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On this week's episode, we discuss 1997's Kontiki, by Cotton Mather.

Produced by the band's songwriter and lead singer Robert Harrison and recorded on 4-track cassettes and ADAT, Kontiki is a low-fi sonic masterpiece that has garnered comparisons to the Beatles and Big Star.  Originally released in 1997, Kontiki was not an initial commercial success. A re-release in the UK in 1999 breathed new life into the album and led to Noel Gallagher of Oasis to praise the album in the press as one he wished he'd recorded.

Kontiki is quite simply a brilliantly crafted album, one that channels the melodic brilliance of classic '60s pop while creating something that is fresh, unique, and deeply personal. Every track is packed with hooks, rich harmonies, and clever lyrical turns, making it an album that rewards repeated listens.
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On this episode we talk about the historic seventh studio album by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band,Will the Circle Be Unbroken. 
Having proved their worth with a hit cover of the Jerry Jeff Walker's "Mister Bojangles," the Dirt Band and were given the go ahead to work on  an unusual yet inspired project: an album of old county and bluegrass tunes where the Dirt band would act as a supporting a cast for several legendary bluegrass and country artists, such as Roy Acuff, Mother Maybelle Carter, Doc Watson, Earl Scruggs, Merle Travis, and Jimmy Martin, to name a few, allowing them to be the real stars.   The songs were performed live, and often in one or two takes, giving the album immediacy and warmth.  
Released in November 1972, the album bridged the generational and musical gap between the old guard of Nashville and the burgeoning country rock scene of the early 1970's and was an unlikely, yet huge success.  
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As long-time listener's know, as a part of all of our discussions, we have a segment called Connections, where we connect the artist and album we are currently talking about to artists and albums we have discussed on previous episodes. For our interview with singer-songwriter Beaver Nelson, we played an extended version of Connections with him.  Beaver has worked with a ton of people in the music industry, and as a result, he came prepared to show us what a real game of Connections is all about. 
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On this episode of This Is Vinyl Tap, we do something a little different from our typical fare and interview Austin singer-songwriter Beaver Nelson. 
Beaver Nelson has been on the Austin scene since before he graduated from high school. His talent as a songwriter was almost immediately recognized by some of the finest singer-songwriters at the time, which gave him the opportunity to perform and record with some of the biggest names in the Austin music scene at the time. His songs are full of clever, introspective, and personal lyrics backed by a fantastic array of musicians. We talk to Beaver about some of those songs and stories behind them, as well as his history as a working musician in the Austin scene.
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On this episode we tackle the LP that introduced the world to Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band: 1967's Safe as Milk. 
Captain Beefheart, né Don Van Vliet, is best known for having recorded one of the most heralded rock albums of all time -Trout Mask Replica. But for many, that double album is a confounding listen with it's atonal song structures, disconcerting time signatures, and bizarre vocals.  However, before that was Safe As Milk. Thanks to the presence of 20-year-old Ry Cooder, some of Beefhearts's more eccentric instincts were reigned in. As a result, Safe as Milk is an intriguing listen.  It can be challenging in places, as it does have elements of what the future holds for Captain Beefheart and His magic Band. But it also has moments of whimsy and some good old 1967 rock n' roll (albeit through a Beefheart lens). And then there's Beefheart's chameleon-like vocals which are often strange, sometimes brilliant, and always compelling. 
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