High On Fire - The Art of Self Defense (2001) LP Tee Pee Records

Rght off the bat, Matt Pike crafted a band and an album that feels like the genesis of Sleep, the seminal Oakland stoner rock act. It's heavy beyond heavy, fuzzy riffs and bombastic drums tied together with Billy Anderson's production, who also produced Dopesmoker.

The Art Of Self Defense came just a few years after the dissolusion of Sleep and brought Matt's love of heavy metal to the fore, creating tracks with more of a nod to 1980's metal than Sleep's 1970's Sabbathy sound. It's still slower than a thrash record and in some ways feels like one played at half speed. That tie to stoner rock is still felt and in the best of ways - its a slow, headbanging record you can get ridiculously high too and still enjoy, but one that you can also use to get you amped.

Almost every track on this record is a favorite of mine, as it most of the material from their second effort, 2002'sSurrounded By Theives, mostly because it still has a very unique sound - Green Matamp's turned up to 10, Pike's excellent playing, George Rice's stellar bass work and Des Kensel's crushing drums. Even the solo's, which I normally find tedious on so many metal records, retain a soulful feel, Clapton meets Kerry King, but the sounds is very much all its own.



This LP version of the first record, which was originally released by the now-defunct Man's Ruin, has all the original tracks and an additional 7" with two bonus tracks - The Usurper - an awesome Celtic Frost cover and Steel Shoe - a driving proto-metal riff and fast-paced track more consistent with HOF's later material on Death Is This Communion.

It's a must own for any Sleep fan and any fan of stoner metal, but would find a good home in the collection of any metal enthusiast. It's a record that gets better every time I listen to it.

Dr. Dooom - First Come, First Served (1999) LP Funky Ass Records

Kool Keith is definitely one of those rare performers in music - he just does what he wants and doesn't really care about the consequences. His style is off-beat to say the least - rough and direct, not incredibly crafted, lots of off the cuff rhymes and verses and hooks that are funny and anti-hip-hop intellectual. For a guy who can craft a banging track and deep lyrics, he'll also drop lines like "Starring at me/grabbing my pee-pee" and "Watching Monday Night Football/With my dick all up in her butt" - juvenile humor for sure, but also a reflection of his raison detre - crafting music that absolutely goes against the norm.

First Come, First Served stands as one of his best, a high point in his career which has a lot of high points. He kills off Dr. Octagon, his most successful alias from most successful record since his Ultramagnetic MC's days, right in the first track and proceeds to go for a darker sound, darker lyrics, and all kind of strange skits, wrapped up in some very dope rhymes. He's one of he few MC's I really listen to when it comes to lyrics.

No subject is taboo and he puts himself in the most bizzare of situations, shrugging off any rap-boasting, status booting claims of baller lifestyles, women and money. He'd much rather tell you a story about a disgusting aprartment in the hood and a whole host of weird people - cross dressers, drug addicts, rude neighbors and horror movie heros . It's pretty refreshing.



The production is a bit of the same sound from Dr. Octagon, but Kut Master Kurt brings his own style to them, crafting deeper beats and darker sounds. It's part horror movie soundtrack and part hip-hop record and works perfectly here.

Keith kept dropping smoking records after this release in 1999, most notably 1999's stellarBlack Elvis/Lost In Space, 2001's Spankmaster and the One-Watt Sun produced 2006's The Return of Dr. Octagon.

Yes - Close To The Edge (1972) - LP Atlantic Records

Shortly after Close To The Edge was released by Yes, Bill Bruford, their excellent and supremely talented drummer left to go play with King Crimson - because he felt that there could be no better album than this, their fifth effort and one of a few prog must-haves. It's a very successful effort, one that sees some amazing arranging and song writing, pushing the envelope of prog rock without being the slightest bit pretentious. It's imagnitive and moving, rocking and mellow, virtuosic and easy to access.

The album opener, 'Close To The Edge' is an amazing 18-minute, LP side long track that is arranged like a classical piece, with a ton of sections and is one of my favorite Yes tracks. Everyone gets a chance to shine and it is equal parts art and emotion, a perfect combination for prog rock.


The album artwork is by Roger Dean, who just might be the perfect artist for progressive rock, giving the listener a world into which they can gaze while listing to a heady mix of music. He crafted a number of Yes album covers at a time when gatefold covers were the norm and using them at his canvas, he gave the band an excellent esthetic identity.

It's an easy album to find and one that is a great starting point for anyone ready to take a step into the world of progressive rock. I picked this up from Reckless on Milwaukee with most of their catalog, each for a few dollars a piece. Good thing about prog rock - it's pretty inexpensive.

Emerson, Lake and Palmer - Emerson, Lake and Palmer (1971) LP Cotillion Records

Prog rock was very nearly a dirty word when I was younger in the early 1980's. After the explosion of punk and new wave, paving the way for '80's pop, almost every major progressive rock band either changed their style or completely died off. ELP was one of those that burned out before the end of the 1970's, becoming fodder for critics who thought they were just pretentious and self-aggrandizing by releasing LP-side long pieces for each member, using full orchestras on tour and expanding solos to the point of near mind-numbing length.

However, for all that is said about their later output and their showy stage show and tours, their early output is unquestionably excellent. I mean, they sold more than 40 million records, so had bad can they really be? They really were the standard of prog rock for a while -mixing classical and jazz with rock, a supergroup of sorts as all the members came from established groups at the time: Keith Emerson - The Nice, Greg Lake - King Crimson and Carl Palmer - The Crazy World of Arthur Brown.

This is their first record, released on Cotillion Records, an Atlantic subsidiary and was pretty successful, with the single 'Lucky Man' (a folksy, acoustic ballad) being the commercial standout. 'Knife Edge' is probably the track I listen to most on this record, a great driving riff, punctuated by great organ pieces and low timber vocal work.



You do get a bit of everything with this record and it's a great debut by an excellent group, from the super-fuzzy beginning of the album's opener, 'The Barbarian' to the successful 'Lucky Man.' Grab your best headphones and give it a spin. It's an easy album to find and like a lot of prog rock, it should be cheap enough to get your self this record and an ice coffee for under $5.

AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (1976) LP Albert Productions

AC/DC released this record originally in 1976 in Australia on Albert Production before its US release in 1981. The track list was substantially different, with the Australian album including 'Jailbreak' and 'Rock On' and completely different artwork.

It's full of fan favorite tracks and is certified 6x platinum, making it the thrid best selling AC/DC album of all-time, after Highway To Hell (7x platinum) and Back In Black (22x platinum, THE best selling album by a band of all-time) - and totally deserves it. 'Dirty Deeds...' and 'Big Balls' are favorites AC/DC tracks of mine and the US release of this album has been in my collection for a very long time. It was recorded right when the band was starting to get some big time international attention and when Bon Scott was at his best. 'Problem Child' is a recent fav of mine, one that gives you a damn good idea of their power as a rock band.



I picked this up at Laurie's - a behind-the-counter rarity and one I ket passing up, because I couldn't justify the cost for an album I already have the international release on both CD and vinyl. But, I kept looking at it every time I went in and just gave in, picking it up and happy to do so.

It also coincided with my reading a very good AC/DC biography that rekindled my interest in the band. Granted, they are known for playing simple, straight-forward rock - something I usually balk at - but damn, they are just too good and this is certainly one of the most solid rock albums ever released.

Sir Mix-A-Lot - I Just Love My Beat/Square Dance Rap/Let's G/Mix-A-Lot's Theme (1985) 12" EP Nasty Mix Records

This 12" EP was released on Sir Mix-A-Lot's own Nasty Mix Records label three years before his Swass platinum-selling album was released. This single actually has four tracks: 'I Just Love My Beat,' 'Square Dance Rap,' 'Let's G' and 'Mix-A-Lot's Theme' and all are early electro sounding Mix-A-Lot party-style tracks. All the tracks are excellent and a lot of fun, a great window into the electro hip-hop world with its practitioners like Egyptian Lover, Man Parrish, Planet Patrol and Mantronix.



There are great party jams, perfect for the roller rink for those of you who actually remember those days of Shannon and Debbie Deb. Mix does borrow heavily from Egyptian Lover at points, even breathing heavily on 'Let's G' which is super reminicent of 'Egypt, Egypt'.

I grew up in Seattle and have a place in my heart for Mix-A-Lot and his output, which was incredibly consistent - just not all commercially as successful as Mack Daddy and the classic 'Baby Got Back.' Give a listen to Seminar or Swass and see just what he could do.

Motorhead - What's Words Worth? (1983) LP Astan Music

This is a live LP, recorded back in 1978 with the classic Motorhead line up - Filthy Phil Taylor, Fast Eddie Clark and Lemmy. It's an interesting glimpse at the early years of the band with super early Motorhead tracks and a stellar cover of 'I'm Your Witchdoctor' - a great John Mayall track, originally recorded with Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton.



It's not the best quality or performance, but the songs are good choices and it has that Motorhead drive and power that is very much its own thing. This has been re-released as Iron Fist and The Hordes From Hell and available on CD and LP. This happens to be the original LP, released on the German label Astan Music and one I forgot I had until I went on a Motorhead kick a little while back, watching the Lemmy movie and going through my collection to listen to their back catalog.

N.W.A. - Panic Zone/Dope Man/8-Ball (1987) 12" EP Macola/Ruthless Records

Back in 1987, NWA released this killer 12" - a mix of LA electro and gangster rap. It was their first release, ;less than a year after they formed, before Arabian Prince got bounced from the group and before MC Ren joined up. It's a great moment in the changing world of hip-hop in 1987 - right before the explosion of gangster rap and right after the LA electro sound ruled the underground.

"Panic Zone" is quintessential LA electro - computerized vocal effects, Roland 808 and 909 beats, borrowing heavily from early hip-hop circa 1980. Arabian Prince gets the first verse and if they didn't mention right off the bat that they were NWA, you wouldn't believe it. It's vintage Arabian Prince - one of two huge LA DJ's at the time dropping awesome electro stuff - the other being Egyptian Lover.



Both 'Dope Man' and '8-Ball' should be pretty familiar to NWA fans. Both are great tracks, pretty funny and direct, dropping lots of knowledge about the streets of Compton - a trend that would explode into gangster rap, most notably on NWA's next release, the seminal Straight Out Of Compton.

The identity of the group was obviously still gelling, hence the inclusion of the electro influences and crazy mix of outfits on the cover of the 12" - Flavor Flav style giant clocks as pendants and OE, Jheri curl, Fila and Adidas track suits. It's an interesting look at a group that would later define a genre, at a time when they were still defining themselves.