Brown Acid: A Trip Worth Taking (Part 2 of 2)

Continued from Part One…

“We prefer privately pressed records with a lot of chutzpah,” says Barresi. The central Brown Acid aesthetic, Hall says, is “loud, fuzzed-out guitars. It feels like a big, warm hug when you listen, because it’s got all of the fuzz in the world.” He says that the criteria for inclusion is simple: “Is it a banger? Does it rock?”

Hall and Barresi wanted the record series to have a distinctive look; each volume should be immediately recognizable as an entry in the series. “Our thinking,” Hall explains, “was that if somebody discovers Brown Acid: The Fourth Trip, they’ll be like, ‘Oh, there’s a few before this; I should go find those.’”

Eleven years after its launch, the Brown Acid series has taken on a life of its own. RidingEasy just released the 20^th volume in the series. “It’s really exciting for us, and for the artists,” Hall says. “When they get their record, they can show it to their kids, grandkids and friends. It’s kind of a big deal.”

Guitarist and rock historian Lenny Kaye got the ball rolling with crate-digging rock compilations via his highly influential 1972 Nuggets double LP. Rock obscurities have subsequently been documented via celebrated series: Pebbles, Back from the Grave, Psychedelic States, Green Crystal Ties and many others. But some compilations skimped in important areas: the records were sometimes sourced from poor-quality needle-drops, and the artists weren’t always involved, much less compensated.

Barresi and Hall have made a point of doing things right. While in nearly all cases, the tracks on Brown Acid volumes are sourced from vinyl records, mastering ace Nick Townsend applies his considerable skills to cleaning up the audio, making the tracks sound as good as possible. “And it’s all legitimately licensed, and we’ve always paid people on time,” Hall says with pride. “Even if it their royalty check is only $15 or $20.” Due to its specialist nature, the Brown Acid series is a labor of love for all involved.

As the series has continued, the quality of the music has remained high. Hall says that while it’s been fairly straightforward to acquire most of the tracks, some have posed a challenge. “There have been some tracks that took eight years to get over the finish line,” he says, crediting Lance Barresi’s persistence for the series’ successes.

In some cases, the popularity of a track on a Brown Acid compilation has led to a deal to release an entire album by the featured artist. “We did that with a band called Spiny Normen out of Texas,” Hall says, “and two bands out of St. Louis: Back Jack and Parchment Farm.”

Brown Acid: The Twentieth Trip is filled with the same kind of roaring, riff-rocking tunes that have made the series an essential purchase for discerning listeners. Afterflash’s “Cookbook” suggests a garage-rock take on Cream; “Watch Em Shine” by Osage Lute features fiery dueling lead guitar work. And the pummeling “A Year Ago Today” from Sandy Torano and the Nimo Spliff suggests what a collaboration between Grand Funk and Three Dog Night might have sounded like.

Both men emphasize that the well isn’t in danger of running dry any time soon. “Not in my lifetime,” Barresi says with a chuckle. There are many great, rarely-heard heavy rock tracks waiting to be discovered. “My ultimate Holy Grails are records that aren’t even known to exist yet.”

With well-earned pride, Barresi says that many music lovers who bought the first volume have gone on to collect every single release in the series, right up to the new Twentieth Trip. “Brown Acid is good music,” he says, “and good music is timeless.” Meanwhile, Daniel Hall says that at this moment, he has enough tracks lined up and cleared for release to fill at least five – possibly eight – more volumes. With RidingEasy’s current release calendar, the series adds two new volumes each year, so listeners can look forward to more top-quality Brown Acid volumes on vinyl and CD in the months and years to come. ‘I don’t see us stopping any time soon,” Hall says. “Not as long as people are buying the records!”