(LP + CD set) Being as LSD was first developed in a laboratory in Basel, it is perhaps no coincidence that one of the most 'far out' albums of all time was made by this Swiss band (no small feat, given the competition!). Brainticket's 1971 debut, Cottonwoodhill, begins normally enough with two fine psychedelic / kraut rock-influenced tracks, but the remainder of the album plays like an acid trip with a soundtrack, dominated by Joel Vandroogenbroeck's endless droning organ, a variety of musique concrète-type sound effects and vocalist Dawn Muir's trippy vocals. The album, banned in several countries, even came with this self-imposed warning: 'After Listening to this Record, your friends may not know you anymore.' / 'Only listen to this once a day, your brain might be destroyed!'. Gatefold 180 gram LP + bonus CD of the album.
Product details
Is Discontinued By Manufacturer
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No
Product Dimensions
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12.28 x 12.28 x 0.24 inches; 13.16 ounces
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Another fine effort from this unique band, some say that this album is the musical representation of an acid trip. Its beautiful and grotesque at the same time, one of those obscure findings in my music collection. What I find peculiar, is the European flavor mixed with some psychedelia ala “Anthems from the sun” Grateful Dead, this music will put your mind on overdrive.
This is basically LSD inspired poetry, recited over an organ and rythm section playing funk grooves. And it doesn't sound like the acid ingestie is having a lot of fun. "Sex, of course you have sex, you have no choice."
The album maintains this consistancy throughout, and is probably the closest you'll ever get to a "trip" on record.
The concept is great and so is the music, for the most part. At times the band sounds a little thin. Brainticket used a lot of one chord textures, and this album could have benifited from a few more instruments (an ecchoing saprano sax maybe) added to the stew. (I would like to hear this on LP one day and see if i feel this way)
I also guess the last track had to be broken up on vynal, but I feel it would have been more effective on CD if it were welded together.
This aside, it is a great album, truely weird and totally atmosphereic. If you like progressive or just strange music, there is no going without this.
Make sure you play the whole thing. Very cool, creepy suprise at the end
I could never figure out why this gets lumped in with the Krautrock genre. It's more like a jazz / musique concrète, with the obvious example the Brainticket track. Either way - its reputation is well deserved, but no one ever mentions the two other tracks. They wouldn't be out of place in a Jess Franco film.
This is NOTHING like any other album I've heard! It has a split personality; the first two tracks seem to have a far-out, more laid-back feel, while the last two are like a bad trip. Dawn Muir's spoken-word vocals seem to create sharply divided opinions. On the first two songs, her voice is heavily distorted with a Leslie. You hear the real voice on the other two. On Brainticket 1, her vocalizing is somewhat dreamy, even though that dream gets a bit rough! On Brainticket 2, she goes into full nightmare mode, and you might wish for a bit less. Whatever you end up thinking, this is surely NOT boring!
Considered one of the most psychedelic albums ever released, 'Cottonwoodhill' is brilliant with amazing sound effects, propulsive keyboards(on the dominating namesake track 'brainticket pt.1 and 2),special vocal effects, great guitar work and a very demented monologue that puts you at the heart of the psychedelic experience. This album, recorded in 1971, accomplishes where others have tried and failed ('Anthem of The Sun','After Bathing At Baxter's')i.e. to record an acid trip. Whether by improved production techniques or more inspired performance, this is psychedelic music at its best!
Brainticket was often categorized in the Krautrock category, when in reality, the band was of multi-nationalities, lead by Belgian-born Joël Vandroogenbroeck. But they did have many of the same traits you expect from the early '70s Krautrock scene. Regarded as one of the most psychedelic albums ever, you'll of course wonder why, when you hear the first two cuts, "Black Sand" and "Places of Light". They sound very much like typical organ-driven prog rock you expect from the time (I am especially fond of the latter as Dawn Muir spouts out some psychedelic poetry). It's the other two thirds of the album that justifies the album as being one of the most psychedelic ever. It's basically taken up by "Brainticket Part 1" and "Part 2", which is little else than a repeated fuzz organ riff with tons of very disturbing electronic effects, sounds, and Dawn Muir, well, sounding rather disturbed. It's one of those albums I can't recommend to everyone, if this is too much for you, let me suggest their 1972 followup, Psychonaut (as it's mellower, and more song-oriented). In fact, the experience of Cottonwoodhill was too much, and the band broke up leaving some of the members to form the Swiss band Toad (with Benjamin Jäger, later of Island, who released the excellent prog rock album, Pictures in 1977). That left Joël Vandroogenbroeck to form new versions of Brainticket with more great albums to come. Anyway, if you're looking for music that's way out there, then Cottonwoodhill is a must.
I first heard this when I was given a tape in the early 90's from a guy who was a tanker stationed in Germany in the late '70s. Though I didn't really listen to it fully for a number of years. The funny part is the poor quality of the cassette copy actually made it even quirkier!
Wie versprochen geliefert! Einfach Super Album, auch sehr schön Vinyl und CD zu besitzen! Verpackung war hervorragend! So macht es einfach spaß über das Internet zu bestellen!
Die Platte ist für Fans des psychodelischen Rocks ein Muss. Keine Frage, schräg ist die Scheibe allemal und die Produzenten sind sich dem wohl auch bewusst gewesen. Nicht umsonst gibt es in der Innenhülle folgende Warnungen: "Nach dem Anhören dieser Platte kennen dich deine Freunde möglicherweise nicht mehr" und "Hör dir das nur einmal am Tag an. Dein Gehirn könnte zerstört sein!"
Ich würde sogar weiter gehen und die Platte nur ein Mal im Monat hören, aber dann zumindest beide Seiten komplett und bis zum Ende. In jedem Fall ist des anstrengend bis zur letzten Rille durchzuhalten.
And strangely compelling. But did the Bee Gees really use the "Black Sand" riff when writing "Staying Alive" for Saturday Night Fever? Or is my brain Already Affected?
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