Various Artists: Brown Acid: The Fourth Trip (2017)
As Iâve explained about earlier volumes, Brown Acid is an ever-expanding series committed to unearthing and compiling decades-old 7-inch singles (see above) released by independent heavy/hard/psych/acid/garage rock bands â none of which ever landed a major label recording contract.
Following Riding Easy Recordsâ usual M.O., The Fourth Trip assembles another ten songs spanning the years 1969-1975, travels to many of Americaâs rock ânâ roll backwaters plus one foreign country, but is notably the first set to revisit bands already featured on earlier sets.
These are Melbourne, Australiaâs Ash, back with another savage riff-monger called âWarrantâ (B-side to their ultra-collectible âMidnight Witchâ) and Los Angeles, CAâs Zekes, whose eight-minute, Grand Funk-inspired, cowbell-powered peace-and-love anthem âCominâ Backâ (1970) was taken directly from the original 1/4-inch tape.
The Fourth Trip also extends its underground purview beyond the ridiculously rare to the merely ludicrously rare by including Lewiston, IDâs Stone Garden and their relatively well-known psychedelic favorite, âOceans Inside Me,â which Iâve previously covered here on VinylSpinning.
Then itâs back into the deepest, proto-metallic underground, headlined by Daingerfield (*), TXâs Kanaan, who give the MC5 a run for their money with the explosive garage punk of âLeave Itâ (1969), and Canton, OHâs Wrath, whose full-tilt-gonzo instrumental âRock ânâ Roll Feverâ (1975) may remind you of vintage Ted Nugent.
Just a few steps down the âholy shit!â meter are Columbus, OHâs Headstone with another organ-infused Grand Funk disciple called âCarry Me Onâ (1975), Appleton, WAâs Bungi with a late-to-the-revolution hippie rocker named âNumbersâ (1972), and Youngstown, OHâs Erving Forbush (is it a band, man, or vegetable, I know not) with a Yardbirds-styled rave-up dubbed âThe Trainâ (1971).
Last and, yes, least, comes Chicago, ILâs Bad Axe whose nail-biting âCoachmanâ (1973) showcases a token Arabian lick and manic rhythm section (the bass player is s beast) and Logansport, IN occultists Axas, whose dreamy falsettos, clichĂ© lyrics, and fluttering synthesizers turn âLuciferâ (1975) into a half-baked sĂ©ance.
In other words, this Fourth Trip ainât perfect, but no Brown Acid set ever is, and most dedicated graybeard metal sleuths know itâs not about the destination but the (acid) trip, just like the titles say.
*Â No respect!
More Hard Rock Compilations: Brown Acid 1, Brown Acid 2, Brown Acid 3, Brown Acid 5, Brown Acid 6, Brown Acid 7, Brown Acid 8, Brown Acid 9, Brown Acid 10, Castle Donington Monsters of Rock, Hardrock â83, Hear ân Aid, Metal Massacre, Metal for Muthas, Metal for Muthas Volume II, New Wave of British Heavy Metal â79 Revisited, S.P. Metal, S.P. Metal II, Scandinavian Metal Attack, Speed Metal Hell, Warfaring Strangers: Darkscorch Canticles.
