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Heavy Vanguard Episode 3: Captain Beefheart // Trout Mask Replica

A squid eating dough in a polyethylene bag is fast and bulbous. Got me? Ahem…I mean: welcome back to another (hopefully) enthralling episode of Heavy Vanguard! Apologies for the

7 years ago

A squid eating dough in a polyethylene bag is fast and bulbous. Got me?

Ahem…I mean: welcome back to another (hopefully) enthralling episode of Heavy Vanguard! Apologies for the two-week delay in episodes. For some reason, the WordPress scheduling program doesn’t like this article very much.

Today we’ve got what is possibly the strangest album in existence: the legendary Trout Mask Replica. There is probably no other avant-garde release as iconic as Trout Mask. It’s a favorite album of such greats as Simpsons creator Matt Groening and surrealist filmmaker (and musician) David Lynch, but it also regarded as one of the most difficult and inaccessible albums to listen to. Don Van Vliet (aka Captain Beefheart) and his band performed some of the most esoteric and abnormal music ever recorded on this release, and that’s a description not to be taken lightly. It covers all sorts of musical territory, from free jazz to blues to surrealist poetry and basically everything in between, and mixes it all up into one mystifying, fish-themed gumbo.

To truly experience an album as goddamn weird as this, you need to listen, and listen well. Chances are you are not going to like this album at first; more than likely, it will sound like garbage leaking into your ear. But we urge you: listen to this album if you’re interested in it. Give it a few honest tries before deciding whether you like it or not.

If you’re interested in Captain Beefheart, we highly recommend this documentary (which we reference in this episode) on the man and his music, hosted by none other than John Peel.

Anyways, onto the show!

This Week’s Episode:

This Week’s Album:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiorncOFpcg

Heavy Blog

Published 7 years ago