MAMMUT

Disclaimer: First of all- If you haven't already, then you NEED TO HEAR THIS ALBUM ON VINYL. It is the best way to hear this type of music. CD's (and YouTube, especially) do not do it proper justice. Music-Lovers; there is no excuse, not even the moderately higher price, to justify not listening to this music the way it sounds best. An inexpensive turntable and vinyl reissue will blow you away. Trust me.

4.5 stars! Originally on the "Mouse Trick Track Music" label, The band name "Mammut" came from Peter Schnur who went by the nickname "Mammut" (Mammoth--in English). Mammut was a two-week project that happened August 1st-15th 1970 at MPS (Music-Production-Schwarzwald) in Villingen/Donaueschingen (SW-Germany). MPS was normally reserved for "big" acts, however, the studio was officially closed, for holiday, and Alfred "Aki" Kienzler (MPS directors nephew) was allowed to be the studio boss for these two-weeks. Aki had already used the studio the year before to record a sampler (from various bands, in the area) titled "Under Party Ground", so he liked the idea of using this time productively...

During this time, brothers Peter "Mammut" & Klaus "Ede" Schnur (guitars), Rainer Hofmann (keyboard, guitar, vocals--home on army leave), Tilo Herrmann (bass, vocals), Gunther Saier (drums), and Peter Schnur (conductor on Mammut-Opera) put together an album. All the titles were really working titles, actually, phrases they had coined, on the spot, and combined with the band-name.

Personally I feel Mammut is one of the best examples of a true "Krautrock" album. Krautrock is a culmination of styles, and this album amazingly blends- prog, rock (with a hint of blues), psych, and classical all together. Lets get into the music!..

1. Bird Mammut- After you hear some funny, bird-talk, you get a very psychedelic and trippy organ, with a furious tribal drum/bongo beat. Before long the flute comes in and adds to the action. Great opening track.

2. Classical Mammut- Is an impressive and tasteful classical-piano interlude, that builds the momentum for...

3. Mammut Ecstasy- This track is great! Ecstasy is a perfect blend of mild to mild-heavy guitar, organ, and drums, mixed with some great vocals and psychedelia in the background. The drumming is very tympanic, almost jazzy. There are plenty of organ and guitar duels, as well. A+

4. Footmachine Mammut- Is kind of a short jam, with soft vocals, organ, and a propulsive drum-beat.

5. Short Mammut- Is a nice musical doorway, into...

6. Schizoyd Mammut- Gets back into the action with some hard psych sounding vocals and guitar, accompanied by a perfect cascade of drums. This was recorded live and conducted by Peter Schnur. Awesome track! I only wish it were longer...

7. Nähgarn Mammut- Is named after a (partial) german expletive. Nähgarn has more of a progressive feel than the previous songs, with good vocals, organ, guitar, and of course exemplary drumming.

9. Mammut Opera- Was also recorded live, and after only one round of rehearsals! Opera starts off with some wonderful, but almost pop-sounding (think Beatles) vocals, with a steady rhythm of drums. It's a pretty straight forward prog-rock tune, until you think it's over...then the drum rhythm breaks, and the flute and guitar start an amazing duel in a most crazy and psychedelic manner, which continues for several minutes, into the climax of the album/song, which is concluded with a rightfully deserved audience applause. Perfect.

It's amazing that this whole album took only two weeks to make. The entire band contributed to the music, with Ede writing all the lyrics/vocals in a quite corner, equipped with an English dictionary. The original Mouse-TTM label LP is almost impossible to find, and unfortunately, I don't have one...yet. Thankfully, several vinyl reissues have kept fans happy!