Man...Or Astroman?

I'm sending this off before I go and get wild with Chris and a bunch of lunatic Irishmen Friday night, so enjoy it, as it might be the last thing I write in The Kids Are All Dead before I succumb to alcohol poisoning. Yeah, I know Guinness has a pussified alcohol content (something like 4.1 %), but if you drink enough of it, you're still gonna get fucked up your liver's quivering little brown starfish.

So before I die in a hail of Irish draught, darts, and Pogues jukeboxage, I'd like to share with you one of my favorite surf rock bands. Well, "surf" may not be the correct word, as it implies terrestrial pursuits. This is more like "space" rock. I like to imagine this is what the Silver Surfer jams on when he's hanging ten through an asteroid belt. It's surf rock that has more in common with peers like Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet than past heroes like Dick Dale or the Chandelles. It may not be virtuoso, but it's got reverb out the ass. When you're stoned enough and hanging out with a buddy who plays a Fender Mustang like it owes him alimony, you begin to appreciate the reverb. Accept it, love it, become it.

I've been into Man...Or Astroman? for a while now, but I only thought of them recently when I stumbled across a copy of Destroy All Astromen! at Crooked Beat Records. (Stop in if you're ever on 18th St. in Adams Morgan - it's in the basement of the building that used to be known as Madame's Organ.) As always, I snap up all vinyl that says Man..Or Astroman? on the cover, because you're virtually promised a great time.

They're one of those bands that's virtually impossible to be obsessive over. Touring under ridiculous pseudonyms (including their various "clone" tours) and releasing more albums that Robert Goulet in the 60's, Man...or Astroman? is a group you stumble across more than find and become completist about. They're everything you ever loved about Davie Allan, cheesy sci-fi movies, 50's comics, and Greek scales all rolled into one. If the Stingrays are too soft and Agent Orange is too hard, you will almost assuredly find Man...Or Astroman? to be a booster shot in the ass.

I'd advise starting with their two classic LPs, the aforementioned Destroy All Astromen! and sneer-inducing Experiment Zero. Both are great for highway drives or for cooking. Save the space surfing for Lance Bass and drunk Russians.

http://www.mysharefile.com/v/639532/Man_or_Astroman_Invasion_of_the_Dragonmen.mp3.html

http://www.mysharefile.com/v/9215452/1_Man_or_Astroman_Joker_s_Wild.mp3.html

http://www.mysharefile.com/v/8090641/Man_or_Astroman_Television_Fission.mp3.html