Chico Magnetic Band-'73 Frank Marino-WEIRD HEAVY PSYCH-NEW LP
Chico Magnetic Band - Chico Magnetic Band new LP REISSUE

1973 album by the French Frank Marino! Insane late '60's styled heavy rock with screaming acid guitar work, weird vocals and assorted percussive and acoustic decoration.

There are plenty of weird electronic and backwards effects and some eerie atmospherics most notable on the insane "Pop Orbite" whilst a cool version of "Cross Town Traffic" cements the Hendrix comparison. Weird & wonderful.

Chico Magnetic Band¿s eponymus album, released by French Vogue subsidiary Box Office label in 1971, defines the term ¿Heavy Psychedelia¿. These bunch of freaks, leaded by Algerian born Mahmoud ¿Chico¿ Ayari were clearly influenced by The Jimi Hendrix Experience but somehow they created a song of their own: violent, trashy, stoned as hell heavy psych featuring demented vocals, furious guitars, loud rhythm section and mindblowing studio effects including phasing, backward tapes, weird & groovy electronics¿Eight killer tracks including their insane fuzzed- out deconstruction of Hendrix ¿Crosstown Traffic¿ and cult classics like ¿Pop Pull Hair¿, ¿Explosion¿, ¿Pop Orbit¿¿

The album tracks are incredible, & the band had peaked into strange, uncharted territory ¿ heavy power trio deconstructing the gods of their day ¿ you can hear traces/hints/quotes/references to Cream, Arthur Brown, Zep, but especially Hendrix. In fact the band had evolved from an R&B based band to a Hendrix cover band before blowing themselves out into something far more original. But all the while singer Chico is just out of his mind ¿ ranting, mumbling, grunting, growling, & occasionally singing in a style maybe sounding like an even more unhinged Skip Spence melded with a more genuine, less theatrical Arthur Brown ¿ also maybe akin to German LSD ritual rockers like Amon Duul or Ash Ra Tempel. The final track off the original LP is a sort of Deep Purple meets Jean-Jacques Perry mashup which is a little outside the other stuff, but only enhances the psychic anarchy.

Is this as good as all these refernces suggest? Yesitis ¿ better even. The bonus tracks are more or less worthwhile ¿ a few straight up, though totally raw, Hendrix covers, & a couple hard rock originals don¿t achieve the insanity of the album tracks, but by other standards are pretty well out there.

The band broke up & disappeared into the woodwork in ¿72.

Chico Magnetic Band ‎– Chico Magnetic Band
Label:
Absinthe Records ‎– ARLP 516
Format:
Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue,
Country:
France
Released:
2017
Genre:
Rock
Style:
Psychedelic Rock

Tracklist
A1     Explosion     5:48
A2     Pop Full Hair     2:43
A3     Lots Of Things     4:40
A4     We All Come And Go     3:40
A5     If Six Was Nine ( Bonus )     5:48
A6     Pop Or Not ( Bonus )     2:20
B1     To Where I Belong     6:16
B2     My Sorrow     3:07
B3     Cross Town Traffic     3:16
B4     Pop Orbite     3:44
B5     Girls Of Ocean ( Bonus )     2:26
B6     Phantasm ( Bonus )     3:46
B7     Inverse Pop ( Bonus )     2:30

Credits

    Engineer – Pierre Guichon
    Producer – Jean-Pierre Rawson

Notes
Absinthe Records PO BOX 7465 PARIS, FRANCE; Tracks A5 to A6 and B5 to B7 are bonus tracks taken from 7" 45s.