Episode 21 – Who is the Freak Now? Regurgitating OLD

Meet the creatures Plotkin & Dubin, instigators of some of the most beguiling music ever beamed to Earth from a New Jersey-shaped quasar. Like the guy in the petri dish on the Musical Dimensions… album cover, your puzzled Radical Research hosts consider the bizarre landscape before them and dive into the peculiar tumult of OLD.

Note I: We can only assume “sleastak,” from the album title The Musical Dimensions of Sleastak, is a reference to Sleestaks, an extra-dimensional reptile race from 1970s Saturday morning show, Land of the Lost.

Note II: We briefly mention Khanate, a post-OLD endeavor of Plotkin & Dubin, but the wealth of material and collaborations James Plotkin became involved in after OLD’s demise is impressive and worth mentioning. First is Flux, whose 1997 album, Protoplasmic, was a direct successor to the trail followed on OLD’s Formula. Not to mention membership in the short-lived Khlyst, supportive roles with Scorn and Namanax, and collaborations with Mick Harris, K.K. Null, Mark Spybey, and many other specimens.

Note III: Jeff said there’s nothing exclusive on the Grindcrusher compilation. Not entirely true: the version of Carcass’s “Exhume to Consume” is different than the Symphonies of Sickness version. Either way, Grindcrushergoes with us to our graves.

Note IV: We love Duran Duran (ref. “Marzuraan” intro). We own and listen to 21 Duran Duran releases between the two of us. (19 of those are Jeff’s)

NoteV: Discogs Dot Com. Buy or Die.

Music cited, in order of appearance: “Peri Cynthion” (The Musical Dimensions of Sleastak, 1993) “Total Hag” (Old Lady Drivers, 1988) “Old Ladies Always Break Their Hips” (Old Lady Drivers, 1988) “Cocaine” (Old Lady Drivers, 1988) “Outlive” (Lo Flux Tube, 1991) “Citient Null” (Lo Flux Tube, 1991) “Marzuraan”(Lo Flux Tube, 1991) “Who Are You” (Masters of Misery – Black Sabbath: An Earache Tribute, 1992) “Two of Me (Parts One and Two)” (The Musical Dimensions of Sleastak, 1993) “Freak Now” (The Musical Dimensions of Sleastak, 1993) “Happy Tantrum” (The Musical Dimensions of Sleastak, 1993) “Last Look” (Formula, 1995) “Break (You)” (Formula, 1995) “Thug” (Formula, 1995) “Z.U.” (Lo Flux Tube, 1991) Episode22 preview: Pyogenesis, “Abstract Life” (Twinaleblood, 1995)

Radical Research is a conversation about the inner- and outer-reaches of rock and metal music. This podcast is conceived and conducted by Jeff Wagner and Hunter Ginn. Though we consume music in a variety of ways, we give particular privilege to the immersive, full-album listening experience. Likewise, we believe that tangible music formats help provide the richest, most rewarding immersions and that music, artwork, and song titles cooperate to produce a singular effect on the listener. Great music is worth more than we ever pay for it.

This is Radical Research Podcast episode 21