The CHB revels Bapu's tormented past with a new conjuring of Megaton Maniac
Story behind the song
After nearly 30 years of floating in the ether, your CHB has managed to capture most of the original bits and bytes of this extended musical piece in their butterfly nets and reproduced them using modern technological tools all the while attempting to retain 'that feel' from a time when track count was at a premium cost and therefore bouncing was the norm. Think: Porta-One meets Phil Spector on a rainy night in West Los Angeles kind of vibe.
The story herein is about how good can sometimes overcome evil in such a transformational way it may seem mystical, or at least a simple miracle.
Megaton Manic was once an evil force in the universe. This creature knew not why he did what he did, but always had an inkling there was a better way to exist. He sought peace and serenity throughout the lands and peoples of strange galaxies for eons, laying waste to a few lost souls along the way. It was not until he one day decided that there was to be no change unless he dealt with his inner demons. And suddenly, after much internal debate and struggle he broke free from his desire to destroy and saw the universe for what it was. An ever changing and beautiful creating mechanism where inner peace joy can be found in a sunrise, any other natural event or man made thing like a Waterpix 2000 Series II dental hygiene and grout cleaning device.
The Coffee House Band proudly presents Megaton Maniac, a fourteen part mini-opus:
Overture
Prelude
Intro
Verse One - Megaton Manic's life story
Solo One - MM's slashing spree
Verse Two - MM's frustration
Solo Two - Jazzy Interlude
Bridge - MM's internal struggle
Pre-Birth - Alien invasion
Re-Birth - Breaking free
Solo Three - MM finds serenity
Verse Three - MM sings for joy
Solo Four - MM finds peace
Solo Five - A coda of joyous noise
Mixed and Produced by - Bapu(ThatOrEd aka Ed Kocol)
The players are:
Qoqol - Overture, cello, orchestral coda
T. Galella - Intro Story, bridge lead vocal
Jonbouy - Ingenious percussive impulses gluing the whole thing together in spite of those nasty tempo changes
Bapu(ThatOrEd, aka Ed Kocol) - Basses, rhythm guitars, piano, organ, talking, tube bells, tympani, eerie synth, inner demon voices
SteveStrummerUK - Rhythm guitars, solos 1 and 5
G-Force (ohgrant, aka Grant Starr) - Lead and backing vocals, solos 2, 3 & 4, electric piano, sitar
Alex The Kook - Synths, organ
Space_Cowboy - Roswellian alien interjection (captured and re-transmitted from a reformatted hard drive via Grzylryg Cymmynyczytyns, LLC)
FYI: Some notable quotes from The CHB members regarding this piece:
"Cambell's soups are simply the best soup to mix with"
"Apparently CHB musicians are not the empty headed Bill and Ted characters their bitter detractors have lead people to believe"
"Unox soup is better"
"A roller coaster of a song, please keep your seatbelt on until the ride comes to a complete stop"
"Now, will Bapu stop the nagging?"
"What is this Megaton Maniac Bapu speaks of and how can everyone get some?"
"Not to worry, we are doubling Bapu's medication"
Lyrics
Intro:
The ancient ones told us of the struggle between good and evil
Good creates something out of nothing
Evil creates nothing out of something
Every so often evil is converted into good
This is one such story
Verse 1:
Just when the past which has never been
Disappears from the future
All alone unable to feel
No sense of direction
Creations Creature
Unsettled in torment
Blind by the mysteries of time
Megaton Maniac
Verse 2:
Lost in a world of fantasy
Each new day a travesty
Unwilling to see forever
A reckoning is to arrive
Bridge:
You can’t be free (I can be free)
You can’t be free (I can be free)
You can’t be free (I can be free)
You can’t be free (I can be free)
You can’t be free (I can be free)
You can’t be free (I can be free)
You can’t be free (I can be free)
Verse 3:
I can see a new way
Where I am finally free
Ah, bless the new day
Where I begin to see