SPACEMEN 3 - Transparent Radiation - original Glass 12"
£
41
$
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Description
SPACEMEN 3
TRANSPARENT RADIATION
12”
Glass Records
1987
GLAEP108
An immaculate condition copy of one of the ultra-rare early 12” singles by SPACEMEN 3.
The record is in absolutely Mint Condition
The sleeve is also in Mint Condition, with only a tiny crease in the corner of the back sleeve.
Released in 1987, this single was a spectacular turning point for the band – and signaled the sound of the ‘Perfect Prescription’ album. Spacemen 3 were psychedelic in the loosest sense of the word; their guitar explorations were colorfully mind-altering, the band developing its own minimalistic psychedelia, relying on heavily distorted guitars to produce their own harmonic overtones.
Ridiculously difficult to find these days, this 12” is a real treasure…
Tracklisting:
A1. Transparent Radiation
A2. Ecstasy Symphony
A3. Transparent Radiation (flashback)
B1. Things’ll Never Be The Same
B2. Starship
Sonic Boom (guitar, organ, vocals; aka Pete Kember) and Jason Pierce (guitar, organ, vocals) formed Spacemen 3 in 1982 in Rugby, Warwickshire, adding a rhythm section comprised of Pete Baines and Rosco, and releasing their debut album ‘Sound of Confusion’ on Glass Records in 1986. Following on from the ‘Walkin' With Jesus’ single, ‘Transparent Radiation’ was a crucial a step in the transformation of Spacemen 3 into a truly unique band, heralding the upcoming ‘Perfect Prescription’ album in just the right way.
The core of the single are two different takes on the title cut, a gentle cover of the Red Krayola psych classic, drumming barely there, with guest violin from Owen John. The first take features double-tracked vocals and sudden bursts of higher volume, while the second is the full version from ‘Perfect Prescription’ itself, with a longer instrumental beginning. In between the two versions was an equally fascinating song, "Ecstasy Symphony," an instrumental drone/flange/feedback composition of textures by Sonic that's pure electronic bliss and float. Appearing only in an edited form on Perfect Prescription, here it's at its full sweeping length, including spoken word portions at the beginning and end by Sonic, plus violin from John.
Two more cuts filled out this striking (and practically album-length) release, the first being another song familiar from ‘The Perfect Prescription’, "Things'll Never Be the Same," here in a slightly different version with clearer (or perhaps simply different) vocals and varying guitar solos. The final song, meanwhile, also visited someone else's material - "Starship," the Sun Ra composition reworked by the MC5 and made famous via its appearance on ‘Kick Out the Jams’. Spacemen 3 do the song proud, kicking up a loud noise and then some with its halfway to freeform megasprawl.
A wonderful noise…
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