albums
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1988 Apostrophe
1988 Gourmet
1988 Induces Vomitting
1988 Best of IPECAC
1988 Fake Reverb
1988 Here and Now
1988 Leaping Leper Limousine
1988 Catharsis
1989 Best of IPECAC 2
1989 Fake Reverb 2
1990 Live at Carnegie Hall
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  • Title: Induces Vomitting
  • Artist: IPECAC
  • Timespan: 28 August 1988
  • Theme: first album as IPECAC
  • Length: 52:59
  • Tracks: 9
  • Lyrics: 6
  • MP3s: 9 play all locally
  • Rating: rate this album

Track List

# title lyrics time download listen started recorded rating
1 Chug-a-lug a Slug - 4:51 download listen locally - 1988-08-28
2 One Last Note lyrics 0:17 download listen locally - 1988-08-28
3 Ants-covered Chocolate - 7:49 download listen locally - 1988-08-28
4 Six Strings in Sync - 5:49 download listen locally - 1988-08-28
5 Hallogen lyrics 6:31 download listen locally - 1988-08-28
6 Cacaphony and Euphony lyrics 5:53 download listen locally - 1988-08-28
7 Tune Drops lyrics 5:03 download listen locally - 1988-08-28
8 Cacaphony 2 lyrics 2:34 download listen locally - 1988-08-28
9 The Challenge lyrics 14:12 download listen locally - 1988-08-28
Total 52:59 play all locally album rating:

Notes

For our second album, Induces Vomitting, we decided to keep the recording process as loose and fast as possible. We were probably getting tired of the overdubbing techniques we had used on Gourmet. So, this time, we improvised everything, and (I think) managed to finish the entire album in a single day.

Working quickly was fun, but the end result was mixed. I like the funky jams and (often accidental) harmonies, but some of the songs were very annoying. The lack of editing meant left this is a very "warty" (as in "warts and all") effort.

Our "official line" at the time was that the album's obnoxious bits were intended to make the listener sick. The music was supposed to fit our new band name (IPECAC). We also wanted to make it clear to our family, friends, and selves that we didn't take our music seriously, and therefore should be immune to criticism. Read into that what you will.

Induces Vomitting ended up being our longest album. This was due in part to "The Challenge", which is nearly fifteen minutes of me trying to out-play Jon on sax (it was a joke). It also helped that we weren't using dictaphones to speed up the music (as we had on Apostrophe and Gourmet).

The highlights are "Ants-covered Chocolate" and "Hallogen", which are both funky jams. The rest of the album is full of "cacaphonic" outbursts mixed with occasionally interesting ideas.

Songs

Chug-a-lug a Slug

For fun, Jon and I switched instruments; he played keyboard, and I played sax. We didn't bother writing any lyrics, but instead recorded this sluggish, sloppy improv.

One Last Note

This is mercifully short. I think Jon was eager for me to put down his sax.

Lyrics to "One Last Note":

[spoken]

JON:
  ok, want to listen to it?

TRAV:
  no, no, one last note
  one last [???]
  

Ants-covered Chocolate

The Trav-on-sax thing wasn't working, so we moved back to our proper roles. This time, we decided to try to make something tuneful and rhythmic. We sketched out a rough idea and then kicked into a long disco-y jam.

Despite the long, atonal intro, and sloppiness, there are parts in the jam that are really funky. I liked this song enough to later propose it as the opening track of an instrumental best-of album (which we never created).

This ended up being one of my favorite IPECAC songs from 1988.

Six Strings in Sync

This is the first IPECAC song to use a guitar. It's pretty horrid. Jon played keyboard while I fumbled along on acoustic guitar and cornet.

Stick to keyboards, Trav!

Hallogen

We must've rehearsed this a couple times; it sounds too tight to be completely improvised. It's IPECAC at our funkiest. We liked this song enough to record it two more times later (on Best of IPECAC and Here and Now).

You can tell Jon was getting really good at sax. As for my cornet (or mellophone) playing, well... Ummm... I'm pretty sure I played sax in here too. The keyboard was on auto-pilot.

Lyrics to "Hallogen":

TRAV:
  wooh
  yeah
  rockin'
  funky
  woah

JON:
  ???

TRAV:
  funky
  

Cacaphony and Euphony

This is a simple duet with me and Jon on sax. I played the lower, repetitive part and Jon played the melody and solos. Credit for any nice bits should go to Jon. The honking is my contribution.

Near the end, Jon stopped playing our song and broke out into solos. At the time, I thought he was creating them on the spot. Years later, after I got into jazz, I realized Jon had been quoting famous solos.

Jon called this song "Junkie" on his Best of IPECAC tape cover. Perhaps that was a reference to Charlie Parker or John Coltrane? Or maybe he just thought it was disposable.

Lyrics to "Cacaphony and Euphony":

JON:
  1 2 3 4

TRAV:
  yeah

JON:
  ???
  

Tune Drops

This starts off slow and dirge-like and gradually speeds up. Unfortunately, nothing cool ever happens. It just gets faster. That's it. No cool solos, no cool harmonies. No rhythms other than the canned keyboard drums. Just... faster. And faster. And then at the end it abruptly slows back down to a crawl.

The best thing about it is the title.

Lyrics to "Tune Drops":

TRAV:
  hit it
  

Cacaphony 2

Horrid. What were we thinking??? Thankfully, it's very short.

Lyrics to "Cacaphony 2":

TRAV:
  uno dos tres quatro    
  

The Challenge

This is mostly talking. It gives you a good idea of just how bad I am at sax.

Lyrics to "The Challenge":

TRAV:
  here we go
  it's jon versus travis
  in the saxophone duel called "The Challenge"

  travis said "i can take first charge"
  jon said "no you can't"
  since there's only two chairs
  jon and me, that's one and two
  if you know what that makes, two
  um, only two chairs
  so travis definitely wants first chair

  and here it is
  it will last probably hours and days
  ok, ready

JON:
  we will first
  the first event that we'll challenge with
  is the single note
  let's see

TRAV:
  see
  we're gonna see who can have the best -
  who has the best tone quality
  and remember that travis has been
  playing the saxophone much longer than jessica
  so here we go
  he has far more experience
  this should be decisive

JON:
  pick a note
  pick a note

TRAV:
  this one

JON:
  uh, that one
  [mumbled] oh that one

[playing]

TRAV:
  you didn't say vibrato

JON:
  what?
  i need tone quality
  [???]

TRAV:
  ok

JON:
  that's [???]
  that's person number one
  that's one note
  that's person number one
  jazz tone

TRAV:
  jazz tone

JON:
  you be the judge
  now, now we're going to try  multiple notes
  pick anything
  i'm gonna play like the [sings]
  pick any, any little

TRAV:
  just a short little

JON:
  or [sing]

TRAV:
  this person number one
  ok i get another try

JON:
  ok, person A gets another try
  hey you can play [sings]

TRAV:
  ok, here's [???]

JON:
  i have to play that same thing

TRAV:
  i think we're out of tune

JON:
  uh, ok

TRAV:
  third try
  ok now, it's long songs
  jon's gonna play his piece
  that he's making up, improvision, right now

JON:
  improvision?
  uh, well, i,
  let's see
  let me play
  let me play the solo
  let me play the, you know, the herbie hancock solo

TRAV:
  and now here's travis
  oh, excuse me
  person number 1
  ok
  excuse me, that was jessica
  here we go

JON:
  you're gonna break the tape
  now, uh, we are now gonna do scales
  pick a scale, any scale,
  c major scale, g major scale
  g minor scale, any scale you want

TRAV:
  this one

JON:
  ok that skill
  good luck
  here we go

TRAV:
  person number 1

JON:
  ok, that's b minor scale

TRAV:
  [???]

JON:
  ok now we're going to do chromatic scales
  as low as you can go to as high as you can go
  [???]

TRAV:
  ok

JON:
  [???]

TRAV:
  i'm ready

JON:
  ok, you decide now who is better

TRAV:
  wait, this is the last thing
  the grand finale
  jon, you can play anything you want

JON:
  all right

TRAV:
  make it up now, in this key
  gimme a key

TRAV:
  a minor

JON:
  ok now let's have an audience appreciation thing
  ok, who votes for person b?

TRAV:
  who is person b?

JON:
  ok, how about person a?
  yay yay

TRAV:
  i am, i'm person a

JON:
  i know
  yay yay

TRAV:
  yay! person a
  again, last words, here is person a

JON:
  ok person b, i mean person a
  was disqualified for playing while person b
  was doing his thing

TRAV:
  but just to show that we are real sportsman-like
  we are going to play a tune together
  that we entitle "Tune of the Challenge"
  1, 2, wait, 1, 2, ready go
  ready? come on come on
  1, 2
  um

JON:
  you decide

TRAV:
  you decide

JON:
  [???] person a was disqualifed

TRAV:
  ten times
  ok here it is again

JON:
  here what is again?
  no, no!

TRAV:
  jon will tell a story
  tell a story

JON:
  once upon a time a warrior died
  the end
  how much tape are we [???] over

TRAV:
  very little
  here's jon's gonna tell a story
  and i'll do the melody to it

JON:
  once upon a time
  wait a minute
  let me do the once upon a time bit
  i'll tell you when to come in
  once upon a time a warrior died
  the end
  now you can come in

TRAV:
  tell the story seriously

JON:
  once upon a time a warrior lived
  the end

TRAV:
  seriously

JON:
  once upon a time a warrior died
  but then came to life again
  the end

TRAV:
  serious

JON:
  once upon a time a warrior lived, died, lived,
  then met a maiden, lived happily ever after
  the end

  once upon a time a resurrected warrior
  met a maiden, got married,
  lived happily ever after
  and then got an ulcer from high taxes
  the end

  once upon a time ipecac got together
  one person was travis
  the mighty keyboard player
  part time drummer
  and guitarist
  and uh cacaphone player

  now, another member was jonathon
  being,
  being about ten times handsomer than travis
  he was -
  just kidding on that last part
  uh, he was the full time saxophone player
  part time keyboard player
  uh, drummer, harmonicist
  computer programmer

  one day they were at a concert
  the groupies, the groupies were going wild
  so then travis started playing the saxophone
  the vomit, the vomit rolled down the aisles
  and everybody drow--, and everybody drowned in it
  except for jonathon and travis
  who got ten million dollars in commercial rights

TRAV:
  what?

JON:
  and then left
   the end
  la la la...

TRAV:
  going out [???]

JON:
  good, does that mean you have to stop?

TRAV:
  no

JON:
  oh darn

TRAV:
  [???]

JON:
  no, play softer please
  [scat]
  oh trav, what a racket
  travis
  great
  why must you, travis

TRAV:
  one last note

JON:
  oh god

TRAV:
  the last riff of the day