STREAMING: Medusa “Strangulation”

Rock and metal’s history is filled with super-success stories. The likes of which have landed Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, KISS, and countless more into the memory banks and culture stream of headbobbers and normal joes everywhere. But there’s an opposite side to mountains of cocaine, private jets, and endless pyro fountains. “Un-success” is more prevalent than success, and many a garage or bedroom band—check out Death, for example—bit the dust on rock/metal’s cold fucking granite and steel floor. Case in point, Pentagram. Before the group’s recent resurgence, the Maryland rock-bottomers were a mere footnote. They had albums on labels various and sundry, but their ascension into rock/metal megastars wasn’t happening then (perhaps self imposed) and it won’t happen now (save a miracle). But let’s forget Pentagram for a spell.

Deep in the caverns of rock/metal history where stalagmites and stalactites of bands great and terrible grow painfully slow lies Medusa. Formed in Chicago in the mid-’70s—the mysterious group had self-produced a four-track EP in ’75 for the Pepperhead label—Medusa had vestiges of rock’s heaviest and most experimental in Black Sabbath and German weirdos Amon Düül II, respectively. They were part of the times, really. No musical limitations and a wide open path to explore, trip, and fumble ideas that weren’t possible in the decades before—though the ’60s had plenty, obviously—and the decades after. But Medusa’s time on planet rock was nevertheless short lived. Like so many wonderkinds of the riff, they vanished with nary a trace. That is until re-issue lords Numero Group found Medusa’s music dusty and covered with the cruel past.

So, sit back, smoke a bowl of Alpha-Bits, let the lava lamp roar, and stream Medusa’s mind-altering and rug-cut inducing “Strangulation” on your digital turntable.

** The Numero Group will unveil Medusa’s old tunes in January 2013. The packaging is rumored to be “insane”, a black velvet gatefold LP with metallic gold and red foil embossing. Pagan Altar move on over, please. Check the Numero Group’s infuriating Flash-based website HERE for more details.