Aphrodite's Child - 666 (1970-2 - psych/prog weirdo pop/cult music)
I'll admit that there are several themes that, though cheesy and juvenile, will get me every time - namely references to L.S.D, naked girls, and Satan. Psych-garage songs that allude to LSD (ex. The Pretty Things "L.S.D.") I will by instantly, same goes with metal/hard rock albums that refer to Satanism (ex. Venom's "Welcome to Hell"), and, well pretty much anything with naked girls (Herb Alpert's and the Tijuana Brass' "Wiped Cream and Other Delights").
So, yes, it is under this line of thinking that I purchased this landmark album by Greek prog rockers Aphrodite's Child. But instead of the heavy doomy proto-metal prog that I had expected, "666 - The Apocalypse of John, 13/18" is something very different.
A concept album that that crosses two LP's, "666" really doesn't sound like any other album I've heard before. Some of the tacks are sort of "concept filler" but most of them are interesting like the first track "The System" which is just a repeated chanting of "We've got a system to fuck the system" before slamming into the upbeat rhythm-centered rocker "Babylon."
Other times these interludes show themselves for the space filler that they are with mantras, poetry, sound effects. These can get excessive but they do paint a interesting and moody atmosphere for the album.
Overall the album is much more up-beat than I expected, and even featuring several pop-oriented songs, but don't get me wrong taken as whole this album is as far out and into left-field as they come. Quiet cult-moaning ragas will run head first into wild peddle-to-the-metal acid rockers and then will follow up with a free-jazz sax interlude before mutating into a danceable prog-funk.
I'm having a difficult time describing the music here, so I'll just let it speak for itself. The bands main composer,Vangelis Papathanassiou would later pen the main theme song to Chariots of Fire and probably made more money than he did while in this band.
- overview by denez
Tracklist:
- The System
- Babylon
- Loud, Loud, Loud
- The For Horsemen
- The Lamb
- The Seventh Seal
- Aegian Sea
- Seven Bowls
- The Wakening Beast
- Lament
- The Marching Beast
- The Battle of the Locusts
- Do It
- Tibulation
- The Beast
- Ofis
- Seven Trumpets
- Altamont
- The Wedding of the Lamb
- The Capture of the Beast
- (infinity)
- Hic and Nunc
- All the Seats Were Occupied
- Break
Buy this album right here and you'll thank me for it.
...but you might want to look under the hood first:
http://rapidshare.com/files/8562958/Aphrodites_Child.rar
posted by nick beef @ 9:01 AM
http://greenfuz.blogspot.com/atom.xml
AND HERE'S A LIST OF 45's THAT I WANT BUT I ANT GOT. SO IF YOU KNOW HOW I CAN GET 'EM, FUCKING TELL ME:
12 Comments:
Nice one. :-)
Thanks
Richard
thanks a lot, this was one of the first (hippy)-records I've listen to, when I was 16 and smoke a lot of dope (till now :-/) - and it was around 1996! :-). it was a door opener to all that great and often bizzarr-boring prog-rock stuff.
this thing is great because of the colorness and the wide range of styles.
Does someone know the band "Sweet Smoke" that was one of the first musical trips too (that long phasing drum solo)
best
marcus
speaking of sweet smokes- this band can also be compared with Iron Butterfly in that both were organ based - Aprodites Child had a hit in 66 or so called Tears and Rain that was a minor anthem for the 68 rebellions - like whiter shade of pale the band displayed major classical chops in songs
Years ago I bought a Best Of collection by these guys--I'd never heard of them, but they were wearing paisley caftans on the cover, so I sprang. It was an awesome album, and is probably the best introduction. I thought this album definitely had its moments, but it's not something I'd listen to twice. It only has 1 real song(The 4 Horseman)!
did no one notice??, but this transfer is messed up big time..either it's the pressing but i'm sure it's the turntable, as through the whole thing, there is a WOW effect, slight speed up and slow down. Very disturbing. Playing my vinyl copy along side makes it even more apparent.. thanks for the transfer, but it's garbage..check your turntable?
faltan 2 tracks en el archivo. "lament" and "The Wakening Beast".
What??? Are kidding me? I always thought that was the album cover for the Damon's album 666! Was I mistaken all this time?
Well, then thank you, it's true, you learn something new every day.
No artwork is the absolute bullshit!
Nice synopsis, I agree with a lot of what you've said! Not the most amazing album of all time, but a very satisfying listen indeed! Just reviewed it too on my blog.
I have listened to this album about 50 times over the years since it first came out. However, at the same time I have read the book of Revelation about the same number of times...the two need to be done together. Check out Chuck Missler's presentation of Revelation online-go to Google Videos and type in Chuck Missler - Revelation - Session 01. Awesome! CHB
So, I do not really consider it may have effect.
this album i like it very much, i think your recording has problems of speed variation!
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