Automatic Man

Not sure what to do today......that hug Mars Volta thing bout wore me down.....I know  have some Killing Joke in the pot for sometime this week, but it (and also a huge Yo La Tengo (HUGE) post ) that I've been trying to get sorted out are there, but not feeling those today at all......I had an email today that told of the place to get the New Barbarians "Drug Dealer Tapes", checked the link and indeed they are there, problem is they want you to pay eight bucks for the File Service......I don't know, it's probably legit, I just feel funny doing it. If any of you are familiar with File Factory, or in fact use it yourselves, check this link and let me know if it is legit and there is a way of getting around the eight buck fee? Really like to have them, and wouldn't mind paying the eight bucks if I KNEW for sure this is a legit service.

So, I need to go find something easy for today anyway.....HOW EASY? Well, I was going to put up a couple albums from Burnin' Red Ivanhoe, but they are out in my truck, so I would have to walk 30-40 feet to get them......too DAMN much trouble. SO what I do in such cases is, in general, check the data base and grab at something that has a smaller catalouge in there (hopefully with limited FLAC files too).......be right back........

Here we have a wonderful one-shot wonder by the early 1970's San Franciscan prog-metal Automatic Man, sporting an album of the same title....this is fairly forgotten, and I think pretty rare, but, let me tell you, this is one of those unknown classics. Check this one out for sure you will not be disappointed.

Former Santana drummer Michale Shrieve, singer/keyboardist Bayete,bassist Doni Harvey, and
session-guitarist whiz Pat Thrall put together an exciting lineup, and produced this one fine album (I realize there is another album credited to "Automatic Man", it is an almost completely different lineup and I have never heard it). This album is wonderful, in my opinion, a fine period-piece one shot combination of layered synthisizers, hard, edgy guitar work, and especially, Bayete's light as air vocals......it works to perfection, lots of lyrics about outter space and the like, but this stuff WORKS. One of the most underappreciated albums of the early 1970's, and era from which there are many.....I would love to hear comments on this one,is a long time fave of mine. ....the album needs to be heard as a whole, but "Comin'Through", "My Pearl", and "Atlantis Rising Theme" are among the highlights......four 1/2 star album, you will like it I think.

Due to a number of reasons (of which I was unaware until looking up), the band dissolved, pretty much after this album.....as I said earlier, they released a disc under the same moniker ("Visitors") on which Thrall and Bayete appear......asI said I have never heard it, and have no idea as to it's quality, but I'm assuming that as rare as the debut is, probably a VERYfew folks have heard the sophomore effort.

Anyway, hope you like this one. I enjoy dragging out a ton of albums sometimes to give a complete picture of, say, Mars Volta, or Opeth, or whomever......but I also love bringing out the occasional gem such as this, and hope to introduce this lesser know great album to a new generation who may enjoy it. Check it out, it' REALLY good, and I'd LOVE to hear your thoughts on it.

AUTOMATIC MAN-01 Atlantis Rising Fanfare/02 Comin' Through/03 My Pearl/04 One and One/05 Newspapers/06 Geni-Geni/07 Right Back Down/08 There's a Way/09 I.T.D. (Interstellar Tracking Devices)/10Automatic Man/11 Altlantis Rising Theme /Turning of the Axis

Link will be up in just a few, hope you like this little unknown gem, may do a couple more before diving into the hard core Killing Joke or Yo La Tengo posts which will be serious WORK!