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coverpic flag Norway - Full Moon 59 - 08/04/01

HGH
Trash Grass & Love Songs
Stickman Records

If you're familiar with those weird sounding tunes showing up towards the end of a typical Motopsycho EP, imagine combining that sound with a more or less traditional country & western song, and you'll end up with Trash Grass & Love Songs. Here we get Martin Hagfors of Home Groan and Håkon Gebhardt of Motorpsycho teaming up for some rather quirky country & psycho-western, the two of them playing various instruments that range from guitar to banjo to kazoo to egg slicer.

From the opening track, Sin Song, the album sets out to be a journey of simple sounds and beautiful melodies. And some weirdness. Like the double kazoo solo on Detective Holds a Pillow, or the kazoo and fiddle combo towards the end of Trash Grass. Recorded on two-track tape over three days in Gebhardt's apartment, the production is about as simple as it can get, leaving room for a pleasant sound. Well, the kazoos are actually kind of creepy.

If the phrase "country & western" makes you sick to your stomach, just shove Garth and Shania out of your mind, and prepare for some real music. This is a wonderful collection of songs that just might provide as much warmth as an open fire on a cold autumn evening.

Distribution in Norway: Tuba!

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You may also want to check out our HGH article/review: Seb's Hotel.

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