Memory of a Cut Off Head | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | November 17, 2017 | |||
Studio | Stu Stu Studio, Los Angeles | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 44:56 | |||
Label | Castle Face Records | |||
Producer | John Dwyer | |||
OCS chronology | ||||
|
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 73/100 [1] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Pitchfork | 6.5/10 [3] |
Memory of a Cut Off Head is the twentieth studio album by American garage rock band OCS, released on November 17, 2017, on Castle Face Records. The album is the first to be released under the OCS moniker since OCS 4: Get Stoved (2005), and is their fifth overall to be released under an abbreviated name.
Produced by founding member John Dwyer, the album is primarily an acoustic collaboration between Dwyer and former core member Brigid Dawson. [4] The album features contributions from current and former members of Oh Sees, including Nick Murray and Patrick Mullins, alongside current members Tim Hellman and Tomas Dolas.
Regarding the use of the name OCS and his return to the project's lo-fi roots, John Dwyer noted: "[Oh Sees and OCS] are two different bands honestly. Two different line-ups. The origin of the OCS came from this band [Orinoka Crash Suite]. We just wanted to get back to writing like that. But I also wanted to write a record with Brigid Dawson. I wanted to do something specifically with her. And it ended up being a lot of fun so I’m glad we did it." [5]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Memory of a Cut off Head" | 4:47 |
2. | "Cannibal Planet" | 4:29 |
3. | "The Remote Viewer" | 5:27 |
4. | "The Baron Sleeps and Dreams" | 3:34 |
5. | "On & On Corridor" | 5:50 |
6. | "Neighbor to None" | 2:30 |
7. | "The Fool" | 4:41 |
8. | "The Chopping Block" | 3:14 |
9. | "Time Tuner" | 5:57 |
10. | "Lift a Finger (By the Garden Path)" | 4:27 |
Musicians
Recording personnel
Artwork
Osees are an American rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1997, now based in Los Angeles, California. Originally the solo recording project of John Dwyer, the band has evolved through numerous line-up and name changes since its founding, with Dwyer serving as the band leader and primary songwriter throughout. The group's sound draws from a wide variety of influences, including garage rock, krautrock, psychedelia, and folk music. Osees are noted for their prolific recording output, energetic live shows, and whimsical visual aesthetic.
The Master's Bedroom Is Worth Spending a Night In is the seventh studio album by San Francisco-based rock band Thee Oh Sees. The album was the first to be released under the name "Thee Oh Sees", after the band had previously been known as "OCS", "The Ohsees", and "The Oh Sees". It is their seventh studio album overall.
John Dwyer is an American multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter, visual artist and record label owner. He is best known as the founding member and primary songwriter of the garage rock band Osees, with whom he has released 23 studio albums. In addition to his work with Osees, Dwyer records solo material under the name "Damaged Bug". From 2020-2021, Dwyer released several improvisation-based records with a rotating collective of different artists, including "Bent Arcana", "Witch Egg", "Endless Garbage", "Moon Drenched" and "Gong Splat". He is also a former member of the garage rock acts Coachwhips, Pink and Brown and The Hospitals.
Brigid Dawson sang and played keyboard and tambourine for Thee Oh Sees. She is noted for her "whimsical" harmonies and is credited with helping front man John Dwyer write melodies. Reviewing a show they played in New York, Impose Magazine wrote, "Brigid Dawson's backing vocals are the band's silver lining". Soundscapes noted in an album review, "Once again, Dwyer’s secret weapon is Brigid Dawson, whose vocal interplay gives them a leg-up in the male-dominated garage rock scene." Her voice has been compared to Kim Deal and Exene Cervenka, among others.
Warm Slime is the tenth studio album by American psychedelic rock band Thee Oh Sees, released on May 11, 2010. The album is the fourth to be released under the name Thee Oh Sees, and is the band's tenth studio album, overall.
Castlemania is the eleventh studio album by the American garage rock band Thee Oh Sees, the fifth album released by the band under the name "Thee Oh Sees" and their eleventh overall. It was released on May 20, 2011, by In The Red Records. It was the first of two studio albums to be made by the band in 2011, the other being Carrion Crawler/The Dream, which was released in November. It was recorded by a skeleton lineup of John Dwyer and Brigid Dawson along with some guest musicians.
Carrion Crawler/The Dream is the twelfth studio album by San Francisco-based garage rock band Thee Oh Sees. It was released on November 8, 2011, by In the Red Records. Despite the running time of the album being comparable or greater than most of their other full-length releases, the vinyl editions state that it is an EP.
Putrifiers II is the thirteenth studio album by the American garage rock band Thee Oh Sees, released on September 11, 2012, on In The Red Records.
Floating Coffin is a studio album by the American garage rock band Thee Oh Sees, released on April 16, 2013, on Castle Face Records. The album is the band's eighth to be released under the name Thee Oh Sees, and their fourteenth studio album overall.
Drop is the fifteenth studio album by American psychedelic rock band Thee Oh Sees, released on April 15, 2014 on Castle Face Records. Primarily a collaboration between core member John Dwyer and regular collaborator Chris Woodhouse, the album is the ninth to be released under the name, Thee Oh Sees.
Mutilator Defeated at Last is the sixteenth studio album by the American psychedelic rock band Thee Oh Sees, released on May 18, 2015 on Castle Face Records. The album is the tenth to be released under the name, Thee Oh Sees.
Nick Murray is an American drummer. He is best known as a member of the garage rock band White Fence, and as a former member of Thee Oh Sees, with whom he recorded two studio albums. Murray has also been a frequent collaborator of Tim Presley, as well as Welsh singer-songwriter Cate Le Bon, contributing to her solo album, Mug Museum (2013) and with 'DRINKS' (2015), a collaborative project with White Fence's Tim Presley and Cate Le Bon. Murray has also toured with Mikal Cronin and Gold Star.
A Weird Exits is the seventeenth studio album by American garage rock band Thee Oh Sees, released on August 12, 2016, on Castle Face Records. It is the first studio album to feature drummers Ryan Moutinho and Dan Rincon, who joined the band in 2015 to tour in support of the band's previous album, Mutilator Defeated at Last.
An Odd Entrances is the eighteenth studio album by the American garage rock band Thee Oh Sees, released on 18 November 2016 by Castle Face Records. The album was recorded during the same sessions as the band's previous album, A Weird Exits, released three months previously.
Orc is the nineteenth studio album by American garage rock band Oh Sees, released on August 25, 2017, on Castle Face Records. It is the band's first studio album to be released under the name Oh Sees, after it was announced that they would be dropping Thee from their name.
Smote Reverser is the twenty-first studio album by American garage rock band Oh Sees, released on August 17, 2018, on Castle Face Records. The album features keyboardist Tomas Dolas, who contributed to 2017's Memory of a Cut Off Head, and subsequently joined the band as a full time member.
Face Stabber is the twenty-second studio album by American garage rock band Oh Sees, released on August 16, 2019 on Castle Face Records. The album expands on the progressive rock sound that the band explored on their two previous releases Orc and Smote Reverser.
Protean Threat is the twenty-third studio album by American garage rock band Osees, released on September 18, 2020, on Castle Face Records. Following the band's previous album, double LP Face Stabber, frontman John Dwyer has said that he intended for Protean Threat to be much like a punk album, shorter in length and composed primarily of short songs. It is the band's first full-length album to be released under the name Osees.
Metamorphosed is the twenty-fourth studio album by American garage rock band Osees, released on October 16, 2020, by Rock Is Hell Records. The album is a mix of songs recorded for the band's 2019 album Face Stabber as well as jam sessions recorded in Mexico during the subsequent tour. It is the second of three full-length albums released by the band in 2020.
A Foul Form is the twenty-sixth studio album by American garage rock band Osees, released on August 12, 2022, by Castle Face Records. Continuing the return to the faster, more aggressive punk sound that the band explored on Protean Threat, the album was described by frontman John Dwyer as "an homage to the punk bands we grew up on."