For Freaks Only! Half superb, half so-so.
02/03/2003
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Maybe this isn't like the other Crayola records but it's not like it came out of nowhere. It's outside-music, you know, like Sun Ra, John Cage, Albert Ayler, etc. The Red Crayola wasn't the first nor were they the last to make this kind of music, since it's still thriving and multi-faceted. It has good and bad practitioners, just like any other kind of music. Someone who isn't even a little familiar with the genre has no business reviewing something from it. [This paragraph was in response to some earlier ignoramus reviews, now deleted]
That said, this double-disc is uneven, but when it's good, it's excellent. The first, long track of the second disc is a fantastic live-set from Berkeley. Completely inspired. The next piece with John Fahey - at his most outside in that decade - is also very good. Fans of his late material will want to check this out.
The first disc from Angry Arts is not as good really. The live set falls flat, and the material recorded in the hotel only has moments. For one thing the singing is annoying. Oddly, there's no singing on the 2nd disc.
The historical value of this recording is considerable, since there weren't many Americans doing free music in a rock setting in 1967. But maybe just the second disc would have been enough."