SYDE TRYPS SIX
Tenth Planet (TP024), 1996.
01. The Summer Set - Cos It's Over
02. Tropical Fish - Captain Man Pt 1
03. The Phoenix - Live For The Sun
04. The Longboatmen - Viva L'Amour
05. The Name - Hello Edythe
06. Tropical Fish - Waterloo Station
07. The Flames - Streamliner
08. The Phoenix - You Keep Me Hanging On
09. The Longboatmen - Trouble And Tea
10. The Phoenix - Brave New Sights
11. Tropical Fish - Upside Down Inside Out
12. Solent - My World Fell Down
13. The Name - What Do I Care?
14. Tropical Fish - Captain Man Pt 2
15. The Phoenix - You Are The Moon And The Stars And The Sun
Summertime in Middle England, and the living is easy. Long shadows on county grounds, old maids bicycling to Holy Communion, invincible green suburbs, warm beer - what more could a poor boy languishing in perfidious Albion possibly want? Well, a soundtrack for such balmy, halcyon days (and nights!!) would be nice - something in the summer Britpop tradition that stretches all the way from the Kinks to Supergrass but, in keeping with the Syde Tryps series, solely comprised of obscurities from the second half of the 1960's. If, therefore. you're searching for some frenzied R&B or Hendrix-style guitar excess, I respectfully suggest that you look elsewhere because Syde Tryps Six devotes its blissed-out self to the idyllic sound of celestial harmonies, jangling guitars and winsome melodies as we go lazing on a sunny afternoon. In this particular corner of Tenth Planet's parallel universe, the sun's golden rays shine down on miniskirted temptresses with hair like spun gold and eyes of azure blue as they flutter languidly past, while boys in dresses release butterflies and recite Shelley - that's Percy Bysshe rather than Peter - in exaggerated Cockney accents (well, even parallel universes aren't always perfect). Open a bottle or three of Hooch, crank up the volume, close your eyes and drift away... *
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REVIEW BY JASON KUCZENSKI (Originally published in Ugly Things #15, 1997):
Tenth Planet are back with Syde Tryps Six, more open-mind therapy for anyone stuck in the garage/R&B run (that stuff's GREAT but it ain't IT in your well-balanced musical diet). This one focuses specifically on pop, and as usual, it's culled from long lost acetates and private pressings. It's a great approach; there seems to be loads of fine music out there to be unearthed. A band's never needed a major label contract to deliver the goods, and this kind of music wasn't created at some A&R man's whim (unless he was Kim Fowley). That said, I have to admit that most of my faves on this LP are by bands that released SOMEthing on a major label SOMEwhere.
The Summer Set sound great on the US-only "Cos It's Over," a winning mix of stuttering drums and put-down vocals. Sweden's Longboatmen (of "Take Her Anytime" fame) stand out on their two tracks, as do South Africa's Flames - tres cosmopolitan!
The Phoenix certainly had a lot to say - their bombastic "Brave New Worlds" makes my brain hurt, and I'm in college! A couple of their tracks offer something in the way of redemption, but on the whole I'd leave `em to the "conceptual piece in 11/4 time" crowd. Tropical Fish have a bit of this progressive edge on the extensive "Captain Man I & II," but they manage to keep the energy level, and my interest, up there. Two other songs prove that they also had a handle on nice, simple summery pop.
The Name provide a more whimsical approach. You've heard "Hello Edythe" before, but here you also get the equally good "What Do I Care." Solent's "My World Fell Down" is nice enough, but it can't really compare to the studio trickery Sagittarius bring to the song.
This sort of music may not have the same immediate impact that swooping bass runs and rattling maracas can, but that doesn't make it any less vital or worthwhile. Tenth Planet have had a knack, over their past 20-odd (!) releases, of putting out "legendary" recordings I never thought I'd hear, all the while spicing it up with loads of unknown winners to please all (Ugly Things-related) persuasions. Keep your eyes peeled for this label, and, if you can, indulge.
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