Trout Mask Replica

This album can be described as many things, but one thing we can all agree on- we’ve never heard anything like it before.

Even after all these years it is still considered one of the most unique albums to ever be heard.

So, what is the story behind this album? Who is Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band? How did it make such an impact and is it good?

Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band were formed in 1964. At this time, Don Van Vliet (aka Captain Beefheart) was simply the lead singer of the group. The band was mainly a rock band but there were some elements of psychedelia.

The first two albums of the band weren’t as Captain Beefheart expected, leaving him frustrated since his unique ideas were vetoed by the other band members.

So, in order to gain control of the band, he replaced most of the band members with younger players, and named them with names similar to him.

Together with the new band members, they holed up in a house, in Woodland Hills near LA in 1968, where they had many music sessions.

Those music sessions, created at this house, were considered a crucial part of the band’s development.

Many say that Beefheart imposed weird lifestyle rules to the band members, and played with them mind games that bordered on brainwashing, creating a cult- like atmosphere.

They wouldn’t leave the house and all day long they played and jammed, hours over hours each day.

Captain Beefheart brought a piano, and without knowing how to use it, shot out ideas, where the other members converted it into tunes. The resulting pieces were more like puzzles than songs.

One of the band members describes it as building a solid wall with bricks of unequal size, which somehow couldn’t be described better.

Because of the unusual way of practicing, each day they rehearsed over 12 hours, usually without Captain Beefheart, and basically played whenever they got up until they went to sleep.

After eight months of being bunkered, the Magic Band entered a studio with Captain Beefheart’s friend, Frank Zappa, who “produced” them by staying out of the way, and letting them do their shtick. He basically slept through the entire recording.

Because of the adrenaline of their intense quarantine, the band recorded 20 songs in less than six hours!

In less than a week, after adding two tracks from an earlier session and a few more made at the group’s house, Trout Mask Replica was born.

So, after all these talking, you must be at least a little curious enough to listen to this album, so here is its first track

Musically, the album draws from several genres, most significantly blues, free jazz and spoken word. It is often labelled as a work of avant-garde and outsider music, and occasionally an early art rock effort.

The album is widely recognised for being very inaccessible, requiring several listens before properly being able to enjoy its abstract, improvisational style.

The chaosity of the songs are actually very complex: each song has a few tempos in it, multiple keys and constantly changing time signature. The density of each songs is massive, leaving entire layers to uncover.

However, as messy as it sounds, it is remarkable how planned ahead. All songs have been rehearsed entirely, knowing exactly how they intend it to sound.

Being such a unique album has brought its different controversies: some disliked it, didn’t get it or thought it was offensive, saying that they were deliberately flaunting the rules.

Other found this as a remarkable piece of art, inspiring many acclaimed artists such as The Talking Heads, To, Waits and PJ Harvey, The White stripes and a much longer list.

Even decades after the albums release, Trout Mask Replica has continued to polarize listeners and critics for its odd and offbeat approach.

But, it gained as many followers as it has recognition: In 2011, it was added to the National Recording Registry by The Library of Congress, and in 2012 was ranked number 60 in Rolling Stone’s 500 greatest albums of all time.

Since nobody asked, my personal opinion before doing this ebook, was that this album is a complete mess.

I still think this album is a complete mess, but I do understand now that this album is one of the most sophisticated to ever be made. I still think it sounds like steel wool.

So, if you are intrigued enough to listen to this album:

And if you’re intrigued yet don’t want to listen to the album: