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point of yucca volume one - reviews

Number One of TOP20 at WEVL FM Radio Station, Memphis

Mystery Hearsay international, Intake Manifold (June 1994)

Yucca Tree Records of Bern, Switzerland in collaboration with Pointless Music of Kent, Ohio (USA) bring you "Point of Yucca" an international compilation CD over 76 minutes long. Making sure that you have plenty to listen to wasn't enough for this DADA (Digital Analog Digital Analog) production. Here's the other sca dope: This is Volume One in a limited edition of 500 copies, packaged in a 8 1/2 by 6 inch folding plastic wallet comes a color cover with the CD in the left pocket and 9 pieces of artwork in the right pocket, a very legible contact list of the contributing Combos and on the CD is some pretty eye appealing drawing too .. Now the audio end: 25 tracks by 12 contributors from around the globe. In order of appearance -(# of Tracks) / [Origin] - (1) Hal Rammel [Wisconsin] whose track "Prefigured Recollections" sounds like a conversation between whales in space, (3) David Westling [Illinois] brings you "Beleg Ulistas" a quarky ditty of the slanted side then "Into the Labyrinth" and "Once more to this Star" both launch into the ethers, (4) Die Welttraumforscher [Swiss] offer up the "Die Feuermann & Wasserfrau Suite" kinda 4 part melody of plinky synths, guitars and soft vocals, (3) Morloops [Swiss] true to their name - circlize "Dracula Loop" eerie wierdness, dance "Pain Loop" beatness then of course the jazzy pleasure ooze of "Orff Loop" hippity hop. 11 tracks down 14 to go ... (1) Doc Wör Mirran [Germany] flow in with "Slow #11" calming things down with ambient tones, (2) Mike Hovancsek of Pointless Music steps in with two collab tracks - Mike H., B. Chabala and J Cieciel do "The Stomp" and Mike H. with Amy Denio "Thetralisch Hersagen" experimental excellence, (3) Diledadafish [Swiss] three varied tracks that run the gamut of style, (1) The Screamin' Popeyes [Missouri] "What the Statue Saw" is my favorite track that asks the question "Why?, You try to, but can't Why?" then the jam kicks in and cooks, (3) Liquid Sound [Germany] "Peter's Journey" a trip thru strange sounds and the "Great Music in the Body" atho ambient then "Cow - Mouse" a short sonic 22 seconds long, (1) Neglige - Electronic Underwear [Germany] "Dreinklang" crystalline sparkles in bubbling overdrive, (3) {Bonus} YXIMALLOO [Japan] "A Bird, A Horse, A Fish" each sitting in a mudhole thrashing about in terminal weirdom. If you are looking for something different you will find it at the tree of yucca and looking further is pointless. Produced and Recorded at various places between 1981 & 1993. Garsch this is so hard, but another cliche would be pitiful praise. Getting in tune with a compilation such as this one makes one want or start a label. At a retail price of $10 this CD is a steal. For more information on the combos and Point Of Yucca Volume Two. (Mike Honeycutt)
Dog Soup #10 (1995)

Here's an idea. Invite any experimentally inclined musicians from many different countries to contribute music and money to a CD project. Release the disc in an 8.5" x 6" clear plastic sleeve that folds open like a book and holds the CD on one side and artwork from each group on the other. This is what red of Yucca Tree (and the group Diledadafish) is doing with this Point Of Yucca series. The results of this, the first, are fantastic. It feels like being in preschool all over again. Multitudes of rich sounds are floating all round, constantly changing and evolving. In my hands are picture cards, all different and interesting. There really is just too much here to do justice with a brief review. Suffice it to say that diverse artists like Doc Wör Mirran (Germany), Mike Hovancsek (Pointless Records USA), Yximalloo (Japan), and my favorite Welttraumforscher (Switzerland) are part of a cornucopia of music that will enrich any trip. Highly recommended. YTR is looking for artists interested in contributing to the next Point of Yucca release.... (Mitchell Foy)