Amon Duul Reviews Part Fifteen: Nada Moonshine # and More

Nada Moonshine # Album Cover

1) Castaneda Da Dream; 2) Nada Moonshine Union; 3) Speed Inside My Shoes; 4) Sirens In Germanistan; 5) Lilac Lil­lies; 6) Kiss Ma Eee; 7) Carpetride In Velvet Night; 8) Black Pearl Of Wisdom; 9) Ça Va; 10) Guadalquivir.

8 out of 10

All great bands (except for ABBA and the Beatles (and well, countless others (this sentence has been rendered moot by these parentheticals but I’m going to finish it anyways (so there)))) eventually reunite: and so it was, 14 years after their last, rather dull attempt at an album, the “original” line-up of “Amon Duul II” (with no Weinzierl who was off doing who knows what at this time) gets together to show the world they still have it nearly 30 years after their debut and 20 years after their last great album.

Apologies for the lengthy sentence: I was briefly possessed by the spirit of William Faulkner and William Burroughs at the same time. Faulkner was wasted and feebly rejecting the advances of a stoned out of his gourd Burroughs. Faulkner didn’t give in, thankfully, or I’d have an odd literary creature growing in my head: a combination of Faulkner and Burroughs that I could only call: William Burroughs. Or wait no, I’m sorry: William Faulkner.

Whoa whoa whoa, time out. Okay, no more of that. I’m sorry for the brief moments of insanity there but it’s hard not to get a bit goofed out when listening to an album like this: any kind of reunion album creates a feeling of foreboding in my mind. Does the band still have it? Can they create an album that stays true to their past but pushes the boundaries forward and which stays current and imaginative?

Most people can’t: “Amon Duul II” basically do. No, the album isn’t perfect but it is a shockingly good return to form from a band that basically nobody cared about anymore. Yes, this album came and went without leaving even a small ripple in the listening world: the only person I’ve ever seen discuss this album is George Starostin. You can’t even read a review at Allmusic but that doesn’t stop them from rating it. Idiots.

So, what does the band achieve on this album? Its simple on paper but complex in execution: the band combines their classic style with a more synthesized, highly studio based production style. And when I say their “old styles” I mean the “everything happening at once” approach of “Yeti” with the more streamlined songwriting styles of their mid-70’s albums.

Basically, a song will start out with a simple idea. Sometimes guitar based but more often synthesizer or keyboard based. The band will then begin layering sounds on top of it, including more synthesizers, guitars, Renate-wailings and vivid soundscapes. Drum machines may jump in and techno rhythms may appear. Basically, it often feels like the band is jumping on that mid-90’s techno band wagon.

However, the band doesn’t let this new sound define who they are or become too repetitive. Songs usually switch sounds quickly (and these are long songs for the most part) building up to new ideas, including operatic arias, faster techno drum beats, wild guitar passages, rhythmic attacks and wild echoing sound effect panoramas.

If the album sounds wild it is: it can be overwhelming to listen to at times. The band doesn’t really let up for a second on the album and is seemingly having as much fun in the studio as they have ever had, if not more. As a result, there isn’t much breathing room on the album: every spare second is stuffed with sound effects, guitars, synthesizers, thick bass lines, wild vocalizing, sampled loops, odd string sections and more.

And this is one reason why the album gets an eight. As impressive of an accomplishment as the album is, technically, it becomes very wearing to listen to for long periods of time. And although there are only 10 songs, this album stretches out to nearly an hour long, if not longer (forgive me if I don’t know the exact running time off the top of my head).

Another reason the album doesn’t get top marks is that the songs start to all sound the same. Yes, there are major differences in the songs but I couldn’t really tell you what they are right now. The arrangements and approaches don’t change drastically between songs, even though the styles and genres tackled often do change (the eternal curse of “Amon Duul II”). This contributes to the feeling of boredom that rears its ugly head by the close of the album.

Lastly, the band isn’t really pushing boundaries that haven’t been pushed before. They are now simply followers instead of leaders. Yes, one cannot hold that against the band as they were getting pretty old by this point in their career. But it hurts parts of the album, especially the ending techno beats of “Lilac Lillies” which really detract from the quality of the song. They are so generic that its sad to see this rampaging, all encompassing beats of a band stoop to that level.

With all those complaints voiced, I can still give this album an easy 8 out of 10 for the balls and talent it took to put it together. While it may not be innovative, it does sound different from all those mid-90’s techno-influenced albums because it is written and recorded by a band of former mad-men-and-women who were literally anarchists at one point in their career. And this wild, careening album reflects that anarchistic spirit perfectly.

BONUS REVIEWS

Kobe Reconstructions

Kobe Reconstructions Album Cover.

Eternal Flashback

Eternal Flashback Album Cover.

5 out of 10 each

Although this was the only album of new material released by the band in the 90’s, they did release two albums of “sound collage” material in 1996. These albums, “Kobe Reconstructions” and “Flashback” were limited release albums released for a singular purpose: “Kobe Reconstructions” was released to raise funds for Kobe, Japan after a hurricane struck while “Flashback” was a gift to members of the “Amon Duul II” fan club.

I’m reviewing both of these albums simultaneously because they sound identical. The band basically took songs from their past albums and used a sampler to reconstruct them into wild sound collages. And instead of separating the albums into individual tracks, they made them all one track.

And the albums basically suck as listening experiences. I love sound collages as much if not more than the average man (my first three albums were nothing but sound collages) but the band doesn’t show a lot of imagination in this style. A great sound collage would feature jarring, yet musical, contrasts and interesting combinations of material.

Instead, these albums often feature a basic guitar line (sometimes from “Amon Duul I”!!!!) repeated over and over for what seems like an eternity. And then they layer a few basic parts over top and let these repeat endlessly. And the albums do feel endless, as they drone on and on for what seems like an eternity.

I can’t really be too hard on the albums though: both were released for nice, charitable purposes and were designed to appeal to hardcore “Amon Duul II” fans (something I am not). Plus, it’s cool to see the band try something new and stretch out their creativity in new directions. Sure, they fail but its better to fail at something new than to fail at something old. Five stars in admiration and under the condition I never have to listen to these albums again.