Exposé Online banner

Exposé Online

Not just outside the box, but denying the existence of boxes.
Covering music from the fringes since 1993.

Reviews

Carol of Harvest — Carol of Harvest
(Garden of Delights CD187, 1978/2020, CD)

by Peter Thelen, Published 2025-10-26

Carol of Harvest Cover art

Formed in 1976 in the German town of Fürth, Carol of Harvest was a band that played what might be called acid-folk. Their only LP came out in ‘78 on a local label, Brutkasten Records, in a micro-quantity of 200 copies, which the band sold at their gigs and distributed among their friends. Much of what one hears on the album proper, which consists of only five tracks, two of which approach or exceed the ten-minute mark, could easily pass for a sound produced almost a decade earlier, with acoustic guitars and harmonized male and female vocals dominant, but with drums, electric guitar, keyboards, and a bassist in the band, they are able to show their capacity to rock with the best of them, especially in a live setting, which we have some evidence of here among the seven bonus tracks. At the core of the band was guitarist and songwriter Axel Schmierer, joined by singer Beate Krause, bassist Heinz Reinschlüssel, keyboardist Jürgen Kolb, and drummer Robert Högn. Throughout their few years together, they only played around seven gigs. The first was with a different singer, and Kolb and Krause left the group at the end of ‘78; both were replaced for a brief time, but the writing was on the wall. The album opens with the astonishing sixteen minute “Put On Your Nightcap,” which begins in folky territory but wanders all over the psychedelic rock map by the point of its conclusion, an impressive opener if there ever was one. The album closer, “Try a Little Bit,” follows a similar path, a gentle and folky beginning later followed by plenty of psychedelic fuzz and buzz, with every player giving it their all. It should be noted that their lyrics are all in English — Schmierer felt that English language to be more expressive than their native German. Three live tracks follow the album proper: “River,” “Sweet Heroin,” and a little bit of “Brickstone.” These are audience recordings, but provide some idea of the original band’s ferocity in a live setting (and these three have no studio counterparts on the LP). Four more studio bonus cuts feature the replacement singer Iris Meyer, as well as an uncredited saxophonist, presumably demos for a second album recorded before the group disbanded; these are superb, especially “For My Little Ones” and “Bringing Light on Earth,” and show a slightly new direction for the band. This is the definitive version of the album, and the four extra bonus cuts make it far superior to any CD versions that preceeded it.

Filed under: New releases, 2020 releases, 1978 recordings

Related artist(s): Carol of Harvest

More info
http://diregarden.com/god187.html

 

What's new

These are the most recent changes made to artists, releases, and articles.