Almost every hipster record collector knows that there are certain records that are, or were, the Holy Grail. These records are often prized because they're hard to find. It's not the music so
much as it's the idea of finding and owning the record that's so tantalizing. For many record nerds, myself included, once you actually do find one there is always something else more obscure and sought after that you still don't have. It never ends. And the crazy but very true fact is that the records you finally track down are hardly ever as great as you've heard they are. No matter if you found it for $1.00 at the Goodwill or if you criminally overpaid on eBay, it rarely lives up to the hype. But once in a great while it all pans out.
much as it's the idea of finding and owning the record that's so tantalizing. For many record nerds, myself included, once you actually do find one there is always something else more obscure and sought after that you still don't have. It never ends. And the crazy but very true fact is that the records you finally track down are hardly ever as great as you've heard they are. No matter if you found it for $1.00 at the Goodwill or if you criminally overpaid on eBay, it rarely lives up to the hype. But once in a great while it all pans out.
The first two LP's from a little known band called Pearls Before Swine have long been spoken about in hushed, reverent tones by those in the know. Released in 1967 and 1968 on the 
avant-garde NYC record label ESP-Disk, they were a collectors dream; rare and obscure. And, it turns out, truly amazing. ESP-Disk is still up and running and in 2005 they re-issued these two gems together on one CD.
The man at the core of Pearls Before Swine was Tom Rapp. Originally from the Midwest, then Florida, Rapp and his original band mates moved to New York City and became part of the loose knit scene that was affiliated with their record label, ESP-Disk.
The music contained on these first two records is tough to describe; it's grounded in the folk music of the day, (the first record has a couple of songs that sound very similar to the type of songs Dylan was writing and performing at the time...down to Rapp doing his best Dylan vocal imitation at points.) But there's more going on. What's most striking about these songs is that the overall mood of the records as a whole is something bordering on the ancient. This is more true for the second, more somber record "Balaklava." The musical style is unusual and fraught with anxiety. And, at least in my case, it wasn't long before I became consumed with it. This is not a record to multi-task to. It begs to be listened to closely.
Odd instrumentation pops up frequently; icy keyboards, faraway sounding horns and other things I can't identify. In the list of instruments credited to Rapp's bandmate Lane Lederer is something called a swinehorn!? All these touches add a psychedelic flair to the records. The literate lyrics and politically erudite subject matter of these songs combine to create a truly singular listening experience.
Despite being made up of two separate records, this re-issue flows very nicely in it's entirety. Rapp's voice seems stronger and more confident on "Balakalva" whereas the songs on the debut "One Nation Underground" tend to be a bit more out there. But throughout, the set contains a claustrophobic intensity that sounds like nothing else that was around in the late '60's.
avant-garde NYC record label ESP-Disk, they were a collectors dream; rare and obscure. And, it turns out, truly amazing. ESP-Disk is still up and running and in 2005 they re-issued these two gems together on one CD.The man at the core of Pearls Before Swine was Tom Rapp. Originally from the Midwest, then Florida, Rapp and his original band mates moved to New York City and became part of the loose knit scene that was affiliated with their record label, ESP-Disk.
The music contained on these first two records is tough to describe; it's grounded in the folk music of the day, (the first record has a couple of songs that sound very similar to the type of songs Dylan was writing and performing at the time...down to Rapp doing his best Dylan vocal imitation at points.) But there's more going on. What's most striking about these songs is that the overall mood of the records as a whole is something bordering on the ancient. This is more true for the second, more somber record "Balaklava." The musical style is unusual and fraught with anxiety. And, at least in my case, it wasn't long before I became consumed with it. This is not a record to multi-task to. It begs to be listened to closely.
Odd instrumentation pops up frequently; icy keyboards, faraway sounding horns and other things I can't identify. In the list of instruments credited to Rapp's bandmate Lane Lederer is something called a swinehorn!? All these touches add a psychedelic flair to the records. The literate lyrics and politically erudite subject matter of these songs combine to create a truly singular listening experience.
Despite being made up of two separate records, this re-issue flows very nicely in it's entirety. Rapp's voice seems stronger and more confident on "Balakalva" whereas the songs on the debut "One Nation Underground" tend to be a bit more out there. But throughout, the set contains a claustrophobic intensity that sounds like nothing else that was around in the late '60's.
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