30th-anniversary reissue for Julian Cope-inspiring prog classic
Recorded in the bedroom/attic of future Fall engineer John Brierley’s parents and first released on John Peel’s Dandelion label in 1972, the eponymous debut from Rochdale trio Jim Milne, Steve Clayton and Dave Addison was remarkable both for its musical fluidity and scattershot imagination. Savage Sabbath riffs crackled alongside trippy psychedelia from weird reverb units and quasi-mystical space rock. Though at least two numbers have aged badly (the fairy queen mythology of “Watcher” and Peel-dedicated “Ravenscroft’s 13 Bar Boogie”), the rest is still genuinely thrilling, particularly labyrinthine excesses “Shubunkin”, “Hope In Favour” and epic closer “Make The Journey”. Extras include demos and live tracks from the reformed duo of Milne and Clayton.