The Red Krayola
 

I was really surprised there wasn't a thread about this band and I wanted to discuss their awesomeness, so I made one. This band seems so unique because every cd seems dedicated to covering ground that has never been covered.

Quick Facts:
Original Core members (they change a lot though, like most bands)
Mayo Thomson- vocalist/guitarist
Steve Cunninghan- bassist
Rick Barthelme- drummer

My form of the cds I know they have released (there easily could be more, I don't care enough to check):
The Parable of Arable Liand
Soldier-Talk
Finger Painting
God Bless the Red Krayola and All Who Sail With It (probably one of the more abstract cds, especially considering the time it was released late 60s)
Hazel
The Red Krayola

I'm sure i'm forgetting some, oh well.

This band just is constantly undergoing some sort of metamorphasis that always seems to end up in a form that is ahead of the time.

So listen to them.

Could have sworn there was a thread about them

Maybe not.

Anyway I like them

yea I thought so too, I couldn't find it though.

And this is one of the few bands that I think are necessary to know.

*Bump*

Everyone should listen to The Parable of Arable Land.
I wouldn't call it 'amazing' or 'mind blowing', but truly, some of the most original and interesting music I've ever heard.
Proto-punk(or is it post-punk?!) mixed with 60s psychedelic weirdness(basically a LOT of noise). It's not the best description though. If anyone can word it better, please do go ahead :D

The follow-up, God Bless the Red Krayola and All Who Sail With It wasn't all that bad either. More or less in similar vein to their debut, but a bit more melodic.

I still need to get some of their other stuff.

I have both "The Parable of Arable Land" and "God Bless the Red Krayola and All Who Sail With It". I had gotten into The Red Krayola thanks to Spacemen 3's cover of the song Transparent Radiation but, If I had to choose between the 2 versions I'd choose Spacemen 3's.

Such a brilliant, influential, and (shockingly) overlooked band. I have their first three albums, and they are all completely different from one another. Even after a decade away from the music scene, Red Krayola still produced a fantastically unique album, Soldier Talk. Mayo Thompson's solo debut, Corky's Debt to His Father, is an interesting folk album (with a just bit of experimentation to keep you interested) as well.

Would any of you recommend another album by them? Also, why is this thread in the Indie/Alternative forum?

EDIT: Actually, I'm wrong about the whole decade away from music thing. Red Krayola did a collaboration with Art & Language in the early to mid-70s to release an album in 1976. Also, Red Krayola had complete member change ups from the 60s and onward. Essentially, Red Krayola is just Mayo Thompson with different musicians every few years or so (and sometimes with the original ones, but that only happened in the 90s). Thompson never actually left the music scene. He was just producing albums and participating in bands like Pere Ubu during those couple of years. So... sorry for my error.

They're awesome. The first two albums are a mind fuck in the best possible way, and I really dig Black Snakes too. Very underrated and influential.

been meaning to check them out for ages but never did

i think it's time i finally do, after they install the high-speed net line at my ofis

I suggest getting their first two albums to start with, but that doesn't mean they don't have other good ones... Soldier-Talk, Hazel, Introduction, their self-titled, and Singles are all great albums. Red Krayola's eclecticism never ceases to amaze me either. The fact that they do something completely different on each individual album is pretty damn impressive...

Absolutely love this band. Brilliant, creative, pretensious, and ahead of it's time. Art and Language Kangaroo is one of the best albums I've ever heard,

listening to Parable of Arable Land now

this stuff is freaky

listening to 'Soldier Talk' and God... this is one of the most awesome albums I've ever heard. The recording is so dirty, loud, and brilliant.

I'm glad JackPat introduced me to this band cause it kicks the **** out of Roxy, Velvet Underground, David Bowie, or most anything generally labeled as 'art rock'.

Downloaded Kangaroo? recently... it's a bit like an RIO band doing post-punk (I love it).

By the way, is the female singer on the album the vocalist of The Raincoats? She sounds a lot like her, and I wouldn't doubt it if she was... After all, Mayo Thompson had somewhat of a connection with the band (he produced their debut album).

They're a good band, but come on now...

Nope, I mean it.

OK, out of curiosity, why do they shit all over The VU and Bowie in your opinion? Genuinely interested.

Cover significantly more ground then Velvet Underground (which lost steam fairly early on.), and tend to be consistently good unlike Bowie.

Bowie's had a much more prolific recording career, and the good far outweighs the bad. RK's back catalogue isn't faultless, and I haven't even heard all of it. As for The VU, I take it you're not a fan of the S/T or Loaded? Though nowhere near as experimental a earlier releases, both showcase musical diversity and a willingness to progress. Not only that, they both easily trump everything I've heard from the Red Krayola.

As I said, I've got lots of time for RK, I just think saying they shit all over Bowie and The VU is ridiculous. But hey, opinion is opinion.

Well, 99% of this is opinion. The only thing that isn't is the assumption David Bowie has a more prolific career. Red Krayola started in 1966, and produced their last album in 2010. David Bowie started his career in 1968 and last album was produced in 2003.

As for Velvet Underground, even their early albums don't really live up to expectations, in my opinion. They are good, not astounding.

Red Krayola are much more diverse, and consistent in quality than both. There are things in 'art rock', and 'art music' that I'd consider better than Red Krayola. I just feel that they overshadow many of the acts that are popularly advertised to tipify the genre.

I exaggerate, maybe, but I think my point still stands.

Bowie had had his fair share of crap albums - Pin-Ups, Young Americans, Tonight, Black Tie, White Noise, Never Let Me Down and Earthling

also both Tin Machine albums, if those count

To be honest I thought Solider Talk was utter garbage.
Kangaroo? was much better though.

Why?

My mistake, it was Black Snakes I thought was garbage.

Look, I definitely agree that Red Krayola is a better band than The Velvet Underground (even though anyone who knows me knows I'm an obsessive fan of VU), but I wouldn't go so far as to say that they kick the **** out of them.

Even though this entire argument is incredibly subjective, I'm going to go ahead and jump in anyways (for the sake of a musical discussion)... The Velvet Underground's music IS astounding. Their use of controversial subject matters in their lyrics was unheard of at the time... with topics such as: dealing and injecting heroin ("I'm Waiting for the Man" and "Heroin"), sadomasochism ("Venus in Furs"), prostitution ("There She Goes Again"), methamphetamine use ("White Light/White Heat"), and transvestism ("Lady Godiva's Operation"). Hell... "Sister Ray" is about a bunch of drag queens shooting themselves up with heroin and having a massive orgy with a bunch of sailors (one of which ends up getting shot, and nobody does anything about it). Lyrics aside, The Velvet Underground were also among the first to experiment with rock music. Their first three albums were vital in the creation of: art rock/experimental rock, noise rock ("Sister Ray," "Run Run Run," "I Heard Her Call My Name," and "European Son") avant-folk ("The Black Angel's Death Song"), ambient/drone ("Venus in Furs," "Loop," and "Heroin"), dream pop ("Sunday Morning"), punk rock ("Sister Ray"), and alternative rock ("Heroin," "Here She Comes Now," and most of the songs on their third album). All in all, VU's first two albums can trump anything done by The Red Krayola, but RK's overall discography trumps VU's in terms of eclecticism, size, and even innovation (it adds up). Although, RK's first two albums are pretty damn impressive (especially their second which is fairly close to ranking with VU's debut... in my opinion). The fact Thompson is still releasing unique albums to this day is a huge triumph on its own.

I will admit, though, that Loaded can be extremely boring at times... I mean... "Lonesome Cowboy Bill" has to be one of the worst pop/rock songs I have ever heard (from the 70s), and "Who Loves the Sun" sounds like something The Beatles could have written in about fifteen minutes...

When it comes to comparing the two bands, however, I would much rather see them as equals. I have never been a huge advocate on the concept of superiority, but if one is really "better" than another... then it's just by a hair. They were both important in the creation of experimental rock, art rock, indie/alternative rock, punk rock, and noise rock as well as other genres on their own... with RK being an influence on post-punk, industrial music, and noise... It just depends on what an individual's definition of a "superior" band is...

Here are a few of my favorite songs by RK:



^ It almost sounds like a post-punk song...

^^I surmise you haven't yet heard VU's Squeeze

I've listened to a few songs from it... While it didn't really interest me, I definitely don't think it's as terrible as most people make it out to be.

You're bang on, it is all about opinion, which is why it'd be somewhat inane to continue this.

The one thing I will add though is that, although RK's music career has spanned the 60s through to the 00s, they've had a couple of extended periods of inactivity, one lasting a decade, whilst they also went eight years without an album in the early to mid 70s. Moot point, perhaps, but I felt impelled to make it.