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Posts tagged Matching Mole
Matching Mole – Smoke Signals (Live 1972) (@256)
23 Mar 2010
(Review from progarchives.com)
‘Smoke Signals’ was recorded in spring 1972 during an European tour mainly in Belgium and France. As these tapes were not planned for release the sound quality is just acceptable.
Most tracks appearing here were written by Dave Mc Rae and Phil Miller and would be recorded later for ‘The Little Red Record’. Dave Sinclair who started the tournee with the band had left and was replaced by keyboarder Dave Mc Rae who had already guested on the first record and brought with him some fine tunes like ‘March Ides’ and ‘Smoke Signal’ presented here for the first time in a rough version.
The band introduction by Wyatt, launches into ‘March Ides’.The theme is played by Phil Miller, who is soloing then over an ostinato bass line, followed by a drum solo. The second theme is ‘Smoke Signal’ (here re-named ‘Smoke Rings), maybe the most beautiful ‘Matching Mole’ theme by Dave Mc Rae. The theme is then followed by a longer improvisation until the re-exposure.
The next theme “Nan True’s Hole” was written by Phil Miller, who plays a repeated riff over which Dave Mc Rae plays an improvisation followed by another drum solo. ‘Brandy As In Benji’ follows the same structure of expostion solo, followed by a heavily distorted e-piano solo, that launches again into the ‘March Ides’ theme, followed by ‘Instant Pussy’ the only Robert Wyatt composition from the first record, with treated vocals by Robert and an e-piano improvisation.
The ‘Smoke Signal’ appears again, followed by another improvisation and a bass solo and finally the band launches into ‘Lything and gracing’ a Phil Miller composition, that would appear only as a Hatfield leftover on ‘Afters’.
The live sound of the band is for the most part instrumental fusion that point at which directions all future Canterbury related bands will go at. One might consider that Hatfield and the North, Gilgamesh, National Health are direct descendants from these live sounds provided on these archival tapes.
Line-up:
- Phil Miller / guitar
- Bill MacCormick / bass
- Dave McRae / electric piano
- Robert Wyatt / drums, vocals
Track List:
01. Intro – 0:44
02. March Ides I – 4:22
03. Smoke Rings – 7:51
04. Nan True’s Hole – 6:00
05. Brandy As In Benji – 4:22
06. Electric Piano solo – 1:11
07. March Ides II – 4:56
08. Instant Pussy – 2:52
09. Smoke Signal – 6:59
10. Lything & Gracing – 11:53
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Matching Mole – March (Live 1972) (@256)
22 Mar 2010
(Review from bbc.co.uk, progarchives.com)
By the time this album was recorded (March 1972, a month after Sinclair’s departure) the band were playing continuous sets with much room for collective improvisation amid the more arranged pieces. “March” captures both the uncertainties and glories of this method beautifully.
The material is drawn mainly from their eponymous first album, with guitarist Phil Miller’s rifferamas “Part of the Dance” and “Lything and Gracing” in full effect. Despite their progressive tricksiness, the Mole’s renderings of them are faintly haphazard, teetering on the brink of destruction then turning away at the last nanosecond. Wyatt’s extraordinary drumming comes across as a wired concoction of Tony Williams and Keith Moon; he and bassist Bill MacCormick sometimes appear to be operating in seperate time zones.
The sublime “Instant Pussy” features Robert’s trademark cosmic scatting, though without the usual echo (‘Where’s the sheets of sound?’ he repeats as the engineer desperately searches for the right buttons and fails to find them). Another vocal gem is “No Alf Measures”, Wyatt’s lovely arrangement of an early Kevin Ayers tune. Their cover of Caravan number Waterloo Lilly is surprising and vocal-less.
Miller’s distinctive playing has a keening, bluesy quality that sits nicely with his nibbled distortojazz stylings. His and MacCormick’s playing is kept in check by McCrae’s measured, shimmering electric piano.
So powerful, so thrilling, and so vital and lively their play should be.
Line-up:
- Bill MacCormick / bass
- Dave McRae / electric piano
- Phil Miller / guitar
- Robert Wyatt / drums, vocals
Track List:
01. March – 4:49
02. Instant Pussy – 4:53
03. Smoke Signals – 6:20
04. Part Of The Dance – 9:54
05. No Alf Measures – 5:44
06. Lything And Gracing – 11:36
07. Waterloo Lilly – 4:21
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Matching Mole – On the Radio 1972-1973 (@256)
21 Mar 2010
(Review from progarchives.com)
Over the year Matching Mole were together, they managed four BBC sessions but only one of them had been issued as “BBC in Concert” in 1992. This “On the Radio” album contains all four sessions (including the “BBC in Concert” session) with a good sound quality. The sessions aren’t chronologically ordered (the Jan 72 session is even broken up in two parts).
The first session we are subjected to is the April 1972 one, where all three tracks are meddled into a 20-mins — the band already has some tracks down for their second album. Indeed “Marchides” and “Smoke Signals” were only works-in-progress and both sound much different than in their future studio version (including a drum solo in the former); and are sandwiching “Instant Pussy” where Wyatt explodes his scat voice into echo effects.
Up next is the Jan 1972 session, broken up by the March 1972 session, with the delicious “Part Of The Dance” (with Sinclair still in the line-up and McRae in as well), with their first album just about to be released. The Miller-penned “Part of the Dance” song features both an Hammond organ and a Fender Rhodes, and even though the sound quality is a bit approximate, this is one of the album’s highlights. The two March session tracks (Sinclair was gone by then) are much clearer sounding, especially the Ayers cover “No ‘alf Measures” and the never studio-encapsulated “Lithing and Gracing” track, an exciting Miller, McRae & Wyatt composition. Rounding up the unreleased tracks is an extended version of “Immediate Kitten”, where Sinclair’s organ charms into the superb intro, then going fuzz into the body of the song. An extended and excellent workout that confirms that Matching Mole’s best moments were with both Sinclair and McRae in the band.
The second part of the album is an In Concert feature from late July 1972, just as their second album was almost finished; less than three months away from the group’s demise. This “session starts on the best Wyatt scat vocals ever with Instant Pussy, he yodels away madly in their best-ever version of this track. The next three tracks have been already featured in this archival release but are presented in much different versions and you’d have to be a chiefmasterconoisseur to guess blindly where “Lithing And Gracing” track begins. It sees Matching Mole in full madness roaring and “Marchides” sees McRae’s Fender Rhodes take a solid intro, before the group blinds us with their dexterity and virtuosity a bit further down the track. “Part Of The Dance” is again much livelier in this version than either the radio or studio version. Here, it is the pinnacle of Matching Mole’s short career, with Phil Miller shinning throughout the 6 minutes of the track. Absolutely essential stuff, with the closer ode to Benj (a roadie) melted in as a finale for the track.
Line-up:
- Robert Wyatt / drums, vocals
- Phil Miller / guitar
- Dave MacRae / e-piano.
- Bill MacCormick / bass
- Dave Sinclair / organ
Track List:
01. March Ides + Instant Pussy + Smoke Signal – 20:33
02. Part Of The Dance – 7:56
03. No ‘alf Measures – 6:49
04. Lithing And Gracing – 7:18
05. Immediate Kitten – 9:59
06. Instant Pussy – 5:47
07. Lithing And Gracing – 4:49
08. Marchides – 6:49
09. Part Of The Dance – 6:32
10. Brandy As In Benj – 1:16
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Matching Mole – Little Red Record (1972) (@256)
20 Mar 2010
(Review from progarchives.com)
Less than seven months after recording their debut album, having toured constantly recording a few radio sessions throughout Europe, Matching Mole entered the studios in July 1972 for their second (and last) album that was produced by Robert Fripp.
Starting on one of the most surprising track that Wyatt ever recorded, “Drink Our Politics Away” is a strange semi-operatic over some McRae keyboards and Eno synth layer. Directly and abruptly segueing into “Marchides”, the group takes its vengeance with a wild and torrid 100mph jazz-rock that veers a bit dissonant in its middle section, before coming back more relaxed. Some exceptionally inventive drumming from Wyatt on this track that had received much previous rehearsal since it was concert standard, but everyone contributes greatly. Again segueing straight into “Nan True’s Hole”, Robert develops some very strange gossipy vocals with him, wifie Alfie and friendly model Julie just yapping away over Wyatt’s jaw-dropping drumming and a Frippian guitar solo, courtesy of Phil Miller; the whole thing falling into “Righteous Rhumba” without really noticing much a change. Closing on the wild “Brandy as in Benj”, with McRae on a rare organ part at the start and Miller’s brilliant solo.
Being shutout throughout the first half of the album, McCormick scores “Gloria Gloom” as the flipside opens with the second centrepiece, which starts nightmarishly percussive and hauntingly spooky with Eno’s VCS-3 deranging many listeners and remaining dissonant through a few minutes, until chattering gossipy vocals take the track slowly into the middle section where Wyatt singing his heart out until Eno’s Martenot-like synth layers take us back to earth. After the popish “God Song” (sticking out like a sore thumb), “Flora Fidgit” where McRae’s el piano steals the show. The closing Smoke Signal is the third highlight, a slow developing ambient cosmic piece with Wyatt’s astounding drumming, and slowly dying in death throes.
Although Matching Mole’s last studio album is generally not as reputed as its debut album, it’s certainly as good as it, with this one being more of a group effort.
Line-up:
- Robert Wyatt / drums, mouth
- Phil Miller / guitars
- Dave McRae / grand piano, electric piano, Hammond organ
- Bill MaCormick / bass
with
- Brian Eno / synthesizers
Track List:
01. Starting In The Middle Of The Day We Can Drink Our Politics Away – 2:31
02. Marchides – 8:25
03. Nan True’s Hole – 3:36
04. Righteous Rhumba – 2:50
05. Brandy As In Benj – 4:24
06. Gloria Gloom – 8:06
07. God Song – 2:59
08. Flora Fidgit – 3:27
09. Smoke Signal – 6:38
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Matching Mole – Matching Mole (1972) (@256)
19 Mar 2010
(Review from progarchives.com)
With his first solo album under his belt, Robert Wyatt returned to Soft Machine, only to find that opposition to his vocal experiments had grown stronger than ever, and he left “this group that was making him so miserable”.
Wyatt called up Dave Sinclair, Delivery’s Phil Miller (brother of then-Caravan member Steve Miller), and found Bill McCormick during a Quiet Sun eclipse and formed his group, which only rehearsed three months before recording their debut album. About halfway through it became apparent that Sinclair wasn’t going to stay in Matching Mole, so the group added jazzman Dave McRae on electric piano, but supposedly as a guest.
The links between the two bands didn’t severe though. Not only did Wyatt name his new band after his former group’s French translation (Machine Mole >> hence Matching Mole), but the two groups spent much time touring together, the newcoming Matching Mole opening for the veteran Soft Machine.
Recorded around Christmas 1971, the band’s debut album is an uneven affair, with the record basically divided in three sections. The first section seems to elevate Wyatt as a superstar with his vocals brought to the fore, while the second movement is a wild fusion of jazz-rock and progressive rock, and the third part being quite experimental.
The opener “O Caroline” is a sentimental ballad with Wyatt’s fragile vocals accompanied by piano and mellotron sprawling all over the song. Next is the superb “Instant Pussy” where Wyatt orgasms into the microphone as if he was a woman, the whole thing over a tranquil bass line and a gentle jazz-rock rhythm. Segueing directly into “Signed Curtain”, Wyatt starts with his no nonsense “first verse and chorus” lyrics over a piano. After the first three songs celebrating Wyatt’s diverse fortunes as a singer, the albums veers (first gently with a soft electric piano) but less than a minute into Miller’s “Part Of The Dance”, we are deeply in hard-driving uncompromising jazz-rock, the type that fries your brains when looking out for the sun. This track blazes and smokes all the way throughout its 9-mins+.
The flipside starts on two tracks that could’ve easily come from the better Caravan albums, and it’s a bit surprising to find that Sinclair didn’t write these two. “Instant Kitten” is a slow developing track that pays tribute to its sister “Instant Pussy”, but once the second part of the track has arrives, it sounds stunningly like a Caravan track looking for home (Grey & Pink era). The next track, “Dedicated To Hugh” (after a Vol 2 Soft Machine track) starts on weird electronic noises, before returning to a Caravan sound (this time Waterloo Lily era), before veering completely insane RIO improvisation. “Beer As Braindeer” is a cosmic theme in its middle section, but takes upon the RIO realm for the opening and losing parts. The latter “Immediate Curtain” is spooky cosmic track that resembles eatly Tangerine Dream.
Matching Mole’s debut album is a bit of a confusing and uneven, but the qualities are so much greater than its flaws. Though it’s hard to recommend any Matching Mole albums to a novice Canterbury pilgrim.
Line-up:
- Robert Wyatt / drums, vocals, piano, mellotron
- Dave Sinclair / keyboards
- Bill MacCormick / bass
- Phil Miller / guitar
with
- Dave McRae / keyboards
Track List:
01. O Caroline – 5:05
02. Instant Pussy – 2:59
03. Signed Curtain – 3:06
04. Part Of The Dance – 9:16
05. Instant Kitten – 4:58
06. Dedicated To Hugh, But You Weren’t Listening – 4:39
07. Beer As In Braindeer – 4:02
08. Immediate Curtain – 5:57
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