Trout Mask Replica sounds like Delta blues dismembered and reassembled by a madman with perfect pitch. Produced by Frank Zappa and recorded in a single manic session after eight months of gruelling rehearsal, Captain Beefheart's 1969 double album remains gloriously unlistenable to some, a masterpiece to others.

The Magic Band's polyrhythmic chaos and Van Vliet's feral howl created a blueprint for art rock that nobody dared follow. Initially ignored, it became a totem for experimental musicians from Tom Waits to PJ Harvey, proving that commercial suicide could birth eternal influence.