Roderick J. Edens is a recording artist/engineer from Virginia Beach, Virginia who has been active in the Hampton Roads music scene over the last 3 decades. He currently performs under the alias Terry Cloth in the project Reptile Tile who are performing this Saturday 9/25 at Smartmouth Brewery in Norfolk VA as part of their first ever “PsychTober Fest”. For those who aren’t familiar with the groups sound imagine Gwar ditched their costumes and got really into dub reggae, synth pop and classical music . Roderick shares some of his favorite songs in this weeks edition of “Five For Friday” but first check out “Salisbury Mistake” from the latest Reptile Tile E.P. “Drop The Lead”.
Geoff Goddard – Skymen
This is the 4th single from English singer/songwriter Geoff Goddard in collaboration with producer/arranger/engineer Joe Meek. Perhaps my favorite release from either musician, the recording sounds like it may have been sped up which gives it more of a psychedelic/urgent feel. Speeding up the tempo can sometimes be a good way to boost the cohesiveness/energy of a recording. According to the Unarius Academy of Science all masterpieces are divinely inspired by interdimensional beings, perhaps this song is a message from them?
Dawit Mellesse – Ayisemashim
A perfect recording, the horn section is immaculate. There’s this unique tone/swing/groove in Ethiopian music that is unlike music from anywhere else on earth. Highlight of the track is 1:31 when the synth line starts; you know the keyboard player was feeling themselves while laying that down. Was once asked to turn this song off while DJing a gathering because it reminded the squares of music that taxi drivers play in big cities.
Stiv Bators – Make up your mind
Really digging this song lately, I put it on repeat and sing along sometimes when I have to drive across town. It’s a really simple and sincere record. This is power pop with a wounded glam edge. I learned recently that after he passed away in 1990, he had instructed that his ashes be spread across Jim Morrison’s grave since he was a huge fan. Later his girlfriend admitted to snorting some of his ashes to be closer to him. Glad he had got to experience real love and leave behind a trail of musical gems before he left.
The Go-Betweens – Head Full of Steam
The greatest band from Australia (as far as I know). This is such a catchy and beautiful song, perfect jangly pop with great vocal melodies. Thanks for showing me this song Tanith! The dance moves from Robert Forster rule and seeing how good Grant Mclennan looks in drag is just a bonus to an already brilliant song. The bridge before the last verse is drastically different on the single version than on the album version.
Bogdan Raczynski- 329 15h
The first time I heard this song it was called “untitled 14” from his 1999 debut “Boku Mo Wakaran” released on Rephlex Records. During the initial production it is rumored that he was homeless in Tokyo, surfing couches with only his laptop. The oyster of being homeless in Tokyo really produced some fine pearls; both “Samurai Math Beats” and “Boku Mo Wakaran” are electronic masterpieces. On the initial release, this track was a lot quieter and had more reverb. For his 2019 album “rave ‘till you cry” Bogdan reworked the song and made it louder, hit harder and sound clearer. It’s a different/stronger version of the track twenty years after its initial release.
