Elephant Stone: Elephant Stone 2013

Elephant Stone is a Canadian indie rock band. Fronted by Rishi Dhir (formerly associated with The High Dials), the band's style incorporates aspects of traditional Indian music including the sitar, tabla, and dilruba with Western psychedelic rock.                                                

                                                                                                                                             

Rishi Dhir formed Elephant Stone in 2009 after he left The High Dials. The band began to combine Indian classical music and instrumentation with 1960s pop and rock.
                                                             

                                                                                                   
The band's debut album, "The Seven Seas", was released June 2, 2009 on Dhir's own Elephants on

Parade label, with distribution by Fontana North. The album was a longlisted nominee for the 2009 Polaris Music Prize on June 15, 2009.
On July 4, 2009 The Seven Seas was released on Irish label Indiecater Records.
On February 12, 2013, their self-titled second album was released on Reverberation Appreciation Society.

                                                                                   
The band's third full-length album, "The Three Poisons", was released in 2014. In 2015, Burger

Records released a cassette featuring a remixed version of "The Three Poisons" titled "ES3PRMX". The cassette features collaborations with Anton Newcombe of "The Brian Jonestown Massacre", Fabien Leseure, Tom Furse of "The Horrors", Al Lover, Alex Maas of "The Black Angels", Peter Holmstrom of "The Dandy Warhols" and JP Lapham of "The Earlies".
                                                         

In 2016 Elephant Stone released their fourth album, "Ship of Fools". In 2017 they released an EP, "Live at the Verge", and set out on a tour of Europe.
                                                                                   

[ AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine  

For modern rock fans the very name Elephant Stone connotes something specific: a beloved 1988 single from the Stone Roses. The new millennial, Canadian psych rock band Elephant Stone does

indeed take elements from the Stone Roses, specifically how the Manchester group layered acoustic guitars and ringing Rickenbackers to create a psychedelic, '60s pastiche that never sounded tethered to the past, but on their eponymous 2013 sophomore set, there are several elements that give this modern-day trippy pop band their own identity.
                           

Foremost among them is a fondness for Indian music -- not a huge surprise considering how leader

Rishi Dhir was an in-demand sitarist among the neo-psychedelic set prior to his formation of Elephant Stone (he played with "Brian Jonestown Massacre" and "Soundtrack of Our Lives", among others) -- but it's hardly exotic window-dressing for standard-issue psychedelia. Classical Indian music is thoroughly interwoven with '60s psychedelia and pop -- and the two are different, with the first emphasizing texture and the second structure -- giving Elephant Stone a shimmering, off-kilter quality that's alluring.
                                                                          

That sound is alluring enough to warrant return visits to the album, repeated listens that reveal the album to be built on solidly sculpted songs where the riffs and melodies intertwine into something quietly enchanting; like their inspirations, Elephant Stone evokes the best of the past, but is intent on recasting these sounds for the future.]                                                                            

This is a masterpiece of Neo-Psychedelia.

 

Albums

The Seven Seas (2009)
Elephant Stone (2013)
The Three Poisons (2014)
Ship of Fools (2016)
Hollow (2020)

EPs and singles

The Glass Box EP 12" (2010) - mini album
Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin b/w Strangers 7" (2012)

TRACKS

01. Setting Sun     3:57
02. Heavy Moon     4:10
03. Masters Of War     3:25
04. Hold Onto Your Soul     2:36
05. A Silent Moment     5:16
06. Looking Thru Baby Blue     3:02
07. Sally Go Round The Sun     1:45
08. Love The Sinner, Hate The Sin     3:32
09. The Sea Of Your Mind     8:32
10. The Sacred Sound     3:22

MEMBERS

Backing Vocals – Jace Lasek, Kirsty MacEachern
Cello – Unnur Fjola Evans
Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals – Jules Pampena
Guitar – Gabriel Lambert
Producer – Elephant Stone, Jace Lasek
Recorded By, Mixed By – Jace Lasek
Tabla – Shawn Mativetsky
Viola, Violin – Monica Günter
Vocals – Vinay Bhide
Vocals, Bass, Sitar, Dilruba – Rishi Dhir
Written-By – Rishi Dhir

MASTERS OF WAR  LYRICS 

 

 

Take the heart of a fallen of man
and a child and saint and a burning land
Know the smell of fear and the fear that you bring
You have come from far off lands
to lay to claims to lives that you can’t understand
To come and take all, but never to leave

Must we wait for a brighter day
when all our sins are washed away
Must we wait for the fallen ones to be

You with all of your diplomats and your guns
and checks and forgotten debts
You cannot be loved or ever feel peace
I know I can’t feel his pain
but I still can see what your money brings
You build to destroy with your all new toys

Must we wait for a brighter day
when all our sins are washed away
Must we wait for the fallen ones to be

Can’t you see what this could mean
That a time will come for thee
A fist cannot keep what it can’t feel
For I know you’ve had your fill

Must we wait for a brighter day
when all our sins are washed away
Must we wait for the fallen ones to be

SETTING SUN  LYRICS

 

I'm looking for the one that's with me
The one that burns an eternal light
A distant sun that's deep within me

A force too strong to ever fight

A setting sun is not an ending
A setting sun can be our light to get us right

I've taken all that's handed to me
So much detail, so little insight
A calling card for the end of our century
A new rebirth to give new life

A setting sun is not an ending
A setting sun can be our light to get us right

I know it's hard to know
When it's time to go
Feel it coming near
Hear your heart beat clear

A light will guide our way
To the life we've paid
All we've done today
Will carry us away

MP3 @ 320 MB Size: 105 MB
Flac  Size: 301 MB

Shadows Of Knight: 4 Albums(Dark Sides 1994 + Gloria 1966 + Back Door Men 1966 + Alive In '65 2018)

 

The Shadows of Knight are an American rock band from Chicago, Illinois, who play a form of British blues mixed with influences from their native city.
Initially formed in 1964 as simply the Shadows, the band learned in spring 1965 of an existing British group, the Shadows. Whiz Winters, a friend who worked for their manager, Paul Sampson, in his record shop, came up with the name "The Shadows of Knight" to tie into the British Invasion in music of that time, and because all four of the band members attended Prospect High School in Mt. Prospect, Illinois, whose sports team had the name the "Knights".

                                                       

                                                                              

They released three albums in their first five years of existence. Founding members included Warren Rogers (lead guitar), Roger Spielmann (rhythm and lead guitar/vocals) Norm Gotsch (rhythm guitar),

Wayne Pursell (bass guitar), Tom Schiffour (drums) and Jim Sohns (vocals). Sohns was 16 at the time. During 1965, Joe Kelley was recruited to play bass, replacing Pursell. Kelley swapped bass and lead duties with Rogers in late 1965 - at the time of the "Gloria" recordings. Guitarist and vocalist Jerry McGeorge replaced Norm Gotsch in late 1965 after Gotsch was drafted into the U.S. military. David "Hawk" Wolinski, who later worked with Rufus and Chaka Khan, replaced Rogers on bass in late 1966.

       

                                                                       

The Shadows of Knight soon released the Gloria album, followed by the Back Door Men LP, in the

summer of 1966. Subsequent singles included their version of the Bo Diddley song "Oh Yeah" (which reached No. 39 nationally), "Bad Little Woman" (No. 91), and the powerhouse "I'm Gonna Make You Mine" (No. 90), which can be seen as a precursor to hard rock.[citation needed] However, none of these releases approached their initial commercial success. Failure to find a winning followup to "Gloria" handicapped the band's earning power and led to its disintegration.

      

                                                                             
By mid-1967, the only original member of the Shadows of Knight remaining was vocalist Jim Sohns,

who, through simple default, inherited the band's name and legacy. Contrary to claims Sohns owns the band's name. The band name is now solely owned, via trademark registration (trademark numbers 5529482 and 5255086). Roger Spielmann quit the band in 1967 in order to avoid the Vietnam draft, and currently lives in Canada.[citation needed] In 1968, Dunwich sold the master tapes to its Shadow of Knight recordings to Atlantic Records for one dollar. Sohns then moved the band from Chicago to New York, where it signed with Buddah Records. 

     

                                                                                 
Sohns had hoped to take the band in a British power-rock direction, but the Super K record label pulled them into a more commercial orientation, pairing the band with bubblegum groups such as the 1910

Fruitgum Company and the Ohio Express on tour. In 1969, the second generation Shadows of Knight released "Shake" on Buddha's short-lived subsidiary Team Records; the track eventually climbed to No. 46 (No. 37 Canada Dec.68). That same year, without the band's knowledge or consent, the unsuccessful update "Gloria '69" was released by Dunwich. It consisted of new bass and guitar tracks overdubbed by Peter Cetera (later of Chicago) and Jim Donlinger (a member of Aorta), both Chicago rock veterans.

      

                                                                             
Tom Schiffour left the band in spring 1967, first to be replaced by a young local fan of the band, Bruce Bruscato. He was subsequently replaced by Tom Morris. The original band fragmented further when McGeorge departed for acid-rock band H.P. Lovecraft, while Kelley left to front his own blues band. Hawk Wolinski also left the band to form Bangor Flying Circus with Schiffour and guitarist Alan De Carlo. Schiffour was later replaced by drummer Michael Tegza, also of the (by then-defunct) H.P. Lovecraft.

Studio Albums

1966     Gloria     Dunwich Records 666
1966     Back Door Men     Dunwich Records 667
1969     Shadows of Knight     Super K SKS 6002
2007     A Knight To Remember     Bassic-Lee Music

DARK SIDES (BEST OF) 1994

 

The Shadows Of Knight ‎– Dark Sides (The Best Of)
Label: Rhino Records ‎– R2 71723
Format: CD, Compilation, Remastered
Country: US
Released: 1994
Genre: Rock
Style: Garage Rock

TRACKS

                                                                                  

01. Gloria  (Written-By – Morrison)    
02. Dark Side  (Written-By – Sohns, Rogers)    
03. Oh Yeah  (Written-By – McDaniel)    
04. Light Bulb Blues  (Written-By – Sohns, McGeorge, Kelley)    
05. It Always Happens That Way  (Written-By – Sohns, Rogers)    
06. I Got My Mojo Working  (Written-By – Preston Foster)    
07. You Can't Judge A Book (By The Cover)  (Written-By – Dixon)    
08. Bad Little Woman  (Organ – Dave "The Hawk" Wolinski) (Written-By – Rosbotham, Armstrong, Demick, Tinsley, Catling)    
09. Gospel Zone  (Written-By – Schiffour)    
10. I'll Make You Sorry  (Written-By – Kelley)    
11. I'm Gonna Make You Mine  (Written-By – Carr, D'Errico, Bayer)    
12. Peepin' And Hidin'  (Electric Piano – Dave "The Hawk" Wolinski, Lead Vocals – Joe Kelly)  (Written-By – Reed)    
13. Willie Jean  (Arranged By – Pye) (Written-By – Trad)    
14. The Behemoth  (Written-By – Pye)    
15. Someone Like Me  (Bass – Dave "The Hawk" Wolinski) (Written-By – McDowell, Novak)    
16. Three For Love  (Lead Vocals – Jerry McGeorge) (Written-By – Kelley)    
17. Shake  (Written-By – Levine, Resnick)    
18. My Fire Department Needs A Fireman  (Written-By – Katz, Kasenetz)    
19. Alone  (Written-By – Levine, Feldman)    
20. I Am The Hunter (Lead Guitar – Jack "Hawkeye" Daniels) (Written-By – Sohns, Fisher)

Musicians

Bass – John Fisher
Bass, Lead Guitar – Warren Rogers
Drums – Kenny Turkin, Tom Schiffour
Lead Guitar – Woody Woodruff
Lead Guitar, Bass, Blues Harp – Joe Kelly
Lead Vocals, Tambourine, Maracas – Jim Sohns
Rhythm Guitar – Dan Baughman
Rhythm Guitar, Other [Feedback] – Jerry McGeorge   
Producer [Original Recordings] – Arthur Resnick (tracks: 17, 19), Bill Traut (tracks: 1 to 4, 8 to 11, 13 to 16, 20), George Badonsky (tracks: 1 to 4, 8 to 11, 13 to 16, 20), Jeff Katz (tracks: 18), Jerry Kasenetz (tracks: 18), Joe Levine (tracks: 17, 19)
Remastered By – Bill Inglot, Ken Perry

MP3 @ 320 Size: 122 MB
Flac  Size: 283 MB

GLORIA  1966

                                                                              

Gloria is the first album by the Shadows of Knight, released in 1966 on Dunwich Records 666. The Shadows of Knight are primarily known for their hit version of the Van Morrison penned Them band's "Gloria", but the band today is regarded as one of the original punk bands. 

TRACKS

                                                                                 

01. Gloria (Van Morrison) – 2:34
02. Light Bulb Blues (Jerry McGeorge, James Alan Sohns) – 2:32
03. I Got My Mojo Working (McKinley Morganfield) – 3:28
04. Darkside (Warren Rogers, James Alan Sohns) – 2:00
05. Boom Boom (John Lee Hooker) – 2:28
06. Let It Rock (Chuck Berry) – 1:52
07. Oh Yeah (Ellas McDaniel) – 2:45
08. It Always Happens That Way (Rogers, Sohns) – 1:52
09. You Can't Judge a Book by Looking at the Cover (Willie Dixon) – 2:37
10. (I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man (Dixon) – 3:52
11. I Just Want to Make Love to You (Dixon) – 3:49

Bonus tracks on LP and CD reissue, 1998

12. Oh Yeah (alternate version) (McDaniel) – 2:45
13. I Got My Mojo Working (alternate version) (Morganfield) – 3:14
14. Someone Like Me" (single release not on original album) (David MacDowell, Rich Novak) – 2:18
                                                                                     

Musicians

Jim Sohns – vocals
Warren Rogers – lead guitar, backing vocals
Jerry McGeorge – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Joe Kelley – bass guitar
Tom Schiffour – drums

MP3 @ 320 Size: 90.8 MB
Flac  Size: 213 MB

BACK DOOR MEN  1966

                                                                                 

Back Door Men is the second album by The Shadows of Knight. Both this album and its predecessor, Gloria, were released in 1966 and are considered to be seminal garage band albums. As noted by one

reviewer, "The original LP version of this album, the second by the legendary white Chicago garage punk/blues outfit, was one of the most sought-after artifacts of mid-'60s punk rock. Back Door Men was a loud, feedback-laden, sneering piece of rock & roll defiance, mixing raunchy anthems to teenage lust (Gospel Zone', 'Bad Little Woman'), covers of Chicago blues classics (Willie Dixon's 'Spoonful', Jimmy Reed's 'Peepin' and Hidin'), raga rock ('The Behemoth'), folk-rock ('Hey Joe', 'Three for Love', 'I'll Make You Sorry'), and a blues-punk grab off of commercial Top 40 ('Tomorrow's Gonna Be Another Day'), all on one 12" platter. What makes the record even more startling is that every one of these tracks, however far afield they go from one another, works.".

TRACKS

                                                                                    

  
01. Bad Little Woman (Herbie Armstrong, Victor Catling, Rod Demick, Brian Rosbotham, Tito Tinsley) – 2:37
02. Gospel Zone (Tom Schiffour) – 3:19
03. The Behemoth (Harry Pye) – 2:34
04. Three for Love (Joe Kelly) – 3:11
05. Hey Joe (Billy Roberts) – 5:42
06. I'll Make You Sorry (Kelly) – 2:42
07. Peepin' and Hidin' (Jimmy Reed) - 3:01
08. Tomorrow's Going to Be Another Day (Tommy Boyce) – 2:23
09. New York Bullseye (Pye) – 2:43
10. High Blood Pressure (Huey "Piano" Smith, Johnny Vincent) – 3:38
11. Spoonful (Willie Dixon) – 2:57

Bonus tracks on LP and CD reissue, 1998

12. Gospel Zone (single version) (Schiffour) – 3:20

13. Willie Jean (single) (Hoyt Axton, incorrectly identified as "Traditional; arranged by Harry Pye") – 2:50
14. I'm Gonna Make You Mine (single) (William Carr, Carl D'Errico, Carole Bayer Sager) – 2:30[3]

Musicians

David "Hawk" Wolinski – organ, piano, keyboards
Joe Kelly – guitar, harmonica, harp
Jerry McGeorge – guitar, rhythm guitar, feedback
Warren Rogers – bass guitar
Tom Schiffour – drums
Jim Sohns – maracas, marimba, tambourine, vocals

Flac  Size: 260 MB

ALIVE IN '65  (2018)

 

The Shadows Of Knight ‎– Alive In '65 !
Label: Sundazed ‎– BRCD 145, BeatRocket ‎– BRCD 145
Format: CD, Album, Mono
Country: US
Released: 18 May 2018
Genre: Rock
Style: Garage Rock

Until now, little has been written about the Shadows of Knight’s Pre-Dunwich days. For sure, no recordings have surfaced from the period prior to “Gloria” taking hold on the hit parade. But back in

Chicago’s north-west suburbs, one year earlier, they were already #1; at least with the clamoring teens that packed The Cellar club in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Norm Gotsch was a founding member of the Shadows of Knight; and along with Warren Rogers, one of the group’s original guitarists. He was responsible for recording the Shadows of Knight live set that makes up this raw ‘n’ alive archival release. Norm, along with Rogers, was also there from the band’s inception. Here he helps unravel the Shadows of Knight’s rarely-documented early history!

TRACKS

 

01. Not Fade Away     2:04
02. Money     2:48
03. You Really Got Me     2:06
04. Introducing The Band     0:52
05. Carol     3:15
06. Rawhide     1:39
07. Memphis     2:01
08. Break Time     0:41
09. It's All Right     2:23
10. Heart Of Stone     2:39
11. All Day And All Of The Night     2:20
12. I'm A King Bee     3:01
13. Louie Louie     2:35
14. (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66     2:36

MP3 @320 Size: 74.4 MB
Flac Size: 120 MB

Nektar: Journey To The Centre Of The Eye 1971

Nektar (German for Nectar) is an English progressive rock band originally based in Germany.
The band formed in Hamburg, Germany in 1969. The founding members were Englishmen Roye Albrighton on guitars and lead vocals, Allan "Taff" Freeman on keyboards, Derek "Mo" Moore on bass, Ron Howden on drums and artists Mick Brockett and Keith Walters on lights and "special effects".                                                                               

Though the concept of non-performing bandmembers was not unprecedented (i.e. lyricist Keith Reid in

Procol Harum), it was considered unusual that a third of Nektar's lineup had no role in performing or writing their music.
Throughout their early existence the band's songwriting was credited to all six members on the album sleeves, but BMI records show that the music was written by the four performing members (Albrighton, Freeman, Moore and Howden). Mick Brockett did however co-write the lyrics with "Mo" Moore, and invented or contributed to the original album titles.                                                                              

The band's debut album, Journey to the Centre of the Eye (1971), consisted of a single song running over 40 minutes, with the last 100 seconds of the first side repeated at the beginning of the second side

to maintain continuity. It was a concept album, following an astronaut who is given overwhelming knowledge by extraterrestrials, with sonic textures reminiscent of psychedelic rock. The follow-up, A Tab in the Ocean (1972), drew on more conventional rock and blues influences. Walters had left by the time of their third album, the heavily improvised live-in-the-studio double LP ...Sounds Like This (1973), though the band would continue to use his art in their shows and album designs for a time. A cult following grew for the band, based largely on word of mouth. 

 

Nektar's U.S. release, Remember the Future (1973), propelled the band briefly into mass popularity. A concept album revisiting Journey to the Centre of the Eye's theme of extraterrestrials granting a human

enlightenment, but with a blind boy as the protagonist. It demonstrated a much more melodic sound than previous albums and shot into the Top 20 album charts in the U.S.. The follow-up, Down to Earth (1974), was another concept album (this time with a circus theme); it also sold well, breaking into the Top 40 album charts and including their only song to chart on the Billboard singles charts, "Astral Man". The next album, Recycled (1975), was stylistically close to bands like Gentle Giant and carried on the band's close connection with progressive rock.

                                                                          

Albrighton left the band in December 1976, just prior to the studio sessions for Nektar's first major-label release, Magic Is a Child (1977). The remaining members were joined by guitarist/vocalist Dave

Nelson at this point. The album was more eclectic, although with shorter songs and fairly straightforward rhythms. Lyrically the album covered a wide range of subjects from Norse mythology and magic to more down to earth subjects like railroads and truck drivers. In 1978 the band dissolved; however in 1979 Albrighton and Freeman reformed the band with bassist Carmine Rojas and drummer Dave Prater and released a new album, Man in the Moon (1980), before the band dissolved once again in 1982. 

                                                                              

Journey to the Centre of the Eye is the debut album from English progressive rock band Nektar that came out in November 1971. Though formally divided into 13 tracks, the entire album consists of a single continuous piece of music, with some musical themes which are repeated throughout the work. Because of its narrative nature, it has been called a rock opera and/or dense concept album. The story follows an astronaut who, while on a voyage to Saturn, encounters aliens who take him to their galaxy, where he is suffused with knowledge and wisdom. It is usually interpreted as a commentary on the nuclear arms race.

                                                                          

[  AllMusic Review by Mike DeGagne  [-]

Nektar's debut album was one of their finest releases, saturated with abstract psychedelia and a wonderful science-fiction motif that is magnified through the rigorous but dazzling Mellotron of Allan

Freeman and Roye Albrighton's nomadic guitar playing. Throughout Journey's 13 cuts, Nektar introduced their own sort of instrumental surrealism that radiated from both the vocals and from the intermingling of the haphazard drum and string work. With the synthesizer churning and boiling in front of Howden's percussive attack and Mick Brockett's "liquid lights," tracks like "Astronaut's Nightmare," "It's All in the Mind," and both "Dream Nebula" cuts teeter back and forth from mind-numbing, laid-back melodies to excitable, open-ended excursions of fantastical progressive rock.                                                                                 

Just as Hawkwind was exploring the depths of outer space with their progressive tendencies on most of their albums, Journey to the Centre of the Eye musically probed the inner universe of the mind and

body with its very own conceptual field trip. "Burn Out My Eyes" and "Warp Oversight" are let loose with buzz-saw vocals and hazy, undefined guitar chords which converge and fade into background rhythms, while the 54 seconds of "Look Inside Yourself" is a short, illusory voyage that ends too soon. Nektar's freewheeling sound is best felt on Journey and on their next three releases, as by the end of the decade, their progressive moods and ambient-like suites started to get harder and take on more of a mainstream feel.]

On 26 July 2016, Roye Albrighton died after an unspecified illness, at the age of 67.

Studio albums

1971     Journey to the Centre of the Eye     
1972     A Tab in the Ocean     
1973     ...Sounds Like This     
1973    Remember the Future     
1974     Down to Earth     
1975     Recycled     
1977     Magic Is a Child
1980     Man in the Moon
2001     The Prodigal Son     
2004     Evolution     
2008     Book of Days     
2012     A Spoonful of Time     
2013     Time Machine     
2018     Megalomania (released by New Nektar)     
2020     The Other Side  

 

 Nektar ‎– Journey To The Centre Of The Eye
Label: Bacillus Records ‎– 289·09·007, Bellaphon ‎– 289·09·007
Format: CD, Album, Reissue (03 Aug 1987)
Country: Germany
Released: 1971
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock, Prog Rock  

 

Side one

01. Prelude    1:25
02. Astronaut's Nightmare    6:27
03. Countenance    3:33
04. The Nine Lifeless Daughters of the Sun    2:55
05. Warp Oversight    4:10
06. The Dream Nebula I    2:14

Side two

07. The Dream Nebula II    2:26
08. It's All in the Mind    3:22
09. Burn Out My Eyes    7:50
10. Void of Vision    2:02
11. Pupil of the Eye    2:47
12. Look Inside Yourself    0:54
13. Death of the Mind    1:57

Personnel

 

Roye Albrighton - guitars, vocals
Mick Brockett - liquid lights
Allan "Taff" Freeman - Mellotron, pianos, organ, vocals
Ron Howden - drums, percussion
Derek "Mo" Moore - Mellotron, bass, vocals
Keith Walters - static slides
Dieter Dierks - additional piano

MP3 @ 320 Size:  100 MB
Flac  Size:  266 MB