Hermit Xian Sound

On John and Tovah Olson’s Inside Inzane Studios podcast blog, each post is its own recording, often a record or tape, often fruit of intense bouts of used record bin sniffing. Many of the recordings are presented as part of a curated series–“weird private rock,” “weird private synth,” “noize tape classicz.” Not a single recording is remotely normal–most are, in fact, classified as “INZANE,” and justifiably.

What’s great, beside the music, are the descriptions of the recordings, which seem to be penned by a highly astute incarnation of The Muppet Show’s furry drummer, Animal. The Olsons describe their musical discoveries with such “inzane” zeal that you’re at once driven to download. But what’s more, they accurately articulate the anonymous loneliness that surrounds these obscure and long out of print artifacts. Reading about these records, you wonder what happened to the musicians involved. Google searches turn up little. Some musicians sprung from the void, recorded sometime in the 60s and 70s, and disappeared.

Below are a few choice descriptions of recordings from a recent series, “Hermit Xian Sound.” For full effect, take a look at the album covers, reproduced on the Inside Inzane Studios site.

HERMIT XIAN SOUND ONE= REBIRTH “Into the Light”/ Inzane studios is back! New series here= outsider, homemade hermit mutant Xian private wax. Unknown, local, claustrophobic heaven – reaching madness! Here is a Harrisonburg’s REBIRTH from 1970. They did two, and the famous / amazing AVANT GARDE xian label rebooted this with different tracks. Havent heard the second, but this sucker gots some intense moves. Lost teens, lost sound, lost future. Found this in a thrift store in Flint a couple years ago, a goldmine for private XIAN platters. More, tons more, Hermit Christ sounds barrellin down your way! SOON!
REBIRTH
STILL
DRIBBLIN’
REINZANE

HERMIT XIAN SOUND TWO= BROWN FAMILY & FRIENDS “Traveling The Highway Home” / Another hermit charmer here. Outta tune and wicked outta sight- The Brown Family from Clio Michigan sometime in the lost years of the 70’s. On Ranger Records. Creepy flicks on the back of the mutant sound family staring blankly into the Cthulu/Christian secret space inside……. Stock front cover…amazing outsider jem found in the Xian platter minefield of Flint Michigan. Great tunes and spirit loose playing. Tovah and James Wand used to cover “Brush Arbor Meeting”…intense!! more to come!!
OUTTA
TUNE
BUT IN TUNE
WITH MENTAL
INZANITY

HERMIT XIAN SOUND THREE=THE SHADES OF ’70/Here comes another weirdo brick of xian hermit spirtual claustrophobia…this one is some HUUUGEE band (via Guitar Ensemble) from shadows of Pennsylvania, yet another hub of private xian lps. Echoey-reverb out soundscape on this one…gym-fi atmosphere..all the stokers of the style. Unfortunately side two is all Xmas covers..whatever….think of it as a bizzaro TRONIKS onesider where instead of walls they did homespun hermit spirtual gnostic platters….More coming!
SHADES OF
70
MILLION
YEARS OF
INZANITY

HERMIT XIAN SOUND FIVE= LINDA RICH “There’s More to Living Than I Know So Far”/ Back to this style for a minute. Amazing gentle xian fem platter here….super great songs and style. Great cover, the full package. On Innver Varsity Records from Chicago, well know Xian label for many a classic. Killer liner notes about a “tuff” recording session but you wouldnt know it from the fragile vibes within. Shes has other recs but this is sadly the only one i gots. Even stranger I gripped it from Stan Denski in a Xian lp lot for pocket change, weird cause this baby is hyped and mad rare. Stoked on this one..good for a snowy winter afternoon stuck mentally indoors. Keep it personal and gentle and private= That’ll WORK!!!
THEREZ
MORE TO
INZANITY
THAN I DAMN
KNOW
RIGHT
NA