Led by maverick folksters Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber, the Holy Modal Rounders were a blend of Greenwich Village strum, Kentucky bluegrass and Appalachian drone -- topped off with enough mind-altering chemicals to derai... more »l the Wabash Cannonball. The Rounders' 1968 masterpiece, The Moray Eels Eat the Holy Modal Rounders, spotlights "The Bird Song," an infectious ditty used in the Easy Rider soundtrack, the squealing majesty of "Werewolf" and drug-addled ramblings like "My Mind Capsized" and "The STP Song" (it wasn't about that slippery engine oil). Sam Shepard, the Rounders drummer (and soon-to-be-acclaimed playwright), even muffs the words to the pledge of allegiance, transporting you to the era as surely as a truncheon to the head at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Here's an exact vinyl repro. of the hideously rare original LP -- maybe the only "folk" album you'll ever own that will have your mom screaming, "Turn that *&!!@#!! thing down! !!"« less
Led by maverick folksters Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber, the Holy Modal Rounders were a blend of Greenwich Village strum, Kentucky bluegrass and Appalachian drone -- topped off with enough mind-altering chemicals to derail the Wabash Cannonball. The Rounders' 1968 masterpiece, The Moray Eels Eat the Holy Modal Rounders, spotlights "The Bird Song," an infectious ditty used in the Easy Rider soundtrack, the squealing majesty of "Werewolf" and drug-addled ramblings like "My Mind Capsized" and "The STP Song" (it wasn't about that slippery engine oil). Sam Shepard, the Rounders drummer (and soon-to-be-acclaimed playwright), even muffs the words to the pledge of allegiance, transporting you to the era as surely as a truncheon to the head at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Here's an exact vinyl repro. of the hideously rare original LP -- maybe the only "folk" album you'll ever own that will have your mom screaming, "Turn that *&!!@#!! thing down! !!"
CD Reviews
Ridiculous but also Sublime
Steven Moore | Ann Arbor, MI USA | 08/07/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This wonderful album is as weird as everyone says it is, but it also has some truly lovely moments. "One Will Do for Now" sounds almost like a Renaissance madrigal, and "Dame Fortune" is one of the most haunting, sublime songs I've ever heard, from anyone. That's what makes this album extraordinary: the range from sublime moments like these to the ridiculous, but hugely enjoyable, other songs on this album. "That's artiste to you"!"
Best Acid Folk, performed by its lone practioners.
07/16/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"More than a modest dose of serotonergic nostalgia, the re-appearance of this lost gem is cause for celebration, amongst a decidedly small niched fan base. More successfully than Indian War Whoop, MEEtHMR builds a truely alternative mind set on top of the same kind of old timey music that is suddenly so much in vogue these days. The difference here is the warm, deviant humor that seems to tie the whole thing together.
For those who thought that "If you want to be a bird" sounded a little too strange for the Easy Rider soundtrack, be warned that it is by far the most coherent song on this album. Recommended only for those with a taste for the fringes of 60's zeitgeist. On the other hand, this is damned good stuff."
Sound sound
Nathan E. Delman | Evanston, IL United States | 03/06/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"First I got, "good taste is timeless" and it was ok, but not as wacky as the album cover promised. A couple years later, I got this one. This is the album I was looking for and immediately understood my dissapointment in "good taste is timeless" The producer of this album started with the name Barry Friedman, and by the end went by Frazier Mohawk. That should give you some inkling of what you are getting into. Although "The STP Song" (actually titled August, 1967) is cut in half, the destruction of the singular song contributes to the overall aesthetic (I don't really think there is a concept here, aside from lets get these guys in the studio before they forget these songs). The brevity facilitates listening to the album straight through, creating a streaming experience instead of a collection of compositions. Even at 29 minutes Meethmr takes it time, from the ethereal nasal voyage of bird song to the frantic panic of getting a F on your report card, this album is a must."
Are You normal,? this is nothing for You
C. Holmsten | H-borg, Sweden | 08/16/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"If You're not prepared before listening this could be a mental schock. The upspeeded combination of amphetamin and LSD makes the music going crazy. This kind of hippie-hallucination shows how sounds from inside a brain can wind up in recorded tracks. How they do it I can't understand. But I love it and realize that even music can be a drug. A healthy one."
Holy Moly
McSpunkle | USA | 11/09/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I don't know much about folk music, but a friend turned me onto this album a few years back. Now I do know quite a bit about psychedelic music & man-o-man this is intense stuff here!
The group is called The Holy Modal Rounders and apparently they were getting eaten by The Moray Eels. I think it had something to do with the band changing their name to The Moray Eels, but I could be mistaken. It's probably in the liner notes. Anyway, I know two of these guys were in The Fugs. They kind of sound like the backwoods moonshine drinkin, duji inhalin cousins of The Fugs.
Most of the songs here are more like snippets of songs, and there are no gaps between them. Songs cut each other off and jump suddenly to the next one. The acoustic guitar and fiddle that provide most of the music sound lazy and out of tune, but they're doing some really interesting and creative stuff. Sometimes the voices are slightly (and not so slightlyly) sped up creating an uneasy but funny effect. It's kind of like blacking in and out of a trip. The whole thing lasts about a half hour but it seems much longer (to me) because so much happens.
There's the bird song (most people know it from Easy Rider), dirty revenge on a Take Off artist, a werewolf, a guy losin' half his mind and taking someone else's, the evilest bullfrog stomper in Alabam, etc. All sung by a couple of cartoon characters who sound like they're high as a mofo. One of them is on the verge of losing his voice throughout the record. Like, "we gotta finish before his voice is totally gone!"
One of the strangest albums ever, and one of my favorites. I heard they just released a documentary on these guys. I'll have to check that out."
Track Listings (13) - Disc #1