小简介
称为「魂之共同体」以结他手河端一为中心的Acid Mothers Temple,是一个迷幻公社,是一个地下音乐厂牌,也是一支庞大的迷幻太空摇滚乐团,以及一个以声响展现的大宇宙曼荼罗。
Acid Mothers Temple,我国之生物文化历史学家中译为「酸母寺」,乃公元後,後人类纪以前其中一个最扑溯迷离的古文明建筑。相对於西藏拉萨布达拉宫 (Potala) 的确实存在,Acid Mothers Temple的神秘性就正如阿兰特斯提 (Atlantis),现存虽有无数文献古籍记载,但至今仍无法确定其真正遗址及其真实性。甚至有超心理学者 (Transpersonal Psychologist) 认为,所谓「酸母寺」只不过是部分小数次文化族群面对末世纪来临而产生的集体无意识投射 (Unconscious Projection)。
据文献记载,Acid Mothers Temple位於旧日本,介乎大阪与东京之间的名古屋山区地带。据说Acid Mothers Temple乃融会西藏佛教之曼荼罗 (Mandala) 的神秘几何设计建筑而成,并配合以演变自炼金术 (Alchemy) 的环境声学设计,造成一个通往大宇宙意识界的神秘通道。为这个古老传说所吸引,自後人类纪以後便有过不少深海探索队前往旧日本的陆沉海域进行搜索,意图揭开这门古宗教科学之谜。
然而亦有声响考古学者认为,「酸母寺」并非一个实存过的庙宇建筑。此派学者指出,所谓Acid Mothers Temple,是来自东京古都一群隐遁於名古屋效野地带的迷幻音乐宗教使徒。生物文化历史学派与声响考古学派对於Acid Mothers Temple作为一个实存性建筑物之争议,至今仍然莫衷一是。
姑勿论「酸母寺」是否真有其物,但从现存的声象记录猜测,迷幻公社∕共同体Acid Mothers Temple与「酸母寺」传说有不可分割的神秘连系。无论「酸母寺」是一个真实的历史建筑还是一个纯粹原属於精神意识的外向投射,Acid Mothers Temple公社的音乐构建,却一一对应传说中「酸母寺」的曼荼罗式设计。
自称作「魂之共同体」(Soul Collective) 的Acid Mothers Temple成员约共三十人,其中包括音乐家、艺术家、舞蹈家及农夫等来自不同界别的志同道合者。不但是一个嬉皮士式的公社共同体,Acid Mothers Temple也是一个专门出产迷幻音乐的地下厂牌。以家庭式CD-R生产,Acid Mothers Temple的每款出品均限量出版一百张,而每张均有手写编号。而这些音乐创作,全出自共同体成员所组成的创作单位,如Uchu、Zoffy、Father Moo & The Black Sheep、Floating Flowers、Tsurubami等。声响考古学派认为,Acid Mothers Temple的音乐,是一种大宇宙结构的试图再创。纵而观之,所构建出的是一个声响化的曼荼罗设计。
占据这个声象曼茶罗的中心而又同时包容著整个神秘几何设计的,是由共同体领导人河端一 (Makoto Kawabata) 与众成员组成的大型太空乐团Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O.。据声象考古学会出版的「音乐宗教异人录」之记载,河端一原居名古屋,七十年代末踏足大阪乐圈,曾参加过Erochika及Headache等组合,到九十年代方加入由东京声响炼金术士南条麻人所领导的迷幻乐团Musica Transonic及东方沙罗。凭著一手迷幻而辛辣的酸性Wah-Wah结他,河端一随後进一步成为南条麻人好几个其他组合如Mainliner、狼之时间等之核心成员。
河端一於公元後1997年组成太空迷幻乐团Acid Mothers Temple所发表的首张同名专辑,是一张集合Space Rock、Acid Folk,六十年代Psych-Rock及九十年代噪音演奏,并在意识形态上深受Gong、Hawkwind、Sun Ra等影响之作品。此张同名专辑与其後於公元後1999年发表的第二张专辑Pataphisical Freak Out MU!!,均被古声象殖民学会所出版的「危险音乐索引」列为经典名盘。古声象殖民学会於书中指出,此两辑声象记录之危险性,全在於其声响对人体生理及精神意识之异化作用。
如果乐团首张同名著作是一次以噪音声学力度奋张的迷幻爆破,那Pataphisical Freak Out MU!!便是一次以渗透角度飞翔的迷幻历程。经过重型的太空噪音洗礼後,Acid Mothers Temple的曼荼罗世界绽放出是更具升华意味的迷幻图象分布,Space Rock、Psych-Rock与Acid Folk的奇异交缠聚合。再加上怪异派结他手笃山津及前地下乐团After Dinner女歌手Haco之介入,是次的声响变化及意识阔度明显更精细而疯狂。
Acid Takion及Your My Only Super Sunshine高速狂冲注满是河端一的迷幻Wah-Wah结他与13th Floor Elevators式怪异太空电子效果的交击对垒,感觉彷佛是一次High Rise加上Hawkwind的神怪太空奇遇。Golden Bat Blues Dead则是一次太空摇滚乐与蓝调怨曲结他的联游巡礼。同样的迷幻怨曲造型,在Blue Velvet Blues却演变成一个旋律化并具结构性的不失者,到最後又从这种灰野敬二式的歌德色素,繁衍出类似Jack Or Jive的悲凉宇宙咏唱。当中河端一的弹奏收放莫名地厉害,从混沌的嘶叫中绽放眩人的声响效果。
新增的Acid Folk元素也很叫人迷惑。夹杂在宇宙烈风中White Summer Of Love及Right About Rainbow I &II的太空Acid Folk飘浮,穿梭於原始太空电声中Astrological Overdrive的Acoustic Free-Rock演奏,沉浸在中世纪光影里Mr. Hardy Guidey Man的奇异绞旋音律效果,随清新和弦而来Third Eye Of The Whole World的Lo-Fi民歌造型,凡此种种都透露出一种纯粹又精细的疯狂。由Ghost伴奏Timothy Leary主唱13th Floor Elevator的作品,效果大概正会是这个模样。
After performing with such bands as Toho Sara, Ohkami No Jikan, Musica Transonic, and Mainliner, Japanese guitarist Makoto Kawabata decided to continue his musical explorations by bringing together likeminded individuals to create trippy psychedelic freak-outs inspired by Karlheinz Stockhausen, Krautrock, and '70s progressive hard rock. Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O. (Underground Freak Out) was founded in 1996 as a "soul collective." It's not a commune in the full sense since the members don't all live together, but it is based on communal values and has even been mistaken by some people for a religious cult.
Kawabata started the collective because he wanted to give unknown musicians a chance to record and release albums that would reach a wider audience; his original intent was not to create an ongoing touring and recording band. Indeed, the group's self-titled debut album, which was released on Japan's PSF Records in November 1997, was essentially a Kawabata solo project; he performed jam sessions with several other musicians, then edited and overdubbed the tapes to create something akin to musique concrète. Kawabata must have been pleased with the results, because he assembled a group of musicians to tour overseas as Acid Mothers Temple in 1998.
Atsushi Tsuyama played guitar during a November 1998 Japanese tour and became the group's regular bassist in 1999; eventually the band's steady touring lineup became Kawabata, Tsuyama, guitarist and synthesizer player Higashi Hiroshi, drummer Ichiraku Yoshimitsu, and vocalist and synthesizer player Cotton Casino. Buoyed by a well-deserved reputation as a superb live band, the group continued to tour and record. They released Wild Gals a Go-Go, the soundtrack to an uncompleted Russian underground film, in 1999, and Live in Occident, a double album of performances from their 1999 overseas tour, in 2000. Acid Mothers Temple continued to expand their range of influences; for example, they drew on Tsuyama's experience performing ancient folk music for La Nòvia, an album of Occitan traditional songs that they released in 2000. Then, in 2001, they released their fourth "official" album, New Geocentric World of Acid Mothers Temple, as well as a couple limited-edition releases. Meanwhile, the collective has spun out numerous offshoots, including Floating Flower, Nishinihon, and Tsurbami.
Many of these spinoffs appeared on the three-CD Do Whatever You Want, Don't Do Whatever You Don't Want. Released in 2002 on the Earworm label, the set featured Acid Mothers Temple music on the first disc and all the different side projects on the remaining two discs. The year 2002 ended up being an especially busy time for the band, with numerous releases including the concept album St. Captain Freak Out and the Magic Bamboo Request and their version of classical composer Terry Riley's groundbreaking In C. Magical Power from Mars landed in 2003 and collected some no longer available limited-edition 3" CDs. Mantra of Love from 2004 saw Cotton Casino exit the band. The band kept the ambitious release schedule going with both Just Another Band from the Cosmic Inferno and IAO Chant from the Cosmic Inferno in 2005. After adding drummer Shimuro Koji, the group released Starless and Bible Black Sabbath, Have You Seen the Other Side of the Sky, Myth of the Love Electrique (the latter featuring the voice of new female singer Kitagawa Hao), and Soul of a Mountain Wolf.