IF DANIEL JOHNSTON WAS A RAPPER...

...he STILL wouldn't be as messed-up as Dan Bull, a 22-year-old self-described autistic, whose album "Safe" is so disturbing, it makes eminem sound like Doris Day. It's a mighty impressive debut, begging comparisons to The Streets, but if ya ax me, this dude's got much better flow. The music is similarly well-crafted.

It starts off fairly innocuous, with a wistful tale of summer, followed by a love song, and that's as happy as it gets - the lover spurns him, and he actually sounds like he's about to break down by the end of the song. From then on it's nothing but pain, alienation, loneliness, and dreams of oblivion to escape his torturous life. Happy New Year!

I don't get the "autistic" diagnosis, though. I thought autistics couldn't communicate? Dan Bull gets his thoughts across loud and clear. I hope it is a real mental health condition - otherwise, there'd be no excuse for a fucked-up lyric about "the day I die will be the greatest day since Sept. 11."

This tune is actually a catchy, musically up-beat, succinct (2 1/2 minute) rocker, if you don't mind lyrics that are along the lines of "mankind is doomed and we're all gonna die."

Dan Bull "Thistopia"

Listen to a lo-fi stream of all the songs here. Can someone in England please put a suicide watch on this guy?

UPDATE: Just got a note from the man himself, who clarifies: "I have a form of high-functioning autism (Asperger syndrome) that means I'm highly literate especially in contexts where I can plan out and write what I'm going to say - hence the wordiness of the album. It's social interaction, sensory overload and the resulting anxiety from these that I struggle with."

KAZOOMZOOM

Now here's a dandy way to kick off the new year. Katya Oddio, who has already done so much for the internet music world with her Oddio Overplay site, has started a new children's music 'net-label:

Kazoomzoom.com

Four releases for free download consumption are now up, including the thoroughly enjoyable various artists comp "Silly Songs," from whence comes this short 'n' sweet number by the accurately named Kazoo Funk Orchestra:

Kazoo Funk Orchestra - The Jagables

Also featured: The Bran Flake's kids-record sample breakbeat grooviness, and, on a seperate release, a collection of century-old ragtime piano rolls. Much of the music is instrumental, though of a decidedly bent nature, e.g. the zany electro of A Smile for Timbuctu should warm the tummy of any Jean-Jacques Perrey fan. Do kids even like instrumentals? Or is this like Twink The Toy Piano Band - child-like entertainment for grown-ups? (Although the booger song should go over well with the tots - I know I would have loved it.)

MASH-TERPIECES

There's been a remarkable batch of mashup/sound collage albums hitting the web recently, going way beyond the usual Top 40 acapella vs rock instrumental. These (mostly) free download albums sometimes feature live vocals, and original lyrics & music mixed with found-sound elements, and richly textured collage soundscapes. Was 2008 the best year yet for illegal music?

The Who Boys: "Now That's What I Call The Who Boys!" These British nutters claim that this is their last album; if so, then they're going out on top with a superior mixture of spoken-word absurdism, '60s kitsch, brutal electro beats, lovely harmony singing, and all the while sampling everything from country auctioneers & scratchy old 78s to headbangin' rock.

The Who Boys: Gotta Hava

Santastic Four: Boston's dj BC has been compiling various-artist Christmas comps for a few years now, and this is the best one yet (and I'm not just sayin' that cuz I'm on it!). New York's ATOM has created a tune so abstract it's almost unrecognizable as holiday music.

ATOM: You Should Be A Freaky Christmas, Baby

Mashed In Plastic: A David Lynch tribute, featuring music, dialogue & sound effects from his films; available as separate tracks or as two seamless, dreamy, disturbing mixes. The website is a feast for the eyes and ears. Best mashup comp ever?

Colatron: "I'll Be There In Twin Peaks"

People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz: "Rhapsody In Glue" This one, the second collaboration between two primo British eccentrics, does require a small donation, but it's well worth it for another delightful mix of Alice in Wonderland-esque songs and lyrics, cartoonish sound effects, and sampled coolness, like this version of the EZ '60s classic "Theme From A Summer Place":

People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz: "Carmic Waltz"

RickRawked: Doesn't get more mental then this - a various-artists collection that's basically just old-fashioned acapella + instro mashups...but they're all using Rick Astley's '80s cheeze-fest "Never Gonna Give You Up." Rick slowed down, Rick pitched-up, Rick swings, Rick rocks. Incredibly, it doesn't get dull, and most of it works.

Phil RetroSpector "Ricky" (Rick vs the "Rocky" theme)

This should keep y'all busy for a while - I'll be back in the new year. Thanks to the M4M crew for all your contributions: Chris Weirdo, solcofn, J-Unit 1, and all you lovely Maniacs out there for another year (our fourth!) of sonic sweetness. Keep them cards and letters coming - I may not have the time to post everything you write to me about, but I really appreciate it. As the Cramps advised, stay sick!

THE WORST CHRISTMAS SONG EVER

It isn't often that the world of political talk radio ventures into Music For Maniacs territory, but recently Alan Colmes featured a record from his collection on his show that he described as the "worst Christmas song ever." He may be right. I certainly haven't laughed this much at a Christmas recording since the Richard Cheese album came out, but that was intentional humor.

It's a Mercury Records single from 1975, produced and co-written by Paul Vance, who had an extremely successful string of hits in the '50s-thru-'70s, such as Brian Hyland's "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" and Perry Como's "Catch A Falling Star." Singer Linda Bennett was another pro, with an RCA album and several tv and movie credits under her belt by the time they made this. And, of course, Mercury was a major label. So there was no excuse for this.

It's starts off as a typically bland bit of mid-70s pop, then slowly moves into the twilight zone before arriving at a simply ludicrous, laugh-til-you-cry ending. SPOLER ALERT: Don't read the comments to this post until you've heard the song!

Linda Bennett "An Old Fashioned Christmas"

Bah! Humbug: The Alternative Christmas Album

"Bah! Humbug" is a now-deleted collection of acoustic satirical songs by a bunch of British folkies, with a couple classic American ringers from Tom Lehrer and Loudon Wainwright III. The low-key folk setting is an amusing contrast to such potentially dark material such as "The Man That Slits The Turkey's Throats At Christmas," a lovely acapella vocal number.
 
Funny stuff, and maybe just the thing if you're starting to get sick of Christmas music. Grab the whole thing here:

Bah! Humbug: An Alternative Christmas Album


Thanks to Santa Chris!

Krimus Karuls

Krimus Karuls is a free Christmas-themed download album featuring 7 short tracks by 12-year old Nichole, who seems to be making up the songs as she goes along. Despite the usual juvenile predilections for atonal singing and utterly uninhibited performances, Nichole still seems to posses a strong, confident voice - she might become an excellent "real" singer one day. I think my fave of hers might be "What a Day for a Dog of Gold", but it's only 23 seconds. Heck, this bit unhinged zaniness is the longest and it's only 1:50.

Nichole & The Dreamcatchers: "It's Time To Rejoice"

A couple of '70s-era home-recordings of kids singing Christmas songs are also included. The remainder of the tracks on the album are low-fi rockers by grown-ups in the Beat Happening/Guided By Voices vein. Some of it's pretty good, e.g. the Chrome-esque "Ode to Gandolf and Ye Ole Christmas Spirit," and the peppy organ grinder "It's Jesus' Birthday So He Should Get the Toys." The closer "Red & Green" brings kids back for a lovely lullaby.

POT-BELLIED PIGS SING CHRISTMAS STANDARDS

"The Jingle Bellies Christmas Album" just might be the weirdest holiday CD in my collection. This out-of-print 1994 release by Louisiana-born session cat Bobby Breaux is certainly one of my favorites. The almost flatulent sounds of sampled pig snorts and grunts is often, er, "acapella," though the album opener "Deck The Halls" has a groovy Latin rhythm. Grab the whole thing in all it's 22-minute glory here:

The Jingle Bellies Christmas Album

1. Deck The Halls

2. Joy To The World

3. Medley: God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen; Hava "Nasqueala"

4. Amazing "Grease"

5. Jingle Bells

6. O Come All Ye Faithful

7. Greensleeves

8. Medley: Noel; O Christmas Tree; We Wish You A Merry Christmas

RADIO USE ONLY

Radio Use Only is a fascinating site devoted to those releases record hounds often come across in thrift stores and used-record shops' bargain bins - albums released by radio stations.

The practice "...started out as promotional items to spotlight a certain disc jockey or a particular show on the station. Other early-known radio compilations would feature various popular songs, of the time, in a pre-packaged set. Some of these would also include audio samples of station disc jockeys introducing songs...Starting in the early 1970’s, radio stations began sponsoring albums featuring local, unsigned performers."

The blog has audio samples. I particularly like this "groovy" and "happening" Dallas-area radio station jingle:

KXXK jingle (circa 1968-1971)

Which reminds me of this contemporaneous (and seasonal) jingle from the Free Design:

The Now Sounds of Christmas

CHRISTMAS IS FOR WEIRDOS

Chris Weirdo is back, this time with 2 disks worth of Yuletide oddities that certainly got me into the holiday spirit this weekend. If you've been diggin' his previous comps like Music For Weirdos then you know what to expect.

It kicks off with a delightfully cynical number from 1962 called "Merry Christmas You Suckers" that certainly gives Tom Lerher or Stan Freberg a run for his money (Mr. Freberg, is in fact, represented as well). Never heard of Paddy Roberts before, but I'm a fan now. This is followed by a wealth of Christmas cartoon music, EZ-lounge instros, The Sonic's rip-roaring mid-'60s garage rock, a track from the infamous "Star Wars" Christmas album (hey, I got that one on vinyl), Moogs, banjos, '70s disco and RIAA's self-explanatory mashup " The Six Million Dollar Man & Santa Claus Fight Global Warming." One of the real finds for me was the square-dance version of "Jingle Bells." And who knew Eartha Kitt recorded a sequel to "Santa Baby"?

The second disk features a wealth of swing/jazz novelties from the 78 rpm era. I imagine "Santa Clause Hides in the Phonograph" is from the very early Edison era of recording. Some real stompin r'n'b oldies too: "Mambo Santa Mambo," "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus" - yep, Kris Kringle's down with all the latest dance moves. Then it's laffs galore from the likes of the Three Stooges, cartoon voice legends Jim "Thurston Howell III" Backus & Daws Butler (hipster/beatnik comedy is always welcome), and ventriloquist Shari Lewis. Really glad to have a copy of the Dr Who-inspired "I'm Gonna Spend My Christmas With A Dalek" by The Go Go's - from '60s Great Britain, not the '80s Valley girls. There's the Christmas Beatles novelty record, "Ringo-Deer" by one Gary Ferrier. But my jaw dropped at the, er, "rap" song "A Knightrider Christmas" - oh my, Hoff for the holidays. Christmas Is For Weirdos1
Christmas Is For Weirdos2

So let's all give Chris another hearty "huzzah." As the Teenage Reindeer says, "Like, merry."

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OUR THANKSGIVING BLESSINGS ARE GREAT

This Thursday is Thanksgiving Day, one of the bigger holidays here in the USA. So let's celebrate with an example of that most democratic of art forms, the song poem.

Norm Burns: "Our Thanksgiving Blessings Are Great"

Didn't we just do Halloween?

Happy Thanksgivoween!

PALAOA - Live from the Antarctic Ocean

UPDATE 12/8/11: Audio now back up

PALAOA is a German scientific research project whose website features a continuous audio stream transmitting live from the ocean below the Antarctic ice. It's the best ambient music I've heard lately, and it's not even music.

Sometimes it sounds like an abundance of sea life singing, howling and braying, mixed with creaking glaciers, and "...Additional broad band noise caused by wind, waves and currents adds to it on occasion. There are three sources of click-like interference: switching relays, electrostatic discharges caused by snow drift, and...thunderstorms ten thousands of kilometers away."

Here's a random recording I made off the stream recently. I really had to crank up the volume using my music software, but when I did I was startled to hear so much sonic activity and variety. It's 19 minutes long, but I could listen to it all day.

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BAGPIPES FOR HEADBANGERS

Duuuude! Have you heard Eluveitie's latest album "Spirit"?

Whoooah! Those Swiss metal monsters have a new album of Celtic thrash? Awesome! I'm majorly into bagpipes, accordians and fiddles - they rock!

Totally. The whole album's solid - when the rock crunch gets a bit too heavy, they folk things up a bit.

It's like The Pogues meet Sabbath!

Yeah! Those death-metal vocals are still hella funny, though. Sorry, but it's true, especially when he's, er, "duetting" with a folkie chick. She's like "Tweedle deedle dee!" and he's all "Rowr rowr rowwrrrr." Weird. And lyrics are in Gaelic sometimes.

Huh huh, you said "Gay lick!"

No, "Gaelic," dumbass, like the ancient Celtic culture and whatnot. You know, like Druids 'n' shit.

So crank some, dude!

For sure man. Check out this tune. Starts out all scary and ambient, then gets down to business. All over in two and a half minutes.

YES!!!

Eluveitie: Spirit

All jocularity aside, these guys (pronounced el-VEY-ti) have turned in one of my fave albums of the year. Who'd have thought that Celtic-folk-metal would ever be a viable genre?

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WORLD TOILET DAY

Did you know that today is World Toilet Day? I read that in the newspaper this morning. Guess where I was reading it.

The history of toilets is a surprisingly interesting one. As this article points out, modern indoor plumbing can be traced back to London's Big Stink of 1858, which was so bad, Parliament was disrupted and "everyone who could leave town did."

It's a serious issue, but nothing serious about today's song. Styx, yes THAT Styx, recorded this faux-calypso in their early years. It's a hidden track on the cd reissue of their 1974 album "The Serpent Is Rising," which suggest they're embarrassed (em-BARE-ASSED?!) by it and are trying to hide it. It's a dumb song all right, but catchy, funny, and certainly preferable to their later dreck.

Styx "Plexiglass Toilet"

(I used to call 'em "Stynx." How appropriate that was.)

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YMA SUMAC: The Queen of Exotica 1922-2008

Yma Sumac, the Diva Exotica, the Celine of strange, the Barbra of the bizarre, passed away recently, thus ending the original exotica era - she was the last surviving member of the Mount Rushmore of exotic music after Les Baxter, Martin Denny and Arthur Lyman had all moved on to that big tiki bar in the sky.

Sumac was one of my favorite singers. I don't mean favorite exotic or ethnic or '50s singers, I mean favorite singers, period. She possessed an otherworldly, technically astounding multi-octave instrument that moved from death-metal growl to operatic ecstasy - sometimes within one song. She often didn't even seem to sing lyrics, but created animal sounds and other indescribable special effects with her voice.

Hailing from Peru, South America, she lived here in Los Angeles and was a fixture in LA's jazz/cabaret clubs throughout the '80s and early '90s, though her reputation rested almost solely on a handful of '50s releases, beginning with the Les Baxter produced classic "The Voice of the Xtabay" (pronounced "SHTA-bay") in 1950 for Capital Records. The mixture of lush orchestrations, energetic Latin/ethnic percussion, weird atmosphere, and Yma's whooping, swirling, alien voice produced some of the most remarkable albums of the '50s.

Yma Sumac "Kuyaway (Inca Love Song)"
from "Legend of the Sun Virgin"

Yma Sumac "Five Bottles Mambo" (yes, actual bottles are used as percussion)
from "Mambo!"

Yma Sumac "Dale Que Dale! (The Workers Song)" (almost a surf/twist-rock beat to this one)
from "Fuego del Ande"

Yma Sumac "Jivaro"
from "Legend of the Jivaro"

And that was about it. She toured throughout the '60s, from whence comes an obscure live album released in the early '90s of a performance in the Soviet Union (how she pulled that off during the Cold War I do not know.) On this song, twice as long as the original version on "The Voice of the Xtabay," she really dumps everything out of her bag of sonic tricks, vocally imitating the wildlife of the Amazon.

Yma Sumac "Chuncho"
from "Live in Concert 1961"

She returned for one last album, "Miracles," in 1971, reuniting with Baxter for...wait for it...a psychedelic rock album. She still sang the way she always did, only this time over heavy guitars. Take that, hippies!

Yma Sumac "Medicine Man"

She made one last recording in 1988, a surprisingly normal version of a Disney song for a various artists comp.

Yma Sumac "I Wonder" (from "Sleeping Beauty")

from "Stay Awake"

The '90s lounge revival produced this excellent remix. I'm not usually too crazy about marketing-driven remixes of old classics, but I did really like this one:

Yma Sumac "Gopher (Mambo) [Qburns' Abstract Message remix]"
from "Electro Lounge"

From Poland of all places came this mashup from a few years ago:

El Barto & Liam B "Planet Mambo" (Yma vs Afrika Bambatta)

See Yma in action! From the 1954 Charleton Heston film "Secret of the Incas."

THIS JUST IN! Just got a note from Nick Limansky, author of the new book Yma Sumac: The Art Behind the Legend . He's a classically trained singer, and, incredibly, has been working on this project since 1980. It looks to be an essential part of any Maniac's library.

RIAA: Madnight

The inspirations for this one: Dreams, nightmares, Los Angeles noir film and literature, "lowbrow" and Surreal art, carnivals and sideshows, 78 rpm records, weird old black and white movies, autumn...

It's not all mere found-sound editing, e.g. "A Frottage Co-Sale" - the vocals are lyrics to the old tune "A Cottage For Sale" fed into a text-to-speech program, then almost every syllable was pitch-shifted to get it in tune with the melody. And the title song features live multi-overdubbed theremin.

RIAA: "Madnight"

1. The Dead Stay Awake
2. Wild California Love
3. Murderer's Polka
4. Hip in a Box
5. How Fucking Nocturnal
6. Madnight
7. I Don't Want To Set the Slogun On Fire
8. Dead Man's AYDS
9. Running With The Devil Bunnies
10. In A Masochistic Mood11. Always Another Sucker On The Vine
12. Crows Over Martha
13. Lauratrocity
14. Scatter-Brain Freaks
15. I Wish You Bullets
16. Macabre Bowel Movements.
17. Carnival Jesus Tongue
18. Well, Bust A Move
19. A Frottage Co-Sale
20. Who's Afraid In Dark Trees?
21. Got To Be In My Dreams
SOURCES:1. Criswell, from the Ed Wood film "Orgy Of The Dead," Susanne Vega " Stay Awake," Amy Winehouse "Back To Black," text-to-speech audio, Kate Bush "Waking
The Witch"
2. Alan Ladd from old-time radio version of Raymond Chandler's "Red Wind," Dr Dre "California Love," The Doors "My Wild Love"
3. Charles Bukowski "I Live In A Neighborhood of Murderers," artist unknown "Holly Wood Polka"
4. Portishead "Glory Box," Ursula 1000 "Hip Length"
5. Magnetic Fields "How Fucking Romantic," Harry James & His Orchestra "Harlem Nocturne"
6. amusement park audio, karaoke version of Cole Porter's "Night and Day" vs Mr Fab on the theremin
7. Ink Spots "I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire," SPK "Slogun," World Famous Audio Hacker "Bonus Beats"
8. 2 takes of Jelly Roll Morton "Dead Man Blues," radio ad
9. Van Halen "Running With The Devil," Twink "Hoppity Jones," Al Trace "I Love A Rabbit"
10. Glenn Miller "In The Mood," "Glen or Glenda" soundtrack, Florence and the Machine "Kiss With A Fist"
11. Tom Waits "Just Another Sucker On The Vine," Crispin Glover "Never Say Never to Always" (a Charles Manson song)
12. Tom Waits "Martha," If-Then-Else (aka The Weirdos) "Crows Over A Parking Lot," drums: John Bonham ("In Through The Out Door" outtakes)
13. Julie London "Laura," Joy Division "Atrocity Exhibition"
14. a Wurlitzer fairground organ "Scatter-Brain," Britney Spears "Freakshow," "Freaks" soundtrack, Son House "Death Letter," beat: Michael Jackson "Billie Jean"
15. Charles Trenet "Que Reste-t-il de Nos Amours?" (aka "I Wish You Love"), U2 "Bullet The Blue Sky," M. Foon "Octaaves"
16. Brenda Watson "Constipation: The 30 Day Advanced Cleansing System," Harry Breuer "Samba Macabre," Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam "I Wonder If I Take You Home"
Jimi Hendrix "ESP"
17. audio from Children's Fairyland amusement park; Mormon kids "Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam," Combustible Edison "Carnival of Souls"
18. Captain Beefheart "Well," Young MC "Bust A Move" (original version and remix)
19. Guy Lombardo "A Cottage For Sale" with text-to-speech vocals, Kate Bush "The Dreaming"
20. Brian Eno "In Dark Trees," school filmstrip audio: "Who's Afriad?"
21. Les Paul & Mary Ford "I'll See You In My Dreams," Michael Jackson "Got To Be There," Sal Mineo "Love Affair," Lawrence Harvey "This Is My Beloved"

Miscellaneous bits 'n' beats by RIAA

THANKS! to: Solcofn, Otis Fodder & the 365 Day contributers, World Famous Audio Hacker, the guy from Tortoise who did a drum breaks album, whoever the nice GYBO person was who made the "Glory Box" 'pella available, CORPORATION.

MY DICK

My Dick are a song parody group who state their mission thusly: we take famous songs and change the lyrics so we're singing about my dick.

If you're male you're probably laughing. You may hate yourself for doing so, but you're laughing. Stupid, stupid, immature! But funny. Admit it. And all the ladies in the house are rolling their eyes.

The reality isn't quite as funny as the concept, but it's still pretty good. They play and sing really well, quite pro, actually. And I like how they slaughter sacred cows of music by seemingly taking the most offensive choices of songs to use, e.g. John Lennon ("Imagine Dick") and Eric Clapton ("Dick In Heaven.")

Some songs available on their MySpazz page.

At a recent performance in Boston they unveiled such new treasures as the Mexican standard "La Dicka," and the Hall & Oates classic, "My Dick Is On My Dick."

Stop smirking. I see you!

WELCOME TO THE TERRORISTDOME

Fun-da-Mental are a veteran rap group based in England whose 2006 song "Cookbook D.I.Y." was banned there because it gave explicit instructions on how to make a bomb. Bandleader Propa-Ghandi is a Pakistan-born Muslim. Though the song is open to interpretation as it is narrated from a number of points of view, Mr. 'Ghandi didn't come off too well when he was interviewed in the new Bill Maher film "Religulous." When Maher asked him about the fatwa against writer Salmon Rushdie, the rapper (aka Aki Nawaz) appeared to condone it. Is he a fun-da-mentalist?

So far as I know, this song is still banned in the UK, and has never been released in the US.

I always liked Fun-da-Mental's music. They were a kind of Indo-British Public Enemy, decrying social injustice and racism over Bollywood-sampled beats. And I dig the music of this tune. But, as I said to my wife, I don't know if the real Ghandi would appreciate having his name appropriated by a group who named their album (from whence comes this song) "All Is War (The Benefits Of G-Had)." She replied, "Yeah, but you liked "Cop Killer"!

Fun-Da-Mental: "Cookbook D.I.Y." (mp3)
Fun-Da-Mental: "Cookbook D.I.Y." (video) - As if the point could be missed, the lyrics/instructions are spelled out on the bottom of the screen.

Weird trivia: Aki Nawaz played drums in Southern Death Cult, who became one of my favorite guilty-pleasure bands, The Cult. I'll leave any "death cult" jokes up to you, dear readers...

LESBIAN SEAGULL

One day in the early '90s, I was looking through one-dollar records in a thrift store when I came across one called "Gay Name Game." With a song entitled "Lesbian Seagull" listed among it's contents, how could I resist? The album is a typical sensitive singer-songwriter acoustic relic of the '70s, though the out-and-proud lyrics certainly set it apart from, say, James Taylor.

So imagine my surprise when in 1997, in the middle of a mainstream Hollywood film ("Beavis and Butthead Do America"), one of the characters starts singing "Lesbian Seagull." And legendary crooner Engelbert Humperdinck sings it over the closing credits! Eh, what?! I guess Beavis and Butthead creator Mike Judge must have stumbled across this record, too.

Thus, a strange curio from the original gay-rights movement enters the mainstream. It is an amazing tune. And it's original performer, Tom Wilson, is alive, well, and still selling vinyl copies of "Gay Name Game" on his website.

Tom Wilson: "Lesbian Seagull"

Caw, caw, caw!

NIGHT OF THE LIVING MONSTER MASH-UP

If you're like me, you want it a little spooky all year long, so why wait 'til the 31st? Get creepy NOW! with this collection, the fifth annual international mashup/sound-collage various artists fest compiled by England's DJ Cheekyboy. .

Night of the Living Monster Mash-Up official page

DOWNLOAD

Disclosure: I'm one of the mix-ologist involved in this big ol' heap of '60s garage rock, horror film dialogue & soundtracks, candy, lesbianism, satanism, hissy old 78s, mambos, boomin' beats, kiddie records, spooky sound bites and fx. And, of course, Bobby 'Boris' Pickett.
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David Liebe Hart: Artist & Creator

David Liebe Hart believes he was abducted by aliens, hosts a public-access TV program called "The Junior Christian Bible Story Puppet Show," draws pictures and performs music for tips on the streets of Los Angeles, and is looking for a woman.

He has recorded 2 albums: the first (Christian Hymns and Songs of Praise) featured his religious songs from his tv show and was recorded on a tape recorder at a friend's apartment. Taken in small doses, I find the hypnotic droning songs strangely compelling. And this, like many Angeleno's, was my first exposure to Hart's weird world - flipping thru the tv wasteland, I chanced upon the incredible sight of a ventriloquist's dummy named Chip The Black Boy in an already-dated Jeri-curl wig apparently lip-synching to an odd religious song, but not coming close - the dummy's lips rarely synched up with the song being performed, as this video demonstrates.

"Public Access" is his fine follow-up, recorded with a sympathetic soul named Adam Papagan, who had added more sonic color to Hart's previously no-fi production. The song's lyrics, however, are entirely by Hart, and they deal with such subjects as his lack of success with women, people who won't let him play his music, space aliens, his nice apartment, his church, racism, the importance of public-access television, show-biz folks he has worked with (Gary Marshall "used" him, and Robin Williams won't return his calls) and, in the 13-minute "Story of David Liebe Hart," his entire life's journey. He remains upbeat and optimistic and looks forward to a long life and future songs. From his web site: "He is also looking to meet young, attractive, single women. If interested and you meet these qualifications, please call him at 213 3810791. If he is not there, leave a brief message and what you'd like to say with your return phone number and the best time he can call you. Say it slowly and clearly and repeat it twice, and he will return your phone call as soon as he comes in. (serious calls only)."

The album's opener is a dandy minute-long statement of purpose; "Korendian Honk" is a disturbingly sincere ode to aliens, complete with an actual phone message intro announcing his plans to visit the "Korendians."

David Liebe Hart: Artist and Creator
David Liebe Hart: Korendian Honk