...or maybe try some different Beefheart instead. I can't imagine anyone on this board is a more rabid Beefheart fan than myself, and I never cared much for that one.Dude, no. Listen to it a few more times and suddenly you'll realize that it's a brilliant masterpiece. It's all about rhythm and feeling. And the lyrics are genius.
Wow. This is pretty awful. Most of the songs have terrible structure and Captain Beefheart's voice is like what would happen if Tom Waits had no sense of melody. I can see how this is influential with it's crazy styles. But it really really was nothing but annoying noise for me.
a better starting point for the novice:
Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller)
Clear Spot
these are just plain better:
Doc At The Radar Station
Safe As Milk
The Spotlight Kid
before attempting to revisit TMR, try:
Lick My Decals Off, Baby (better band, better production, better songs)
There's no doubt, Trout Mask is a difficult listen. It was the first Beefheart that I bought and it nearly ended my curiousity of the Cap'n. Fortunately I picked up the Clear Spot / Spotlight Kid two-fer which was much more accessible and led me deeper into his catalog. If that's still available, I would check that out - both great albums.
Since then Trout Mask has grown on me... "The Blimp" and "Veteran's Day Poppy" are incredible.
