Gnosis Ratings

Reviews:

Tom Hayes 6-Oct-2006 Woe Ye Demons Possessed

To put it succinctly, this is America’s Krautrock album. The real deal, circa 1974, not a revisionist history job, or a cheap hipster imitation. Moolah were the duo of Walter Burns and Maurice Roberson, who play a variety of keyboards, percussion, voices/tapes, anything that looked like an instrument, and other found sounds. And, naturally, all blown through the funz-a-poppin’ blender of studio trickery (backwards masking, phasing, filtered, you name it, it’s here).This is the type of album to compel Julian Cope to write volumes to the gods at the top of ziggurats. If I were half the writer Cope was, I would have a blast describing the imaginary movie that this soundtrack inevitably goes with. If someone blindfolded me, and said “Tom, check out this unreleased Annexus Quam album that was to be originally issued on Ohr”, I would’ve believed it! For years, this rarity was mislabeled as being on the relatively common Annuit Coeptis label (most known for US issues of German bands like Ramses and Bullfrog). The reality is the original private LP displays a dollar bill (makes cents! - ouch) which, of course, leaves the Latin phrase intact. Now comes this highly unusual CD issue on the obscure Japanese label EM Records. All appears legit, and it certainly sounds like a masters tape reissue. However no history is presented, and the boys of the band don’t appear to be involved with the reissue, so who knows really? A quick Google search shows that Walter and Maurice have worked together on maintaining an historical theater in New Jersey. No telling if it’s the same guys, but I’m betting it is… anyway, for a slice of pure underground subversive America, via Greenwich Village, you absolutely can’t go wrong with Moolah.

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Tom Hayes	6-Oct-2006	Woe Ye Demons Possessed
To put it succinctly, this is America’s Krautrock album. The real deal, circa 1974, not a revisionist history job, or a cheap hipster imitation. Moolah were the duo of Walter Burns and Maurice Roberson, who play a variety of keyboards, percussion, voices/tapes, anything that looked like an instrument, and other found sounds. And, naturally, all blown through the funz-a-poppin’ blender of studio trickery (backwards masking, phasing, filtered, you name it, it’s here).This is the type of album to compel Julian Cope to write volumes to the gods at the top of ziggurats. If I were half the writer Cope was, I would have a blast describing the imaginary movie that this soundtrack inevitably goes with. If someone blindfolded me, and said “Tom, check out this unreleased Annexus Quam album that was to be originally issued on Ohr”, I would’ve believed it! For years, this rarity was mislabeled as being on the relatively common Annuit Coeptis label (most known for US issues of German bands like Ramses and Bullfrog). The reality is the original private LP displays a dollar bill (makes cents! - ouch) which, of course, leaves the Latin phrase intact. Now comes this highly unusual CD issue on the obscure Japanese label EM Records. All appears legit, and it certainly sounds like a masters tape reissue. However no history is presented, and the boys of the band don’t appear to be involved with the reissue, so who knows really? A quick Google search shows that Walter and Maurice have worked together on maintaining an historical theater in New Jersey. No telling if it’s the same guys, but I’m betting it is… anyway, for a slice of pure underground subversive America, via Greenwich Village, you absolutely can’t go wrong with Moolah.
Links for further information