You must physically hold this album, kneel at its altar, we will fail to describe it. Medusa’s First Step Beyond might have forever shifted the perception of Chicago rock history had it managed to make the leap from tape to its never-realized vinyl pressing. Instead, the confl agation of Sabbath, Hawkwind, and Amon Duul II remained petrifi ed in the Corycian Caverns—otherwise known as the drummer’s basement. Self-produced on four track in 1975, this lone transmission from Medusa’s repertoire appeared on the extremely mysterious Pepperhead label, whose proprietor allegedly disappeared after a bad trip and was never been seen again. Forged in ceremonial mock-velvet, custom embossed in Gorgon-gold and blood-red, and art directed in accordance with the band’s elaborate original stage props and artwork, we have positioned this unreleased opus to fi nally reach its destination: the stereos of pot-smoking and leather-clad teenagers, young and old. The expanded CD version (also ensconced in ceremonial mock-velvet with embossed artwork) boasts a wealth of new band photos and ephemera as well as three additional tracks not available on the LP. Prior to tracking First Step Beyond, Chicago proto-metal quintet Medusa headed three miles west to the Village of Oak Park and cut their debut 7” at Stephen Wilcox’s Pepperhead custom studio. The resulting versions of “Strangulation” and “Temptress” are a touch further unhinged than their sororal album twins, as phased-out scraps of psychedelia and bleeding solos maxed out Pepperhead’s 8-track rig.