Holy Modal Rounders Reissued

Originally posted on June 11, 2008

And then there were the fringe lunatic groups in 1967. The Fugs were perhaps the most notorious, starting with several albums on ESP that shocked kids like me back then. The music was crude and the lyrics? I sure was not ready for their brand of Village satire. Nor was my friends' father, who broke my copy of the second album in half (no easy task) when he heard what his son was listening to. Steve Weber and Pete Stamfel were charter members of the group, providing much of the instrumental grounding for the first few albums.

They spun off as The Holy Modal Rounders, releasing Indian War Whoop in ’67 on ESP. It has just been reissued and it sounds as off the wall as it did then. There are traditional string band songs, old risqué blues numbers and some downright bizarre moments. I don’t think anyone would call it a classic. Still, it may amuse you, if you appreciate what was on the edge during that era. Otherwise, best to stay away!