Paisley Underground Series, #21: Rain Parade- Crashing Dream (1986) / Demolition (1991) MP3 & FLAC

"Imagine all of your sorrows have left you behind."

The aptly named Crashing Dream was fated to be Rain Parade's one and only full-length studio album after David Roback's exit from the band, in early 1984, to work on the Rainy Day  project with his then-new flame, former Dream Syndicate bassist Kendra Smith. According to many accounts, Roback's departure was an acrimonious one; as fellow Paisley scene icon Steve Wynn recalls, "It would be like me being thrown out of Dream Syndicate [....] I never knew why it happened."  Roback's version: "It became a drag. I just had to get away and do something else [....] Musically it wasn't working out." Whatever the reason, Roback's exit left his former band-mates, including his brother Steven, at a crossroads in terms of what direction the band's sound would take without its lead guitarist. In addition, the band faced towering expectations from fans and record execs alike to replicate the brilliance of their classic debut, Emergency Third Rail Power Trip. For the time being, Rain Parade decided to proceed as a four-piece and recorded the Explosions in the Glass Palace EP, which, while missing David Roback's deftly subtle touch in places and showing an occasional proclivity for adopting a more traditional approach to song structure than before, suggested that Rain Parade was not eager to relinquish its place as one of the leading bands of the Paisley scene. Fatefully, it was during this time that Rain Parade made its jump to the majors by signing with Island Records, a move that would lead to the band's demise only two years later. Rain Parade released two albums during it's tenure at Island: a live LP recorded in Japan, Beyond the Sunset, and their final studio album, the aforementioned Crashing Dream, which functions as a strange epitaph for this seminal Paisley band, as some see it as Rain Parade's escape from the commercial ghetto of psych-revivalism, while others view it as another example of a great band sent down the road to creative ruin by a major label taking control of the creative process. Taken on its own terms, Crashing Dream is a consistently good, and occasionally brilliant, slice of late-eighties psych-pop that from the opening track, "Depending on You," suggests the band is looking to cut ties with the hazy psychedelia of its debut. The song's slick production and reliance on studio synthetics is a bit shocking initially given Rain Parade's psych-rock pedigree, but as soon as the vocals and lead guitar appear in the mix, the song begins to take form as a nice piece of shiny Power-Pop. The next track, "My Secret Country," moves in more of a country-rock direction, sounding not unlike a slower number by The Long Ryders, and by all rights, it should have become one of the most memorable anthems of the Paisley scene, but its emotional impact is marred by a meandering bridge and the production, which robs the song of much of its grit. Crashing Dream was unjustly ignored upon its release, and Rain Parade decided to call it quits soon after; however, they did briefly reform in 1988 to record a double album, which never materialized until the release of Demolition in 1991. The first half of Demolition is comprised of an alternate ("as originally intended") version of Crashing Dream, which, if nothing else, suggests that Rain Parade were not as eager to leave their psyche-rock roots behind as the over-produced Island version seemed to indicate. As the true epitaph to this legendary L.A. band, Demolition is both a revelation and a further reason to grieve over the untimely demise of a band that deserved a much better fate.

Rain Parade- "No Easy Way Down" (1985) Live "back across town at one of L.A.'s most fashionable clubs"

If you can put up with the twit interviewer and his ridiculous questions for a spell, the live performance that follows is a winner. This is the Post-David Roback / Eddie Kalwa incarnation of Rain Parade, purveyors of a pretty great brand of psych-pop....

Paisley Underground Series, #19: Various Artists- WarfRat Tales: Unabridged (1983) MP3 & FLAC

"The seas and the trees calling me. She's a river between day and night. I'm looking for her light, creeping coastline of lights."

At the dawn of the eighties, the L.A. underground music scene was comprised of a heady mix of bands and styles that included punk, post-punk, cow-punk, neo-psych, power-pop, jangle-pop, rockabilly, and everything in between. In addition to its quite unprecedented musical diversity, what also set this underground scene apart from others before it and those since was the genre-defying camaraderie between the various bands involved. As such, it was not unusual to see someone like Chris D. of The Flesh Eaters- ferocious purveyors of an exceedingly dark blues-punk hybrid that made them legends among the hardcore crowd- befriend and support a band such as The Dream Syndicate, who were in the process of spearheading a psych-revival that would come to be known as the Paisley Underground. Many of these relationships were forged through shared ties with the indie record labels that mushroomed in and around the scene whose rosters often reflected the amazing variety of the L.A. underground itself, a phenomenon that helped give rise to the era of the indie compilation as the best way to promote the music. A storied example of this was Warfrat Records, a tiny artist-run label, whose recordings were made in a (literally) makeshift studio called Lyceum Sound, which was actually a sound-proofed two-car garage (we're talking egg-cartons on the walls here) that had been rented out by members of The Last as a rehearsal space. The "studio" was originally conceived as a much preferred return to sonic austerity for The Last after having had their sound subjected to the sterilizing effects of the professional recording process on their debut LP, L.A. Explosion!  Eventually, Lyceum Sound played host to bands such as The Gun Club, Rain Parade, The Long Ryders and Savage Republic to name but a few, all of whom engaged in something like recorded rehearsals. As The Last's manager Gary Stewart remembers, the WarfRat record label was born out of necessity: "I didn't so much dream up the WarfRat label as I was forced to start it, as a way of releasing a single [...] that was getting some airplay on Rodney Bingenheimer's Sunday night radio show." The compilation WarfRat Tales was intended as a way to promote many of the bands who regularly passed through Lyceum Sound as well as to pay off some bills (according to Stewart, the album accomplished only one of these objectives). The album itself is one of the better comps to emanate from the L.A. underground, and has the added advantage of being primarily comprised of unique "demo" performances that are often superior to the more polished versions available elsewhere. The opener, "Try to Rise," a creepy, campy psychedelic rocker by The Last that sounds a bit like Frankenfurter of The Rocky Horror Picture Show fronting The Doors, sets the tone for this consistently great and intensely moody set of songs. Another highlight is "Stop the Clock" by the Earwigs, a strange mash-up of punk, ska and early new-wave that functions as a tension-filled time-capsule of cold war paranoia. WarfRat Tales also features some wonderfully scruffy cuts from Paisley Underground mainstays Rain Parade, including a stunning rendition of "This Can't Be Today," later re-recorded for their debut LP, Emergency Third Rail Power Trip. Perhaps the most essential track is "Creeping Coastlines of Light" by The Leaving Trains, a twangy, moody, transcendent slow-burner that is the equal of anything recorded by the scene's more well-known "roots" bands such as The Long Ryders and True West. WarfRat Tales is worth revisting because it offers a significant glimpse into an amazingly vibrant music scene long since gone; however, what makes it truly distinctive is the way its austerely-recorded tracks capture the passion and camaraderie that made the L.A. underground what it was.

Paisley Underground Series, #15: Rainy Day- S/T (1984) MP3 & FLAC

"When you think the night has seen your mind, that inside you're twisted and unkind."

David Roback's exit from Rain Parade, the seminal Paisley band that he had formed with his brother Steven, after the release of their neo-psyche classic, Emergency Third Rail Power Trip, has long been shrouded in mystery, but whatever the reason--whether he chose to leave over creative differences or was jettisoned by the band for being difficult to work with--it led to the creation of one of the more intriguing and sought-after recordings associated with The Paisley Underground. Essentially a David Roback-curated collaborative project comprised of a number of prominent figures from the Paisley scene, Rainy Day reflects both the unity of the scene in its early days and its impressive array of influences. Recorded by former Minutemen producer Ethan James (also an ex-member of Blue Cheer) at his Radio Tokyo Studios (a small house with carpet-covered walls and no windows that was located a few blocks from Venice Beach), Rainy Day was intended as a tribute to some of the artists who served as inspirations to the Paisley scene, such as The Velvet Underground, Big Star, Bob Dylan, Buffalo Springfield, The Beach Boys, and others. Roback had compiled a list of potential covers and set about recruiting various friends to come in and contribute to the recording process. Among these were former Dream Syndicate bassist Kendra Smith, who would soon join Roback in Clay Allison/Opal, Susanna Hoffs and Vicki Peterson from The Bangles, Michael Quercio from The Three O'Clock, former Rain Parade band-mate Matt Piucci, and Dennis Duck and Karl Precoda of The Dream Syndicate. Steven Roback recalls the general mood of the sessions: "...by the early '80s, the music of the Velvets and Big Star better expressed our mood. It was darker, lonelier, more daring. L.A. was in a somewhat depressed period....Punk was big then and had the right attitude. So the musicians that participated in Rainy Day were trying to recast the spirit of punk but in more expansive musical terms." The album itself features minimal, mostly acoustic arrangements and retains a somber, desolate sense throughout. While Quercio and Roback (yes, he actually sings here!) provide serviceable vocals for half of the songs, it is Susanna Hoffs and Kendra Smith who steal the show. In particular, Hoff's rendition of "I'll Be Your Mirror" is simply stunning and arguably bests Nico's version on the Velvets' debut. Not to be outdone, Smith's version of Alex Chilton's "Holocaust" is just as amazing, her languid, mournful phrasing somehow capturing the bottomless despair of the original. Many describe Rainy Day as the one true masterpiece produced by the Paisley scene; while I hesitate to confer such a lofty status to this record (in my opinion, there were better Paisley recordings), there is no doubt that this is one of the essential documents of the eighties L.A. underground.

Paisley Underground Series, #8: Op@l- H@ppy Nightmare B@by (1987) MP3 & FLAC

"Jigsaw Jenny, motor city, she's a vampire, so am I."

It has never been made entirely clear what led to David Roback's exit from Rain Parade after their brilliant debut LP, Emergency Third Rail Power Trip. The "official" story is that he left to work on Rainy Day, a Paisley Underground-related musical collective that included, among others, Michael Quercio from The Three O'Clock, Susanna Hoffs of The Bangles, and Kendra Smith, bassist for The Dream Syndicate. Rainy Day only produced one album, and Roback and Smith ended up pairing off not only into a new romance, but also into a new band, Clay Allison. After releasing one single, the band changed their name to Opal, and released a pair of EPs, which were later collected together on Early Recordings. In the context of the neo-psych music scene from which it emerged, Opal's lone LP, Happy Nightmare Baby sounds somewhat unique in the sense that it largely dispenses with the Jangle that defined many Paisley bands at the time, instead choosing to explore the darker side of psychedelia while integrating some subtle Glam-Rock undertones as well. A perfect example of this is the extended psych-jam "Magick Power," which features some great Ray Manzarek-style electric organ, Roback's grungy guitar riffs fed through a wah-pedal, and Kendra Smith's beautifully detached vocals sounding, at times, almost corpse-like. On "Rocket Machine," Roback channels his inner Marc Bolan by structuring the song around a sexy, sleazy riff that seems to pull Smith's vocals along on its back. A psych-gem of a different color is "She's a Diamond," which, of all the songs on Happy Nightmare Baby, is the most reminiscent of the more acoustic blues-based sound of the earlier EPs, and as a result, it provides Smith with a little more space to reveal her unique vocal style. Opal's short but brilliant career tends to get overshadowed by what preceded it and what came after its demise, but their music is among the darkest and most enduring to have emanated from the Paisley Underground scene.

Paisley Underground Series, #2: Rain Parade- Emergency Third Rail Power Trip (1983) / Explosions in the Glass Palace EP (1984) MP3 & FLAC

"Look at Merri, she goes round and round."

One of the definitive albums of The Paisley Underground -a music scene that was anything but clearly defined- Rain Parade's Emergency Third Rail Power Trip is an enduring and unassuming gem of post-sixties (neo) psychedelia. While taking inspiration from sixties Jangle-Pop purveyors such as The Byrds as well as the darker psychedelic textures of bands such as The Doors and early Pink Floyd, Rain Parade's debut is more than simply an homage to these psych-rock forefathers; rather, Emergency Third Rail Power Trip bristles with a spirit of inspired re-invention. Led by the Roback brothers and Matt Piucci, Rain Parade successfully integrate the blissed out Rickenbacker jangle of songs such as their first single, "What She's Done to Your Mind" with the dark haze of songs like "Look at Merri," which sounds like a blueprint for Jason Pierce's work with Spiritualized ten years later. On the Explosions in the Glass Palace EP, released the following year after David Roback had left to form Opal with Kendra Smith of The Dream Syndicate, the band takes a slightly more minimalist approach, even moving into Power-Pop territory on "Blue," which seems to conjure the ghost of Chris Bell for the lead guitar part. Despite this, the band also manages to come up with one of its best extended psych-jams, "Prisoners," which is a great mash-up of early and late Pink Floyd. Unfortunately, Rain Parade would never hit these artistic heights again, but their debut more than guarantees their status as a pillar of the neo-psychedelic movement.

Mazzy Star- Flowers in December EP: Parts 1 & 2 (1996) MP3 & FLAC -For ranxerox-

"In your smile there are many a ways to cut the pain."

The first single pulled from Mazzy Star's presumptive swan song (pun intended), Among My Swan, was "Flowers in December," a lovely country-tinged ballad that features Hope Sandoval on harmonica. The single was released in two parts in the UK, with each part featuring two non-LP tracks. The highlight of Part I is "Hair and Skin" written by Dan Stuart whose band, Green on Red, was a mainstay of the Paisley Underground scene.  The song is a dark psych-rock slow-burner that hearkens back to the pre-Mazzy Opal days. Part II's highlight is "Had a Thought," a simple, straightforward acoustic song featuring one of Hope's livelier vocals. While not essential by any means, non-LP tracks were a rare commodity with this band, so it's nice to hear them work their magic in a slightly less polished context.

Mazzy Star- Among My Swan (1996) MP3 & FLAC

"Take away everything that feels fine. Catch a shape in the circles of my mind."

Mazzy Star's final (?) album, Among My Swan, has long been saddled with the reputation of being inferior to the band's two earlier LPs, She Hangs Brightly  and So Tonight That I Might See. The arguments for this have ranged from "sounds too similar to the previous stuff" to "sounds too dirge-like to retain listener interest." This negative critical response was partly due to the fact that three years had passed since the release of Mazzy Star's breakthrough second album, and the hushed confidence of Among My Swan, despite evidencing a number of subtle changes to the band's sound, was deemed an unworthy product for such a long hiatus. It is true that on Among My Swan, David Roback has turned the reverb (and thus the pysch-haze) dial down a notch or two, but in its place are many new textural nuances, such as glockenspiel and harmonica, that allow the songs to tread in a slightly less claustrophobic country-folk direction. The first single, "Flowers in December," is a perfect example of this. Here, Hope Sandoval's harmonica takes the melodic lead that would have been handled by Roback's guitar on one of the previous albums. This gives the song a distinctly desolate feel, and opens things up for one of Sandoval's best vocal turns. Conversely, on "Roseblood," the psych-rock gloom returns with Sandoval's vocal at its sleepy-sultry best, but what really pulls the song together is the backwards guitar effects that handle the main instrumental breaks. A masterstroke Mr. Roback. Rather than their "weakest" album, Among My Swan is their most "underrated" album, a distinction that, while wholeheartedly undeserved, makes this album ripe for rediscovery.

Mazzy Star- So Tonight That I Might See (1993) MP3 & FLAC -For marioscafe-

"Come so close that I might see the crash of light come down on me."

While So Tonight That I Might See can certainly be considered Mazzy Star's "breakthrough" album, the irony is that, aside from David Roback's slightly more lush production, the band hadn't sacrificed any of the dark psych-rock mystique that made  She Hangs Brightly so seductive. If anything, on their second LP, Mazzy Star had distilled their unique sound, resulting in a more focused and varied set of songs that would mark the creative apex of their (unfortunately) brief recording career. So Tonight That I Might See begins with "Fade into You," easily Mazzy Star's most identifiable song, and, as hard as it is to believe, a minor hit. Despite its unlikely brush with mainstream success, the song is a dark, haunting masterpiece that lets nary a ray light in. Also deserving of mention is the cover of Arthur Lee's "Five String Serenade," an exceedingly simple acoustic-drenched ode that provides Hope Sandoval with the perfect vehicle for the sultry torpor of her vocals. The often over-looked gem on this album is the title track, which, much like the title track on the debut album, allows the band to pursue the more aggressive side of its psych-rock pedigree. Overall, an exceedingly gorgeous piece of work to be sure.

Mazzy Star- She Hangs Brightly (1990) MP3 & FLAC

"Takes me down deep and wide, pulls me through to the other side."

Hope Sandoval was originally pressed into service as the lead singer of David Roback's Paisley Underground psych-rock band Opal after Kendra Smith left the stage halfway through a show while touring in the UK in 1988. The following year, after an aborted attempt at recording a second Opal album, Ghost Highway, the band rechristened itself Mazzy Star and released its debut, She Hangs Brightly, in 1990. In the interim, Roback had traded in the gauzy, languorous T-Rex-inspired space-rock of his Opal days for a sound approximating Robbie Krieger playing the Delta Blues as a member of The Velvet Underground. And then there's Hope Sandoval's oh-so-singular vocals: sultry, child-like, vulnerable, untouchable, and ably expressing both a heartbreaking sense of desolation and a disinterested sense of separation. She Hangs Brightly contains a number of psychedelic gems, including "Halah" and their inspired cover of Slapp Happy's "Blue Flower," but often overlooked are the acoustic blues-based songs, which Sandoval's vocals sell unforgettably. She Hangs Brightly tends to be over-shadowed by the band's breakthrough follow-up, So Tonight That I Might See, but it deserves far better. Its Delta-pysch hybrid still sounds fresh, and while often emulated over the years, it has never been bested.

Mazzy Star- "Blue Flower" (1994) Live, Later with Jools Holland

Peerless, absolutely peerless...