In the Spanish Cave

Hailing from the northern California town of Davis, Thin White Rope was unfathomably pegged as a proponent of the paisley underground movement. The songs the group covered over the course of their ten-year career is far more revealing: SUICIDE, THE STOOGES, LEE HAZLEWOOD, MARTY ROBBINS, CAN, and ROKY ERICKSON have all been rendered by the band in the studio and on-stage. That list goes a long way in explaining the mixture of raw, angular riffs, southern twang, and psychedelia. Originally released in 1988, In The Spanish Cave was Thin White Rope ‘s third album, following their critically-acclaimed second long player, Moonhead. While for many people Moonhead remains the band’s masterpiece and most coherently realized album, it’s an angry and intense record that takes a few listens to really penetrate and appreciate. In contrast, In The Spanish Cave has more light and shade and a much wider musical palette, and while Kyser’s worldview remains dark verging on paranoiac, the album is perhaps a morerounded representation of the band’s unique talents. Frontier Records has digitally remastered Thin White Rope’s first five records for LP and CD, and is reissuing them on vinyl for the first time in decades.