COMUS FIRST UTTERANCE LP 1970's PRESS HOLY GRAIL BEO DAWN VERTIGO
£
62
$
82
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Description
COMUS -
FIRST UTTERANCE
BEO
1970's press German
cat. nr.42513
stamped matrices A 1 1 and B 1 1
FOR SALE THIS MONSTER RARE 1970's pressing :
"COMUS - FIRST UTTERANCE". MONSTER RARE AND AMAZING PROG LP FROM UK!!!
PLAYS BRILLIANTLY.
I cannot find much info on this very unusual issue and have only ever seen it once in 40 years of collecting. This is mega rare and rumoured to be an early 70's issue. Someone told me it might be by German label Bacillus but I'm not sure. It does have stamped matrices, NOT ETCHED!! The labels are also fantastic , untainted, no spindle traces.
One of the very rarest psych folk albums from the UK and any time this album comes up for sale there is a sense of excitement. This one is nice, very nice, please read on.
When most people think of folk music, what comes to mind is usually calm, mellow and relaxing music like Nick Drake or Iron & Wine. In 1971 though, Comus created something completely unique and amazingly ahead of its time, mixing folk with progressive rock and psychedelia. Instead of being gentle and mellow, First Utterance is frantic, haunting and just plain evil sounding. First Utterance is hard to compare to anything else really. There is some influence that can be heard in the unsettling atmosphere of Current 93's style of 'apocalyptic folk', but the only album that really sounds remotely similar is Spirogyra's St. Radigunds which was released in the same year, though that is not quite as experimental and is not nearly the same quality. Comus use violins, acoustic guitars, flute, hand-drums, oboe and bass, the only electric instrument to appear, to create their unique sound which could probably be best described as sounding like a very demented sped-up version of Jethro Tull. The complex, energetic drumming gives the album a tribal feeling that along with the twisted folk melodies creates a perfect dark atmosphere. First Utterance sounds like the music that should be played at a bizarre pagan ritual in the middle of a dark forest, complete with human sacrifices. Despite the grim atmosphere, the music is actually very upbeat and catchy which helps bring to life the images of pagan festivals, almost making it seem as if the listener is at one himself. All of the melodies, often played on violin or flute are completely memorable and brilliantly written. The songs are mostly lengthy and complicated, but the music still manages to be very accessible if you can get past the bizarreness of it because it is all very catchy. The lyrics, partly inspired by John Milton's masque also named 'Comus', don't disappoint at all, fitting in perfectly with the theme. They are definitely not for the faint-hearted or easily offended though, describing such pleasant things as rape, murder, more rape, being imprisoned in a mental asylum, and hanging a Christian. Despite the dark subject matter, the lyrics are always well written and gripping. Opeth fans would recognise the lines 'As I carry you to your grave my arms your hearse' and 'And she knows by the sound of the baying, by the baying of the hounds' as that is where they got some of their album/song titles from. The lead singer, Roger Wootton sings in a quite high pitched and unique style. The singing fits the music, sounding equally as demented and sinister, but the odd style could mean that it's an acquired taste for some. However, there are some very catchy vocal melodies that you could even sing along to – at least if you want to sound like a psychopath to anyone close by. Several other singers sing back-up vocals, most noticeably Bobbie Watson, who's ethereal and ghostly singing contrasts perfectly with Wootton. She also sings lead vocals on one track, 'The Herald', which is different to the other tracks as it is slow and atmospheric, containing none of the violence that can be found in the rest of the album. However, thanks to Watson's haunting vocals and an unsettling slide bass, the song sounds tense and unnerving, fitting in with the album's dark mood perfectly. Overall, First Utterance is a brilliant album, though it may be too strange for many, which is why it never sold well on release and the second Comus album was a disastrous attempt at making commercialised folk-rock. For anyone interested in some very experimental and unique music though, First Utterance is a must have. (Review from sputnikmusic.com)
Musically haunting, some strangely-strange melodies and great improvisations. This has long been a connoisseurs prog-psych-folk album and highly sought after. I have always found this extremely hard to find and have only ever seen few copies before and none even in the same class or league as this great example. These acid-folk albums are hard to find like this with nowhere for unwanted sounds to hide amongst the delicate acoustic and vocal music, this gave a fantastic performance throughout. This copy includes the monstrously rare original lyric insert which I have seen being sold for three figure sums on several occasions.
This is one that will stick in my mind for sometime long after its gone. Do not let this most prized DAWN classic slip the net.
Vinyl: EX. Audio is A+ and this vinyl sounds out of this world, with nothing distracting going on. The audio has beautiful separation and there is hardly ever any background noise. There are no marks and under a strong light there are just a couple of paper retraction traces, these are completely invisible in normal daylight and even new vinyls will have these. I played this in full on my Linn Sondek/Rotel system and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was even tempted to keep this as it will be very hard to find this ever again, it is indeed mega rare these days. Only two or three went up for sale this last year. Needless to say NO jumps or clicks.
Sleeve: EX. Fantastic looked after matt single sleeve and it is clear from feeling this sleeve that it is a 70's sleeve. There are remarkably no creases but signs of a small sticker removal right hand top corner (see pic). It is so frustrating not being able to find much info about this stunning record which is probably an unofficial early seventies issue, indeed super rare. How many would have survived over the last 48 years??
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International postage will incur an extra fee for tracking and insurance if over £30.00. Please wait for me to send you an adjusted invoice before paying. The tracked fee will be at actual Royal Mail grade. I do not profit from postage and actually undercharge.
Though there are rarely ever any problems with my items, I always try my very best to describe everything exactly! PLEASE REMEMBER to contact me FIRST, if you have any problems at all, before you leave feedback and star ratings, so I get a chance to turn any negative experience into a positive one! I can always happily sort anything out for you, if you let me know you have a problem! This way no one has to leave Negative/Neutral feedback - and we both walk away happy! Similarly with the amount of stars, anything less than a full 5 * rating is effectively detrimental to a seller's rating as lower ratings will incur higher Final Value Fees and lower priority in the bidlists eventually making it unattractive to list items on Ebay at all. I know of at least one major previous Ebay seller who has decided not to list via Ebay again. Please do NOT bid if you cannot give me at least 1 chance to sort everything out to your FULL satisfaction in the unlikely event of a problem. Thanks again!!
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