Okkkay then...here's another review for the hell of it.
The Vampires of Dartmoore - Dracula's Music Cabinet (1969)
Track Listing
1. The Torture Chamber Of Dr. Sex (2:04)
2. Crime And Horror (2:48)
3. The Fire-Dragon Of Hongkong (2:38)
4. Murder In The Ohio Express (2:34)
5. Dance Of The Vampires (2:34)
6. Hallo, Mister Hitchc*ck (2:06)
7. The Executioner Of Dartmoore (2:29)
8. Killer's End (2:17)
9. The Soaked Body (2:38)
10. A Handful Of Nitro (2:08)
11. Dr. Caligaris Creeps-Cabinet (2:54)
12. Frankenstein Greets Alpha 7 (2:25)
Of the various obscure bands in my collection, stuff like this ranks among the weirdest for sure. The Vampires of Dartmoore were a short-lived psychedelic, garage-Krautrock outfit who put forth this single release before vanishing off the face of the planet soon after (1969 must not have been that great year for German rock bands = /). Unfortunately, I can't tell any of you much about the band itself: there's like, no information ANYWHERE about the members on the web, which makes this album's existence even more mysterious/dubious than normal. I mean sure, there were as many one shot bands back in those days as there were stars in the sky, but with a group like this, it just seems really odd that there's no background info...
*cough*. Anyway... as the title suggests,
Dracula's Music Cabinet is something like a soundtrack to a kind of low-budget 1960's horror movie, featuring screams, evil cackling, sounds of torture and moans amidst the bass, guitar, sax, freaky sounds, industrial drumming and moody Hammond organ which all mix freely into something that sounds...novel to say the least, even 40 years after its creation. Dogs barking, the laughter of a mad scientist, the looming of an old house against the terror that a full moon brings...it all just visualizes so easily as you are drawn into record's groove, and I generally have difficulty visualizing any kind of scene when I listen to music of any sort.
Basically, the whole experience of going through this album is so strange, sleazy and different from the usual fare (and this is coming from a love of avant-garde here), that I can only consider it a masterpiece. Its left that strong an impression on me within a year.
So on a final note, I'll personally PM
Dracula's Music Cabinet to anyone who is interested/brave enough to give it a try. Love it, hate it, care less for it...I can say with certainty that once your ears get a taste of it, you won't forget it. Ever.
Album Verdict: 7/7
Oh yah, here's a video some fan made with the track "Dance of the Vampires" as the background music.