Taj Mahal Travellers - 1972 - July 15, 1972

Quality: 4 out of 5
Trip-O-Meter: 4.75 out of 5

Here's an early sound expedition from our heroes of the 70's Japanese avant-garde. This is the kind of sound that it's pretty hard to put a finger on. You won't find yourself humming (or even remembering) what this band does, but you very well may find yourself coming back to the recordings often. I like to be disoriented by music and be puzzled by what exactly is in the instrumental mix. The Taj Mahal Travellers are masters of those particular traits.

There are three tracks present here, and considering that this band peddles amorphous sound, I'd say they there is a reasonable amount of stylistic variation. While not necessarily a rip-off, the first track recalls the interstellar sound journeys of early Tangerine Dream. Think of it as the further explorations of Alpha Centauri or Ultima Thule. The second track makes me think of hanging outside of a disintegrating Buddhist temple with a fellow playing a broken accordion. It does have a touch of throat singing, and I'm always a sucker for that. The final track attempts to lull you into a hypnotic state with a droning fiddle. The attempt is nice, but I'm a cello player and I like to hear lower register, less scratchy strings.

A good 90% of the populace would probably dismiss something like this as pointless noise. If you've taken the time to read through the Psychedelic Garage, I'd wager that you very well may be open to these sounds and fit in that last 10%. It's not elitism; some of us are just crazier than other and this disc will fuel your insanity.