NEW LINK! Be Quiet: Compiled & Mixed by The Cowboys From Sweden (2012)

Hello everybody,
it's been a while since my last installment.  Today I am happy to present the eleventh mix by the Cowboys from Sweden!  I have been playing around with this one for nearly a year now and it features some of my favorite tracks of possibly all time (At least a few).  "Be Quiet" (inspired by Jean-Jacques Dexter's "Be Quite" which is not a typo) is another compilation of dark groovy tunes you'll be sure to fall in love with.  This mix starts of a bit aggressive with a lot of heavy drums and percussion, chugging stringed orchestration and exotic instruments (there's even a little dip into some fuzzed-out prog rock by Electric Sandwich).  After the initial build up, the mix takes you down into some dark groovy territory highly dominated by the productions of my favorites François De Roubaix and Jean-Claude Vannier.  Some spacy vocal pop tracks and some instrumentals, this is your typical moody Cowboys listening session.  Many of these tracks including songs by Jean-Pierre Mirouze, Bernard Levalliers, Leonie, Karl Heinz Schäfer and Jean-Claude Vannier have been a big part of our live DJ sets this year, so I am quite pleased to finally put them on a compilation.  There was a lot of chopping and editing going on here, so some of the tracks are only partial just to add to the cinematic experience.  Also to enhance the listen, I did a couple back to back tracks by the same artist (François De Roubaix, Jean-Claude Vannier & Nico Fidenco) to really capture the mood of the artist's work.  Keep your ear out for the insane Vannier produced groove "Ah! Mon Cher Hector" by french vocalist Dani (might be my favorite song I've ever heard).  Other notable tracks to look out for are "En Alabama" by Leonie, which is an alternate vocal version of a Jean-Claude Vannier and Karl Heinz Schäfer arranged track also known as "Je M'Appelle Geraldine" and the super cool synthy yet baroque track "Et Si On Invitait James Dean?" by François De Roubaix featuring a duet between Fred Pallem and Juliette Paquereau. Towards the end of the mix there is a breathtaking duet between François De Roubaix and Elisabeth Teissier called "Prédestination"; A cosmic astrology-centered love ballad with some of the grooviest drums, basslines and synthesizers I've heard in ages.  I might also recommend that you check out the recent vinyl reissue of Jean-Pierre Mirouze's ultra groovy soundtrack for "La Mariage Collectif" that was featured on this mix twice with "Lovers Party" and the holy grail "Sexopolis" (originally released on 7" as a B-side to the pop song "Together", these two tracks where the only songs that ever got released from this soundtrack until now).  Anyway, I could keep going on, but I don't want to spoil all the fun of actually listening to the mix.  Hopefully you all enjoy the mix as much as I did making it...

Remastered and ripped at 320kbps.  Download includes front and back cover art featuring the lovely Anna Karina.

Comments are appreciated.  Thanks.

Track Listing:

01 Georges Garvarentz/Haschisch Party

02 Jean-Jacques Dexter/Be Quite

03 Electric Sandwich/China

04 Michel Colombier/Cannon

05 Jean-Pierre Mirouze/Lovers Party

06 Serge Gainsbourg/Chanson Du Forçat

07 Galt MacDermot/Woe Is Me

08 Georges Garvarentz/Chez Timakoff

09 François De Roubaix/Les Dunes D'Ostende

10 François De Roubaix/Et Si On Invitait James Dean? [Vocals By Fred Pallem & Juliette Paquereau]

11 Janko Nilovic/Etude En Blanc

12 Brigitte Fontaine/Il Pleut

13 Franco Battiato/Beta

14 Serge Gainsbourg/L'Hotel Particulier

15 Dani/Ah! Mon Cher Hector

16 Jean-Claude Vannier/L'Ours Paresseux

17 Jean-Claude Vannier/Le Roi Des Mouches Et La Confiture De Rouse

18 Bernard Lavilliers/La Vérité

19 Jean-Pierre Mirouze/Sexopolis

20 Karl-Heinz Schäfer/Couleurs [Vocals by Leonie]

21 Jean-Claude Vannier/Au Désespoir Des Singes

22 Leonie/En Alabama

23 Bernard Lavilliers/Les Aventures Extraordinaires D'un Billet De Banque

24 François De Roubaix/Prédestination [Vocals By Elisabeth Teissier & François De Roubaix]

25 Jean-Pierre Ferland/...

26 Stanley Myers/Fur Coat

27 Nico Fidenco/Emanuelle In America Sweet

28 Nico Fidenco/Monica's Mirror

Get it here!

The Easybeats - Friday On My Mind/Made My Bed 7" (1966)

Here's a quick 7" rip for everyone... Two rippin' fuzzed out mod rockers by Australian's greatest pop group: The Easybeats. You all know "Friday on my mind", but perhaps the b side is a little less familiar? It's hard to pick between the two, they are both excellent tracks. They both have the qualities that make most Easybeats songs stand out: Unbelievably catchy pop melodies + mind blowing fuzz guitar hooks! Don't think I really need to explain this one. Just listen to the dark fuzz riff on Made my bed: Gonna lie in it! Perfection.

Tracks:
A. Friday on my mind
B. Made my bed: Gonna lie in it

http://depositfiles.com/files/li7slkt5k

Blind Slime - Dark Vibrations (In the Sky) - 2012

Hello hello,
today Wil-Ru just launched a brand new free EP by Blind Slime featuring four beautifully crafted dark and liturgical moon-lit psychedelic instrumentals.  This dude (Jason Adams) has been recording some really weird, really interesting guitar music.  Lot's of unusual production choices and top notch song writing make this stuff really unique and definitely worth your time!  Give it a listen and if you dig it, download it!  Oh yeah, cover designed by yours truly!

Ozarks - As I Lay Sleeping (Music Video)

Ozarks - As I Lay Sleeping from Robbie Augspurger on Vimeo.

Here's our latest bit of Italo inspired gothic-horror eye candy.  A mini Dracula film set to our (Ozarks) song "As I Lay Sleeping".  Kind of adds new meaning to the lyrics...  Hope you enjoy.

Ennio Morricone - Angel Face / Una Pistola Per Ringo 7" (1965)

Okay, here's another rare 7" from Italy.  This one features music by Ennio Morricone written for the 1965 Duccio Tessari spaghetti western "Una Pistola Per Ringo (A Gun For Ringo)" starring babyfaced badass Giuliano Gemma.  Funny enough, I've actually seen this film, however I only saw part of it since my friend and I tracked down a burned bootleg DVD at Movie Madness that was taped of Swedish TV (and had Swedish Subtitles).  Where the story gets weird is about 15 minutes into the film it cuts to Ringo recovering from a gun wound in a rickety shag, nursing himself back to health by eating gross soup. Incase you didn't catch that, the DVD was missing about 40 minutes of the middle of the film, so it starts and then basically cuts to the climax, which was actually quite a funny way to see a film!  After about a forty minutes of watching the film, it ended, then there was about 40 minutes of a really depressing Swedish daytime television movie from the nineties that played for the remainder of the DVD. Talk about a weird double feature, two completely unrelated half-movies for the price of one!  It was pretty funny though.  Thanks for checking your quality Movie Madness!

Anyway, back to the record.  Side a features the soft western ballad Angel Face which features one of my favorite (phonetic) English singing Italian vocalists Maurizio Graf, who as far as I can tell has mostly done western songs.  However, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for an entire Maurizio Graf vocal album, I just haven't come across one yet.  The song is very pretty and sentimental with top notch vocals by Maurizio.  A typical Morricone western arrangement, with the big booming drums, twangy guitars, lush string arrangements and choirs backing the whole production.  Side B, although it has an alternate title is basically the same as Side A except it is an instrumental version with the backing choirs more up front and a fuzzy lead guitar playing the melody in Maurizio's place.  Both very nice tunes.  I hope you enjoy them.  Freshly ripped straight from the Cowboy's crates with large cover scans for you digital collectors out there...

Tracks:
A: Angel Face (Vocals by Maurizio Graf)
B: Una Pistola Per Ringo

http://depositfiles.com/files/g2tm5x1vo

Christy - Deep Down / Amore Amore Amore Amore 7" (1968)

Step back one year to 1968, set in Italy this time.  Here we have the extremely rare Deep Down single performed by Christy.  "Deep Down" is supposedly the only existing official artifact from the Danger: Diabolik soundtrack by Ennio Morricone (which is rumored to have been destroyed in a studio fire).  I know very little about Christy except that she is an insane singer with a wild passionate delivery which rivals even Italian pop goddess Mina!  Feel free to clue me in if you've got the goods on her.  The track "Deep Down" was the theme song for Mario Bava's campy film version of the comic "Danger: Diabolik" which stars a sensuous blonde haired Marisa Mell and a typical wooden performance by John Philip Law (which actually works quite effectively in this case).  This film is amazing, probably one of the most entertaining comic renditions I've seen.  Super mod, super classy, lots of twists, amazing soundtrack!  The music is your typical light hearted Morricone fuzz-fest.  Driving drums, bells, percussion, mermaid vocals and sweet sweet guitar fuzz (presumably Alessandro Alessandroni).  On the flip side we have a nice pop number written by Italian soundtracker Piero Piccioni.  Slowed down romantic vibe building up into a huge yelling session by Christy.  Pretty over the top considering the type of song it is.  I tell you, the Italians know how to write an effective pop vocal track!

A fresh 320 rip from original vinyl complete with scans.  Enjoy!

Tracks:
A: Deep Down
B: Amore Amore Amore Amore


http://depositfiles.com/files/4s8te1jzi

Slogan 69

As promised, here is the first 7" to kick off a small series of seven inch rips by the Cowboys from Sweden.  This one needs no real introduction, everyone should already know how amazing this little record is!  Slogan is probably one of my favorite tracks by anyone ever with it's dark and sexy groove layered with orchestral stabs, groovy bass lines and harpsichord melodies so good that they are maddening!  Talk about a duet, this one is unmatched!  Beautiful, breathy, highly melodic and almost aggressive with passion.  More please.  Anyhow, I'm sure you all know it.  So the real gem here is the B-Side.  A little instrumental track called "Evelyn" which I believe was Jane Birkin's character's name in the film this was made for (the 1969 french art film Slogan).  Great film as well, I highly recommend it!  Anyway, Evelyn is a breathtaking piano driven number with a hypnotic groove and breezy instrumentation.  Over all, it has a bit of a melancholy vibe to the melody, which is probably the reason I am such a sucker for it!  This record is pretty hard to find and it occasionally fetches astronomical prices online.  As far as I know, this 7" is the only official release of Evelyn (aside from the Serge Gainsbourg CD box set of film music put out some years ago).  A true rarity, hope you enjoy it as much as I, and please spread it around...

Tracks:
A. La Chanson De Slogan
B. Evelyn

http://depositfiles.com/files/t8r5bwc6z

Ozarks - Pyramids of Love (Video)

Check this out! My buddy Robbie and I (The Cowboys From Sweden) filmed this music video for our song "Pyramids of Love" a few weeks back. The track will be featured on our full length debut LP coming out in about a month or so. Our band is called Ozarks and the music is pretty heavily inspired by all the cool 60s and 70s baroque pop and rock bands that we all know and love so well. More info on that soon. With the video however, we were going for a live stage performance vibe (kind of like those tv specials and variety shows from the 60s), juxtaposed with some leather-clad giallo killer playing all the instruments. Just imagine Dario Argento is the one man band and you should be able to sit through this just fine... Best Regards... eric. PS. Comments and harsh criticism is always nice to hear. Thanks!

Antoni Tàpies

December 13th, 1923 - February 6th, 2012