Julian Cope – The JEHOVACOAT Demos (2011)

Cope is one of the few – if not quit the only – British guy who took the path of Krautrock and mainly he’s “to blame” for popularizing this gender in UK not only by playing it, but also by his book “Krautrocksampler” (1995). I discovered Cope through his most popular album, “Peggy Suicide” (1991) with a major delay. But Cope is also famous for his prominent role in the Margaret Thatcher Poll Tax Riots, and not at least for his permanent struggle with the Record companies and the music industry, with those he referred to as “greedheads”.
“The JEHOVACOAT Demos”consist of 15 previously unreleased tracks and 5 previously unpublished poems from the Archdrude, all written and recorded throughout 1993 in direct response to having been dropped by Island Records. In the mid-1990s, Cope signed with Rick Rubin’s Def American label, releasing “Autogeddon” (1994) and “20 Mothers” (1995), but he was dropped by the label when he refused to visit the USA. So Cope released the next album, “Interpreter”  through Echo Records (1996).So, the new material is not really so new, it came from Cope’s probably most creative and best era marked by “Peggy Suicide”, “Jehovahkill”, “Rite” (1993), “Autogeddon”, “20 Mothers” and “Interpreter”. But this is absolutely fresh and even if it gets the “demos” label, Cope have a couple of brilliant songs here. I love “Tyrebagger” especially, but also “Baby, My Mind Stood Up”, “Riding On the Crest of A Slump”, “Time And Space” and “Preternatural Sitcom”.
This record is an intense and interesting 65-minute journey through the music Cope was into during his research period for his books,  “Krautrocksampler” and the following “The Modern Antiquarian” (1998).
Cope still have more guts and inspiration than most of the so-called Alternative and Post Rock bands got from the actual and trendy scene and this is a record worth to buy and listen.

Julian Cope – Official Site

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