Blue Cheer - Vincebus Outsideinside (White Trash Soul Real R'n'R No.21)

 

I don't have a problem with the term 'heavy metal' itself, but I do have a problem with people confusing anything with a more heavy approach as heavy metal. Black Sabbath were the only band to invent this genre. Blue Cheer, Motörhead or the MC5, for example, never considered themselves to be metal and of course they weren't. Sorry, not sorry. Like any other band of the era, Blue Cheer's monolithic debut was rooted in rhythm & blues and their first single was an Eddie Cochran cover. However, it was their sheer volume that set them apart. They delivered a 100% rock'n'roll onslaught that bullied the hippies in their home city of San Francisco. 

"Vincebus Eruptum" is the epitome of primitive musicianship elevated to the level of artistic expression by mistake. Focusing on feeling over form, it directly foreshadowed the punk movement that emerged a decade later and along with Sabbath and Stooges influence, created what was called later 'stoner' or/and 'grunge' in the 90s. While "Vincebus Eruptum" was a brutal force unlike anything ever heard before (and probably never to be equalled), "Outsideinside" was a more polished effort, blending high decibels with psychedelia in a less mature way, but it still carried a high risk of damaging your home stereo speakers.

Both LPs were released in 1968, which makes it logical to me to combine them for a post. Together, these two records represent the brief and intense peak of Blue Cheer's original power trio line-up. Still unmatched.