JAN DUKES DE GREY

Mice And Rats In The Loft

(Earmark) Used LP $30.00

Freewheeling progressive folk-rock from 1971 by multi-instrumentalists Michael Bairstow and Derek Noy, and drummer Dennis Conlan. Their nineteen-minute epic “Sun Symphonica” jumps from hyperactive folk strumming to jazzy woodwinds, lazing for a time in ornate chamber music splendor before returning to THC-addled art-rock reminiscent of The Soft Machine or Gong. It’s a manic tour de force overflowing with trilling, theatrical vocals, flute, violin, clarinet, and exotic percussion. “Call of the Wild” is somewhat more conventional British folk, but possesses plenty of psychedelic grit, sonic invention, and authentic strangeness. Liner notes by David Tibet of Current 93.