West.13th. CRANIAL HEALTH….. a psychiatric records product…. 23rd October
Psychiatric Record’s inaugural night at West 13th created a cavalcade of mania, sound, colour, technical hitches and great entertainment for all. Your intrepid reporter burst into the venue breathless, after running all the way from University, just in time to catch the last 10 mins of AMBIENT GRANDFATHER. There are those amongst us who know this man better as Frogpocket, a one man asylum for bizarre electric sounds, with a stare so comforting it could calm a thousand wasps mad for jam. Tonight, he was in fine form, goading the crowd with a child’s telephone, while satan’s electronic orchestra played somewhere in his mind. Simultaneously strange disembodied voices spoke somewhere, telling of life, love and washing up ( I think).
When that was over and pints were downed it was time for THE PENDULUMS. Well, it should have been. Time passed. After much furrowing of brows and swapping of leads the majority of the sound problems were ironed out and eventually they took to the stage. Charging through a set like a pack of psychedelic rhinos, they had the audience in the palms of their (hopefully washed) hands. Their music appears to have descended from outer space on the back of an Incredible String Band rerelease compilation, possibly piloted by Sandy Denny’s drunken ghost just back from cow-tipping. Blessed with a wealth of ridiculously brilliant material and a lovely Loon named "Mr Dimensional" as a frontman I do hope that John Peel catches them before Strathclyde Police.
Suitably chastened, and donning my white robe, it was time for my final examination… in steps the mysterious RUTABAGA. For those poor souls who know nothing about seven (or eight?) piece improvised electronic cosmic hyper-jazz, this is the band for you. Containing all of Psychiatric Record’s A&R "department"("ward", more likely) in their line up, they are doctors of insanity, improvising a forty minute set from nothing, touching on drum ‘n’ bass, free jazz, experimental guitar noise, electronic bleeps, samples, brass, sax and a digeridoo…. At several points in the set, I had to grab onto the bar to make sure I knew which way was up (No, it wasn’t the beer, smartass). This is music to make your mind spin, sometimes breathtakingly inspired, other times, a real headfuck!
So there you have it, a glimpse into the frankly un-normal world of Psychiatric Records. Long may their madness remain incurable…….