NEPTUNES EMPIRE RARE '69 UK Rubble prog psych LP LISTEN

$

128

WHAT WE HAVE HERE IS…

NEPTUNES EMPIRE "NEPTUNES EMPIRE"

Original UK pressing from 1969 on the Polymax label, STEREO PXX 01

Cover:  VG+, some creasing, small sticker on front

Vinyl:  Plays VG with occasional pops and clicks, Side 1 Track 1 makes noise for 30 seconds.

What a strange little album.  It’s definitely one of the major UK prog psych rarities, but yet Neptunes Empire doesn’t get the big-time respect of, say, Motherlight or Pussy or Rainbow Ffolly because…well, I’m not really sure why, to be honest.  Maybe it’s because their sole 1969 album, released on the tiny Parallax label, is a little frustrating at first – mainly because it opens with a trio of fantastic songs, then promptly drops the ball.  But like David Lynch or John Malkovich, when Neptunes Empire is good, they’re really good.  But when they’re bad, they’re bad.

The first three songs are all great - beginning with one of the greatest soft pop songs you’ll ever hear - the amazing “Wichita Falls,” a catchy little prog psych song that shuffles along on a gloriously carefree tempo, a couple jazzy little verses that explode into a dizzy color wheel chorus that Curt Boettcher would love to have written for his old band, the Millennium.  “Sam” is a nice slice of late Sixties blues rock, and is quickly followed by the mysterious “Bbm,” a brilliant, mystical toke on the old hookah pipe, all hand drums and minor keys and blissfully stoned vocals.  Can’t tell you what the title means, though, although “Bbm7” is the name of a guitar chord.  It doesn’t help when the opening lines are as cryptic as the title:

“Never trust a girl who carries laughter in her eyes,

Or one that likes to run barefoot on the mystic lawn.”

The mystic lawn??  What do you use to keep a mystic lawn trimmed anyway – cryptic clippers?  An enigmatic edger?  And you see, it’s right about here that I begin to feel like the boys and girls in Neptunes Empire aren’t really from England after all – or any English-speaking nation for that matter.  The vocals often sound like a French or Dutch band attempting English, and most of the lyrics – let’s be honest – make little or no sense.  But since I can’t find any info on the band, their roots remain, like their song titles, a complete mystery.  Another dandelion in the mystic lawn of music.

After this delirious opening triumvirate, you begin to expect great things from Neptunes Empire, but here’s where they let you down.  The next few songs fall into two categories:  soft pop pablum with dog-summoning female vocals (“Tinker Lady”), or unnecessary King Crimson style orchestral interludes of no real significance (“Neptunes Empire Parts 1 and 2”).  Again, when the first three songs are that good, anything less becomes a waste of valuable grooves.

Fortunately, the band rebound on Side 2 with a nice little bit of “Salty Dog” style Procol Harum prog-psych (“Going Back”) and a weird but catchy hybrid of lounge music and soft prog with nice male and female harmonies (“Rerun of Your Life”), which might be how the Free Design would’ve sounded if Roger Dean designed their album covers. 

But now that I think about it, maybe I’m being too hard on the band.  They were never trying to be as heavy as Pussy or Mighty Baby, nor acid freaks like the Blossom Toes or  Rainbow Ffolly.  They’re a softer, co-ed version, closer in spirit to Curt Boettcher than King Crimson, with a much more rudimentary knowledge of the English language (and after re-reading some of Pete Sinfield’s lyrics, that might be a plus).  But ask your girlfriend – a lighter touch is often better than a heavy hand.  And there are at least two or three strokes of pure popsike genius here, though, and that’s more than I can say for Soft Machine’s Third.   After all, what’s wrong with a little lounge pop now and then?  What’s wrong with a few catchy choruses, or an organ solo by a keyboardist who isn’t wearing a wizard’s robe?  Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to run barefoot through the mystic lawn.

 
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO A SAMPLE
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO A SAMPLE

The less exciting stuff

First class shipping with delivery confirmation starts at $4.50 in the US, with each additional record only $1 additional shipping.  Air mail shipping to Canada starts at $8 US, each additional record $2 shipping.  Air mail shipping everywhere else in the world starts at $16 US, with each additional record only $3 shipping.  I accept payments through Paypal, or you can send checks and money orders made out in US dollars.  Items paid by check are held 14 days for the check to clear.

I try to grade as best as I can, and I list as many blemishes/imperfections I can find (writing, ringwear, scuff marks, etc.) – Also, please note that I DO listen to these albums – I may not listen to every track, but my grades are based on LISTENING, not just looking at it, since chances are you’ll be listening to the record you buy, not just looking at it.  Most of the albums I sell are the ones I’ve enjoyed for years – and I treat my records with kid gloves.  But sounds speak louder than words, so check out the sound clips below – they’re from the actual record you’re bidding on. 

SHIPPING AND PACKAGING

Listen, I buy a bunch of records too (when I’m not getting outbid at the last second, which is more often than not) – and I know what it’s like to get a rare, one-of-a-kind album packaged dangerously in a flimsy bubblewrap package.  I hate that too.  So rest assured, I ALWAYS package albums with stiff cardboard reinforcements, same for 45s.  And yes, the records are removed from the sleeves (for albums).  I ship out once a week, every Friday, because I have a regular day job.  But I’d be willing to give that up if you’d all be so kind as to bid my items up to stupidly high amounts. 

And finally, I include delivery confirmation on all shipments inside the US.  This is my proof of shipment, and also helps us to track your package if it doesn’t arrive when it should.  I will email you within 2 days of shipment and give you the confirmation number at that time.  Insurance is always optional, but for larger orders, it’s highly recommended.  Unfortunately, there isn’t a cost-effective way of tracking parcels to foreign countries yet, and shipping times vary depending on your country’s postal system.  Italy in particular seems to be really bad at delivering packages quickly, or delivering packages at all, now that you mention it.  I will always email you when your package ships, but once it’s on its way, please don’t ask me when it will arrive because I don’t know.  If the world’s postal systems can ever agree on a universal tracking system that’s affordable, I’ll be the first to use it.

NOW IT’S YOUR TURN…

I will always leave positive feedback for successful transactions, and would appreciate the same in return.  All I ask of you is the following – please pay for your items within 14 days of the close of auction.  Compared to other sellers, that’s a generous amount of time, so if you don’t pay within 2 weeks, then I have to assume something’s wrong.  You’ll get an Ebay payment reminder at that point, and possibly a decapitated horse head in your bed.  If, after 30 days, you still haven’t forked up the cash, I’ll relist the item and yell at you if I ever see you in town.