Djam Karet

[rickawakeman]

Back in the pre-'net and cample days, ca. '89, I received a mailing from the band (probably because I was on Wayside's mailing list?) and ordered up "Reflections from the Firepool", which I enjoyed but did not pursue subsequent releases until I found a copy of "The Devouring" several years ago, due a re-visit.

I was at Rhino Records in Claremont CA earlier this week (Chuck Oken's store) as I was in town for my son's graduation from Pomona. Well-stocked with the band's releases, I picked up "Regenerator 3017", the band's 30th anniversary disc (and my cashier was Jeremy, Chuck's son).

My question after three spins of this wonderful disc is...when did they start channeling Camel (in a great way) and do they have other releases of a similar ilk?

Bummed I missed 'em at NF.

[GuitarGeek]

I didn't realize they ever channeled Camel. I never picked up on any similarities. But pretty much all their albums are awesome. They don't play out often, but they have been very prolific, and they've kept up a pretty good high level of consistency.

BTW, I was at that NEARfest show. If you listen to the album they put out from that concert, after the first song, and I Think also the second one, listen for someone yelling "Topanga Safari!". That would be me making my perhaps too presence known. As Robert Fripp would say, "Your enthusiasm is appreciated, but please, control is needed!".

I thanked Chuck Oken Jr for not Pro-Toolsing me out of the recording, and he says, "Oh, we don't even use that stuff", then he said he had to go back and listen to the album because he hadn't noticed that.

[notallwhowander]

I think the Camel thing is a newer flavor, though they always cover a lot of ground. I really like the predecessor to Regenerator 3017, called The Trip. So I would suggest trying that next.

My favorite by the band is Ascension, but I'm not sure if it is still in print. Of course if you can talk to Chuck, you can always ask him if he has a copy around.

[SteveSly]

Their stuff is all over the place depending on individual albums.

[MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER]

I like them Dam Karrots

I first bought No Commercial Potential back in the late 80s and have been hooked since

[rickawakeman]

I guess I should also try learning how to spell the band's name correctly!

[Nearfest2]

"Burning the Hard City", "A Night for Baku", and "New Dark Age" are all solid edgier releases.

[Yves]

I'll echo the comments concerning both "New Dark Age" and "Ascension". Both are excellent releases!

[arturs]

My question after three spins of this wonderful disc is...when did they start channeling Camel (in a great way) and do they have other releases of a similar ilk?

Yeah, the Camel influence is new. Pretty much limited to Regenerator. We had a thread on this one when it came out and I think it was Jed/JKL who came up with the classic "Camel doing a '70s porn soundtrack" description of the CD. Not that I would know what those sound like but it seems like it could fit, er, hypothetically.

I agree that the Trip might be your next best bet, followed by something like New Dark Age and Recollection Harvest. These have a very visual, cinematic feel. The rest of the catalog is really good too but if you have Reflections and Devouring you have two of the best.

[rickawakeman]

Thanks mods for correcting my misspelling in the thread title.

[Digital_Man]

Is the first word pronounced as "jom" or "jam?" I've always said it as "jom" but that could be wrong. Great band though.

[JKL2000]

Their stuff is all over the place depending on individual albums.

Deffo true but I do hear the Camel on "Regenerator 3017." I'm another huge fan of Burning the Hard City, and all the recent and recent(ish) releases are worth checking out.

Never seen the band though! Would love for them to play ProgDay!!!

[notallwhowander]

The "dj" in Djam, is like the second "g" in garage. The "a" is an ah sound, as in "Open your mouth and say ah." The "m" is pretty much what an English speaker would expect.

Karet is "care-eh," like a Bob & Doug McKenzie "I don't care, eh." But run together as one word, with the emphasis on the eh.

[Digital_Man]

The "dj" in Djam, is like the second "g" in garage. The "a" is an ah sound, as in "Open your mouth and say ah." The "m" is pretty much what an English speaker would expect.

Karet is "care-eh," like a Bob & Doug McKenzie "I don't care, eh." But run together as one word, with the emphasis on the eh.

That's what I thought even though I remember them being introduced as "Jam" Karet. At least they got the care eh part right.

[GuitarGeek]

Would love for them to play ProgDay!!!

They already have, like 15 years ago!

[Trane]

Their stuff is all over the place depending on individual albums.

and quite a confusing (and discouraging >> I've heard some crud on some of them) discography, IMHO

"Burning the Hard City", "A Night for Baku", and "New Dark Age" are all solid edgier releases.

those are the ones I own. Baku is my prefered one

Is Ascension NDA2 related to NDA and is it indispensible??

[notallwhowander]

Is Ascension NDA2 related to NDA and is it indispensable??

If I remember correctly, it's taken from the same sessions. They are tracks that didn't "fit" as they put NDA together, but gel quite nicely on their own. The album has more acoustic elements and more processed field recordings in the mix than what is typical in NDA, for a chiller-spacier-trippier vibe. I love it.

Indispensable? I think so. One or two tracks are fairly typical DK for that period, but the rest really stand out, particularly the first fifteen and last fifteen minutes of the CD. The closing track "Disintegration," starts off coherent, then gradually morphs and falls apart under successive waves of surreal audio, showing off the band its ball-tripping best.

[JKL2000]

They already have, like 15 years ago!

I know, but I wasn't there.

[rickawakeman]

I found the thread from last year, funny stuff. I do usually try search before posting, my bad.

http://www.progressiveears.org/forum...ght=djam+karet

[rbbert]

A bit off-topic; it's interesting that your son went from living in Mass. to college at Pomona (I'm class of '73, one of my sons class of '02). I assume you knew (but others here may not) that Djam Karet was originally (and may still be, I don't know) a Clarement group.

[Klonk]

Ah the very first band I was introduced to upon joining PE! Love these guys. There's stuff on every album I love, but if forced to pick a favorite it would probably be New Dark Age. It has a nice mix of everything I love about them.

[Klonk]

How is Heavy Soul Sessions by the way. I've wanted to get this, but have been hesitant. I love the all tunes chosen on it.

[rickawakeman]

A bit off-topic; it's interesting that your son went from living in Mass. to college at Pomona (I'm class of '73, one of my sons class of '02). I assume you knew (but others here may not) that Djam Karet was originally (and may still be, I don't know) a Clarement group.

Yup, I knew they were Claremont-based and really enjoyed my visit to Rhino Records (we stayed in Claremont village), owned by the band's drummer Chuck Oken Jr. Don't know if any of the band members attended Pomona or the other consortium colleges...

Did I mention it poured during the graduation? And I thought it never rains in Southern California! This was my first time in CA...I prefer the Northeast!

[dropforge]

Ditto to all the kudos already given in this thread. I'd like to add that Djam Karet's recent release Swamp of Dreams is a disc that collects rare tracks having previously appeared on various compilations over the years, like "Inventions of the Monsters" from Dali: The Endless Enigma, and "The Shattering Sky" from Cuneiform's Unsettled Scores.

[notallwhowander]

I have Swamp of Dreams and have barely listened to it. Thanks for bringing that forward!

It has a track "New Light on the Dark Age" which pre-dates New Dark Age and Ascension. I wanted to listen to it and find out if it musically anticipates the later albums in some significant way, because that's the kind of geek I am.