Search - 13th Floor Elevators :: Psychedelic Sounds of

The first consistently great psychedelic album . . .

aliled | Shawnee, Kansas United States | 07/25/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What a shock to see this available with, for the first time, pretty good sound - the primitiveness of the recording has its limitations, but this is easily the best version of the album I've yet heard. The packaging faithfully restores the original, with no annoying label logos AND there are four live bonus tracks.For those who've never heard this before, it's a must have if you like garage rock - one of the first really freaked out garage records that's listenable and enjoyable all the way through. And there haven't been that many since!It clearly shaped their sound, conception and lyrical concerns. Another way to look at it is that these guys actually influenced the Rolling Stones, not the other way around.The over all sound is vaguely similar to a more chaotic and sinister version of the Seeds. The electric jug adds a bizarre element to many songs; it sounds like a weird bubbling synth in a way, and it's undeniably trippy.A big hand goes out to Fuel 2000, who released this and a career overview CD of the band. I am PRAYING that further releases from the International Artists catalog are forthcoming with the same sort of care put into them that this one has. Please join me in my prayers.Amen."

First Psychadelic band's debut ****

Janson Kemp | Dallas, TX USA | 03/07/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Byrds were an amazing band. Give them credit for starting or catalyzing a few sub-genres of rock; the first to meld Dylan's folk and the Beatles' pop-rock. The first to meld folk-rock with country on "Sweetheart of the Rodeo." But to say they are the first psychedlic band based on their influential single "Eight Miles High" is misleading. The Texas band 13th Floor Elevators took it upon themselves to hybridize garage rock, punk, and the underground culture thriving in England to produce the absolute FIRST psychedelic rock album, their debut "Psychedelic Sounds." It is worth every note of its legacy.



"You're Gonna Miss Me," the lead single and album opener, quickly establishes the band's game plan to find "absolute truth", as indicated from the band's liner notes. The song has lost none of its impact through time nor this remastering; it's still one of the definitive statements of psychedelic rock. The same can be said of the album as a whole. The Stones-y "rollercoaster" and the nightmarish Beatles of "You Don't Know How Young you Are" establish the bands roots and influences, but the album still feels like it was created in a vacuum. The remastering feels like it could have more than just 4 poorly recorded live tracks, but its a small price to pay to have it available again in most music stores. There was no presidence for this music in its time. And if you want to get chronological, they beat Velvet Underground by at least a year as being the first punk band, only 13th Floor didn't have Andy Warhol as their manager, nor his artwork on their debut, so VU systematically gets the nod. "Psychedelic Sounds of..." is an excellent starting point for anyone interested in the genre.



Overall: 8 out of 10."

Elevators on Import

aliled | 08/05/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you've made it this far, then you probably already know to buy an Import (such as this one) of this record, since Collectables has issued a version with awful sound. This one sounds as good as it's going to get for this LP (whose masters were apparently lost many years ago)... It's a tremendous rock and roll record, one that had a vast influence in the most creative era of the music's history. (No small feat, considering the other records released at that time ... Blonde on Blonde, Aftermath, Revolver, Highway 61). This one, recorded early in that process, turned all those heads. Not to be missed if you are hip or want to be. It's a great record."