Matching Mole

[Tengent]

Oooohoh I love making lists. I don't *really* have a favorite... ;)

1. Egg

2. Soft Machine

3. National Health

4. Matching Mole

5. Hatfield

6. Caravan

I never liked Gong, at all.

[6666coco]

Genial!!!!!!!!!!!! Que dire de plus.

[ratouli73]

Robert Wyatt était très ébouriffé !

[needledropdamagedone]

What is incredible is that Matching Mole sounded like Weather Report very much before the latter actually released their debut album !

[ReyZame]

Te goed voor woorden.

[friar124]

OMFG these guys are great.

[MrFigueroa007]

This is really rare. I like how loose the playing sounds, you can hear the individual ideas of the players and their styles coming out, like in king crimson. love the guitarists playing around 7 17. Seems like they played a lot of atmospheric stuff.

[DylanNotBob]

AWESOME ! This is a real gem. I only learned about Soft Machine and Robert Wyatt via being a massive early Pink Floyd fan..So to finally get to see Wyatt on drums is a real treat for me ! Thanks for posting..

[procyonetactarus]

i 'v just lisnented , so brilliant

[sydswirl]

Soft Machine Did it for me man, ever since i found that band out, it literally changed my life, i live for prog, Kraut, Experimental, Psychedelic Now man. I can not stress anymore my passion and respect for robert wyatt!! Im glad he made matching Mole. So he could keep doing his style.

[tyrannicoystercult]

@sydswirl

i'm totally with you yeah. since I heard Third, everything is so free. Since I listened to Hatfield's Rotter's Club, everything is so dignified even when it's got shit on it. humans and insects with inner peace plans

[OrchestrationOnline]

Anyone who doubts Bill MacCormick's greatness should listen to 801 Live - one of the finest live albums ever recorded. With Brian Eno, Phil Manzanera, and Simon Phillips.

Wyatt was one of the great drummers and personalities of prog rock.

[CadillacL]

I've only heard of Matching Mole, when I disovered Soft Machine's music , here on youtube. Shame I never got to see them

live.

[Zandico1314]

Robert Wyatt yeah men great

[spanakal1]

this guy Bill McCormic is the very best ! how is it that he didnt record with the likes of king crimson o yes ... etc blows away that chris squire !!! ha ha.. hardly anyone knows of Q.Sun. or M.Mole or 801...

[actron]

Yes indeed, one of the best that you hardly ever hear about.

[BassLudeman]

@spanakal1 eh, I wouldnt say that. McCormic is really impressive, especially here, but you cant really say the blows Squire away...we'd have to hear him in a less structured musical environment first!

[spanakal1]

when u say 'structured musical env..' do you mean 'a jam' ?

that jam on T.N.K. really sounds man...long bass lines with a lot of groove and punch ..

of course... starship trooper is a v. imp piece of music too, and i love it just as much ! cheers, glad u appreciate great bassists...

[BassLudeman]

@spanakal1 maybe not a total jam, but something a bit looser than Yes. what does TNK stand for?

[spanakal1]

TNK = tomorrow never knows , in this case a verion by 801 LIVE at Royal Albert Hall London, with musicians like Brian Eno, Manzanera, Simon Phillips... pls. look it up if you haven't already...I really recommend. Best.

[ECKMABOHM]

Hello spanakl1 ,

i guess you are a bassplayer , like me in the past , now i play kb and try to understand composing music ( which is maybe an excessive demand for me) but here is my opinion to your comment .

Bill Mc Cormic is very good on the second album , especially Floria Fidgit B. and Smoke Siganal ( on Little R.R. ) ( where I had my first LSD-trip , and it was beatiful , no fear only smelting entrails . ( sorry for my porr englich , im a german guy )

[spanakal1]

@ECKMABOHM

Hi, The Little Red Record has been a revelationfor me ! This Great Bassist is full of energy. He even transmits today !

[lenniethedogsparty]

I saw this band around '72 (at Festival Hall?) on the same bill as John Mayall - didn't know what to make of them at all. Now I don't know what to make of John Mayall... sorry, John, only a joke. Lol Coxhill was busking outside...

[holydiver73]

Robert Wyatt has a great nose.

[steevenfrost]

freaky (but good freaky.)

[SonofMrPeanut]

That opening clip was disturbingly beautiful. Seems like it should show the gooing eye of some green swamp monster opening.

While Matching Mole was not the greatest band of the Canterbury age, they none the less offered a whole mess of excellence to the ears.

[juicerino]

thanks so much for posting this.

[CanterburyLSD]

nice... Outside of Soft Machine and Gong,this was the third best band to come out of Canterbury!!

[friar124]

What about Caravan? They were number two, beating out Gong. Hehe. We all love these Canterbury guys, don't we?

[sevrenjone]

then your forgetting caravan, hatfield and the north, National Health, Delivery. Do not exclude, you cant rate them that way just love their genuis!

[sigmapleide]

@sevrenjone Delivery are beautiful.

[robbieman23]

As yet another guitarist I agree, the Softs were at their best with Ratlidge, Hopper and Wyatt.

[posthumanhero]

i like the ayers lineup too.....there's one nice instr floating on youtube which reveals them to be just as psychic as the hopper era.

[paliducha]

was wyatt already invalid here?

(sorry my english, i dont know if "invalid" is the right word)

just love soft machine and matching mole, matching mole comes from machine molle which is the french for soft machine.

regards hope you will answer my question.

[Beadbud5000]

No I do not believe so. He is parapelgicand I do know that we was out of the public eye for a year or so. The incident at the party was in 1972

[cordedpoodle]

Robert is clearly using his legs here on the high hat and the bass drum. Soft Machine was terribly under rated. Also liked Daevid Allen from original SM who went on to coform Gong.

[gommecourt]

Robert was injured in an accident in May 1973, a year after this was recorded. Mole lasted from autumn 71 to Sept 72. He then went away to Venice with his lady, Alfie, who was working on the film 'Don't Look Now', and wrote the music that became 'Rock Bottom'. A new version of Mole started to rehearse this music a few days before the accident. The band would have consisted of Francis Monkman (Curved Air), sax player Gary Windo and previous Mole bass player Bill MacCormick.

[tqd86]

fag

[Adamboms]

@gommecourt Gary Windo and Francis Monkman... shit, I'd give my right arm to hear that line-up!

[friar124]

He was not paraplegic at this time.

[droogless]

Soft machine 3 is the one for me, soft machine 5 is a much better album than 4.. never seen this before fantastic!

[Beadbud5000]

This is Matching Mole. Check out their albums all great

[jbphburg]

When Wyatt left Soft Machine after Third, they just weren't the same, I find nearly everything they did afterward quite unremarkable.

[JarrettMartinez]

Robert Wyatt actually left after "Fourth". He is seen pictured behind Mike Ratledge on the album cover. I do however agree with you---Robert Wyatt is my favorite drummer, and when he left Soft Machine's albums just didn't interest me anymore.

[eggymoo]

Got to agree with that - Third was a pivotal album, I remember hearing John Peel's first broadcast of 'Moon in June'. Cataclysmic. My whole outlook on music was transformed. The later line-ups are just a different band, using the same name. Like Fleetwood Mac after Peter Green left! I'm a guitarist, but once they added guitar to the Soft Machine line up it was downhill from there !! Ha Ha!

[eggymoo]

not including Larry Nolan or Daevid Allen of course... I meant the later fusion guys, Holdsworth etc..

[HammerOfPink]

I've never heard of Matching Mole before. They kinda remind me of Pink Floyd, which is my favourite band!

[burgersoft777]

Its great that prog has product isn't it time one of the Majors had a prog music channel. Its our democratic right to have our music represented in the media. They (the great they) are still scared of prog.

[expoonation]

Ofcourse the great they are scared of prog.! Peog. is uncontrolable, the great they love control.

[jimviz108]

Truly wondrous to be able to view Matching Mole! Thanks!

Was lucky enough to see Phil Miller actually perform Godsong and Nan's true Hole a while back with Caravan of Dreams befor Pip's sad demise. Went to shake Phil's hand afterwards and thank him, and he was incredible humble (and huge!) - his hands were actually trembling!

[kimicontrapia]

first time i see them on tv! Theyare amazing! Thanks siroen, if you've got some more videos!

[CraigG1960]

This so tedious and boring.

[harrier43k]

Using traditional rock instruments for texturing and soundscapes...truly the first post rock band. Matching Mole had instances of true brilliance, but they were reaching too far and too fast with this new music they were exploring--if only this group of guys had time to develope.

[Beadbud5000]

Not really the first. Honestly Pink Floyd (Ummagumma- 1969) gets that honor however this is a brillant band

[echopractic]

Beautiful but undermiked guitar playing by the underrated Phil Miller (Delivery, Hatfield and the North, National Health, In Cahoots) at the end.

[hippisteve]

Cool!

[mikeh69]

musically we have to live in past times long ago

[IceFloeHyoga]

Oh my god, i can't believe it!, THANK YOU SO MUCH!

[BlaBlaDu]

from a time ,where music was not manufacture ,thanks for this

[burgersoft777]

Named after Robert split from soft machine, as it sounds very like the french for "soft Machine" this band produced some really great Jazz-fusion, like all of the better bands they also had a strong sense of melody. A wonderful find is there anything else out there.

[berthy75]

wouah! i never saw the band before on tv...great!

[jbphburg]

This was on Hannity and Colmes, they love running rare Canterbury footage to prove they're actually hip.

[RAndyVee]

Superb stuff :-D ... wasn't expecting to find anything at all from Matching Mole when I did a search.

[Jhouston]

Awesome. Outside of Soft Machine,this was the second best band to come out of Canterbury!!

[siroen]

I agree!!

[Beadbud5000]

@Jhouston Lots of good bands from Canterbury England. Wild Flowers for one.

[svladcjelli42]

@Jhouston Disagree completely! That must mean it is time for an arbitrary list.

1. Caravan

2. Hatfield and the North

3. National Health

4. Quiet Sun

5. Matching Mole

6. Gong

7. Soft Machine

but I love them all of course.

[GiorgioDOPPIAG]

@svladcjelli42

I approve your list!

Yeah!

I love Caravan!!!

[ostrovok1968]

What can you say about "Little Red Record". I can't find this record in St.Petersburg, where I'm living.When there was the last issue of it?

[ostrovok1968]

Thanks a lot for posting this! Have you got anything else of Matching Mole? Is it from your private collection or not?

[siroen]

I got more music but, I'm sorry to say, no more movies. This is from a French TV station, I hope they have more and maybe... some day make it public.

[ostrovok1968]

Thank you for your reply! I hope too...