Back in 1988 the intention was to sequence these mainly instrumental tracks for release amidst the mostly vocal pieces from the same session. Had that happened, then Sun City Girls' best known release Torch of the Mystics would have been the rarest of beasts: a consistently excellent double album.
Charles Gocher passed away in 2007 and Alan and Richard Bishop will not be recording as Sun City Girls anymore. They are, though, about to embark on a tour as The Brothers Unconnected. Most of the shows will include a 40 minute film of video creations by Gocher followed by two sets during which Alan and Richard will perform acoustic versions of Sun City Girls’ material. Some may say this is not to be missed and indeed I’ll be driving three hours to see the closest show. Meanwhile You’re Never Alone With A Cigarette represents the first volume in what will be a series of archival releases of singles, unreleased pieces and stray compilation tracks. If subsequent volumes are put together as well as this then we are in for a treat.
Starting with “100 Pounds of Black Olives” the group applies blistering energy to their global muse. This opening track is labyrinthine and cathartic yet a structural clarity emerges as the song resolves itself. “Sev Archer” maintains the sense of urgency even as its rhythms and spaciousness seem to call up the spirit of Joe Meek or The Ventures. There is no letup in the intensity on either “Souvenirs From Jangare” or the more solemn and droning “Plaster Cupids Falling From The Ceiling.” Richard Bishop’s guitar is reined in a little on the more egalitarian “Amazon One,” and “The Beauty of Benghazi” uses vocals and guitar in a call and response.
“Wild World of Animals” sounds like a groovy strut through the Latin Quarter of an indeterminate city. There are lovely percussive twists, the bass seeming to swallow or gulp and the guitar twang, glisten and slip. The album ends with the previously unheard 12 minutes of “The Fine-Tuned Machines of Lemuria” which starts out light, then adds squalls, thuds, feedback, and echo for an extended climactic finale. The Bishops' mischievous titles and serious approach to musical adventure will doubtless continue to produce various multi-form explorations. Here is a chance to catch up with their deft and spirited past. Music rarely retains such a cutting edge two decades after it was created.
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