, but it did deliver in some areas. Vocalist/guitarist David Roback had left the band -- as had drummer Eddie Kalwa, leaving out some core elements that had managed to gel together so well on previous outings. Ultimately, the murky, psychedelic waters of previous releases had become elusive. Upon the first listen, the major flaw that you hear is the increase in production that results in waves of synthesizer accents that do little to add to the flavor of the group. The track "Depending on You" is certainly blessed with some strong guitar leads, but is marred by the shiny blasts of synthetics. Rain Parade's greatness arose out of excellent songs and guitar work, but also out of an adherence to a timeless sound. Modern embellishments did not suit them well. "Don't Feel Bad" is perhaps the biggest victim of this. The song is great with drums spiraling backwards, guitars fluttering up and down, the bass backtracking while still sounding nimble and flexible as the harmonies float -- but the stabs of synth and drum treatments turn the song into a relic of the time. The slower moments of the record work their charm. "My Secret Country" is a nice balance of acoustic guitars and harmonies but is ultimately muddied by an ending that creeps up too soon. It's "Fertile Crescent" that is probably the most perfectly realized song on the album, with its guitar jangle and a perfect harmony of build-up and release. "Only Business" also works well with its stripped-down and slightly broken approach that uses restraint in a way that could have suited a number of the other tracks on the album. It's an unfortunate ending (not unfortunately uncommon, either) that sees the group's final official release marred by a major label's input, distorting what should have been Rain Parade's greatest statement.



Rain Parade - Crashing Dream  (flac 219mb)

01 Depending On You 3:32
02 My Secret Country 3:15
03 Don't Feel Bad 3:19
04 Mystic Green 2:49
05 Sad Eyes Kill 3:16
06 Shoot Down The Railroad Man 3:23
07 Fertile Crescent 3:38
08 Invisible People 3:06
09 Gone West 3:44
10 Only Business 1:45

Rain Parade - Crashing Dream  (ogg 79mb)

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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hello Rho,

It would be great, if you could re-up Emergency Third Rail Power Trip.

Thanks,

Sam