Japan 3 - Mainliner "Mellow Out"

I've had to work harder at hearing this record, which I copped in vinyl reish form via Forced Exposure, than any I've heard since John Coltrane's Ascension (which was the _first_ Coltrane record I ever bought, hahahahaha) or Captain Beefheart's Trout Mask Replica (which Bruce Wade introduced me to _a track at a time_: "Um, you like blues; this is called 'China Pig' " etc.). At first the ultra-distorted mix is all you hear, then after awhile the song forms become apparent, as does the realization that there are more sonic similarities than differences between psychedelia, punk, and free jazz. In certain situations, at lower volume, the white noise actually becomes _soothing_. Dan McGuire says, "Listen to Mainliner on a Walkman the next time you have to go to a party where you don’t know or like most of the people. You’ll like it much better for its ability to obliterate all the idle chatter. I've actually done it and it worked beautifully."