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SUMMON
. . . And the Blood Runs Black
After a deceptively gentle synth-led ?Intro,? Summon kicks that shit aside and blasts into an all-out old-fashioned
speeed/black metal massacre with the title song ?And the Blood Runs Black.? A pummeling, churning maelstrom proceeding with
unparalleled intensity (yes, I?m aware that those very words have likely been used for countless metal bands before, but in
this case they actually apply), some of Summon?s slaughtering breakdowns are so tight, fast, sweet, and mean that they will
force an evil grin to your whiplashing head. I don?t know how many vocalists are contributing to this fifteen-track onslaught,
but at times the gutteral cries of the lead are so deep and damaged it almost sounds like a whole ragged choir crying out
from the pit in screams of glorious Satanic agony. And they do so in that rarest of ways, making blasphemous songs sound almost
joyful in their black-hearted glee. Just listen to ?Blackwinds Abyss,? ?Satanic Slut,? and ?Enter Into Eternal Oath.? Other
standouts are ?Obsessed by Death,? the cover of Venom?s ?Buried Alive,? and the closing ?Confusion Lock,? which I swear sounds
just like the devil eating a baby. Black metal made the way it was meant to be, savage, uncompromising, and just plain wicked,
this is top-fucking-notch.
* * * * *
Moribund Records - www.moribundcult.com
P.O. Box 77314, P.O. Box 77314, Seattle, WA, 98177-0314
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THEE MICHELLE GUN ELEPHANT
Rodeo Tandem Beat Specter
Instant cult band Thee Michelle Gun Elephant?s third U.S. release, Rodeo Tandem Beat Specter is another
wild, wooly, and elegantly warped rock ?n roll platter. Continuing to inject their love of guitar-heavy R&R with all manner
of influences and additives, here TMGE brings us the rockabilly-on-crack ?Alligator Night,? the apocalyptic groove of ?Abakareta
Sekai (The World Exposed),? the sweet-ass rockin? reel ?Bird Land Cindy,? and even the sombre instrumental drift of ?Rita?
amongst other marvels of instrumental engineering. Most carry a constant stream of bizarre dream-like lyrics worthy of Rembrandt
Pussyhorse (delivered in an accent that bends their obscure meanings even further), and are played with vigor frantic enough
to indicate the band may feel that the world is about to end at any moment. In short, it?s good shit. Really good, man. Really
good.
* * * * *
Alive Records - alive-totalenergy.com
P.O. Box 7112, Burbank, CA, 91510
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TOXIC NARCOTIC
We?re All Doomed
Rulers of the planetary junkyard, Toxic Narcotic shreds together angry punk-chorded antagonism with black
metal clatter and furor and grinds it all down into a frenetic crustcore performance that just won?t fucking quit. The wide-eyed
raw-throated We?re All Doomed takes the notion of our own manufactured damnation, chews it up, and spits it out hard as nails:
pounded into every song are speedy spine-contracting riffs driving the sharp and spiteful lyrics into your skull as the trio
joins together to roar about what a fucked-up mess people have made of the world. Top notch head-butters here besides the
title track are the gloriously hate-spitting ?Asshole? and ?Shut the Fuck Up,? the locomotive ?Whatever It Takes,? the vicious
social awareness message ?We?re Not Happy ?Til You?re Not Happy,? and the eco-purging anthem ?5 Billion People Must Die.?
It?s all enough to leave you with the sentiment of another of their songs, ?I?m So Thirsty.?
* * * *
Go-Kart Records - www.gokartrecords.com
P.O. Box 20, Prince St. Station, New York, NY, 10012
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TRAIL OF TEARS
A New Dimension of Might
Favorable comparisons to Tristania?s better work can easily be drawn with A New Dimension of Might, although
clearly Trail of Tears is not a copycat act. Despite perhaps not having Tristania?s orchestral sophistication, Trail of Tears
dramatically and repeatedly evidences sufficient power to hold their own with this highly charged and vibrantly mutable gothic
metal presentation. When the pained vocals combine with the heavier metal passages the band sounds at times like a much more
aggressive Christian Death, but this is not the single sound they?re striving for. The music is in constant flux as it flows
and crashes from incandescent black metal to luxurious gothic orgies as myriad vocals join together in dark rapture, providing
an arousing listening experience driven to multiple climactic peaks. The predominantly metal sound is nicely underscored by
electronics which enhance rather than overpower the album, and the variety of vocals includes chanted choruses and lusty female
operatics calling out between hell-spawned roars. Added variety is found in the number of inventive approaches Trail of Tears
takes throughout the album?s ten tracks, for example ?Liquid View? has a nicely mournful techno segment, and there?s even
a unique cover of Faith No More?s ?Caffeine.? All told it?s a bombastic performance that makes one wonder what kind of spectacle
a live Trail of Tears production might be like.
* * * *
Napalm Records - www.napalmrecords.com
P.O. Box 1983, Port Townsend, WA, 98368
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Reverend Steven Johnson Leyba Presents:
UNITED SATANIC APACHE FRONT
?Addressing the Corporate Facist State, Selected Performance Recordings, 1996-2002.? And providing the ideal
audio accompaniment for perusing Rev. Leyba?s imposing Coyote Satan Amerika tome (see Print Reviews section). My apprehensions
that this would be a long-winded diatribe of spoken-word propaganda were quickly allayed as Leyba and other members of the
United Satanic Apache Front (U.S.A.F.) invoke a number of spirited rituals on this disc, utilizing vocals from various sources
(put through various effects) and a number of appropriate instruments to excellent effect. Derogatory newsbytes describing
bloody urological rites and a subtly sinister techno-tribal soundtrack opens the album with ?FeCalifornia?; ?Invocation to
Curse the Nation? is an insurrectionary rally followed by the ritual ?Hail Satan (homage to Dr. Anton Szandor LaVey)?; ?Locust?
is a potent soundtrack for blood rites, as is the amazing time-tunneling sound of ?Angry Ancestors? (featuring ?peyote chants
in reverse, sampled and layered?); ?Oh Hear The Names (homage to Dr. Anton Szandor LaVey)? adds an eerie Throbbing Gristle
sound to the ritual; ?Contrary?s Devil Dance? is another absorbing instrumental accompaniment; and contemporary devils are
exorcised in ?Curse for G.W. Our Illegitimate President? and ?War On Children.? There are of course a couple of rants to be
found here, but in their outrage they don?t at all disrupt the total performance. Liner notes describe somewhat the formation
and purpose of the U.S.A.F., and also recount a rather amazing enactment of the rather ?infamous? ?Apache Whiskey Rite? (a
different performance of which is also captured on the album) at a political party for football shill Jack Davis. (!) Quite
a thing, this, especially for devotees but also for those open to a bit of beautifully angry magic. Or those looking for,
?A soundtrack for ?The American Revolution II, the Sequel.??
* * * *
Reptilian Records - www.reptilianrecords.com
403 S. Broadway, Baltimore, MD, 21231
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V.A.
Old Skars & Upstarts 2002
The Discontent starts this latest Old Skars & Upstarts comp out right with the snarling ?Like a Dog.? Following
this the Briefs punk-pop it up with ?Ouch, Ouch, Ouch?; Duane Peters & the Hunns have a Pogues/Pistols sound with ?Burn in
Hell?; Bad Chopper?s ?Real Bad Time? actually makes me want to go out and look for their album; ?Gun Time? by The Ruiners
is perfectly dark, sleazy and suicidal; The Sound Brigade?s flower child-tossin? ?The ?60s Are Back? is a decent acid novelty;
any compilation with Smogtown on it is going to be more than just okay; ?Carol (Electroshock)? is a mean little tease by The
Stitches; I can?t tell if Klasse Kriminale?s ?I?m a Junkie? is a boast or a denunciation; Kings of Nuthin? manage to meld
punk and ragtime with ?Drive All Night?; there?s the strung-out glam rock of The Richmond Sluts (?Thought I Was Dead?); The
Worthless? ?Bad Video? could be an MTV-enraged version of ?TV Party?; and Disaster rates top marks for including ?Space Monkeys?
by The Pushers. Other contributors include Typhoon Motor Dudes (with a great chorus to their track ?One Bullet? (?One bullet
/ So many assholes?)), The Briggs, Texas Terri, The Revolvers, Oxymoron, U.S. Bombs, The Sign Offs, Condition Red, The Arsons,
Blue Collar Special, The District, and even Mudhoney. This thing?s almost 30 songs long and contains a number of unreleased
tracks, with only a couple stinkers in the bunch (The Forgotten?s stereotypical ?American Rock?n?Roll Rebellion? and the whiny-sounding
?Don?t Wanna Be? by Bad Luck Charms) ? what the hell else could you ask for in a punk rock compilation?
* * * *
Disaster Records - www.disasterecords.com
P.O. Box 7112, Burbank, CA, 91510
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SUBINCISION: Berkeley?s Newest Hitmakers -
If it weren?t for the fact that the promo package contained three different Subincision albums I?d be tempted to think this
was a one-time gag put together by a bunch of older guys to riff on the local punk scene. Bouncy, smirky, mid-tempo punk from,
I take it, Berkeley, Subincision tosses off loads of snappy choruses and vocal harmonies in deliberately stereotypical tunes
that baffle me as to whether they?re sarcastic or enthusiastic. The dozen tracks on Berkeley?s Newest Hitmakers range from
standard punk rock love songs (?This Time!? ?Punk Chick?) to country punk (?Drinkin? Man?), a little rockabilly (?Rock & Roll?),
?Tranny Love,? and some total crap (?You Ain?t the One?). As a joke it?s only moderately amusing, and as a testament to a
love of punk rock it?s just got way too much of a hair-dyin? barbershop quartet sound to it. Either way I don?t get it, man,
but it sure is some peppy shit. * *
Substandard Records - www.substandard.com - P.O. Box 310, Berkeley, CA, 94701
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SUBINCISION: Jingo -
Ah yes, here it is, the prize of the 3-CD Subincision promo pack. The band?s latest, Jingo, puts their self-titled and second
albums far behind with a multi-faceted punk slab drawing inspiration from a number of sources. Jingo opens up with ?1983 Car
Crash,? an appealing synth-supported new wave mod ditty with an oi bassline; ?Remnant? strips down for a more elemental Doc
Marten two-step, aided by a classic Fifties guitar lick; ?Witch? is a perfectly desperate hardcore voodoo number aimed at
a bad broad; ?When You Went Away? cannily blends early 20th Century radio ballads with street punk energy; ?Kill the Principal?
is a perky little Columbine-style piece; ?Shelly?s Song? incorporates a bit of spy theme exotica into the barbershop quartet
sound heard on Subincision?s previous releases; and there?s the satirical ?Infidel Fight Song? along with the white trash
motherfucking dream ?Endless Summer of Our Love Together.? There?s a bit of sap here as well, with ?Theater Girl,? but it?s
all in good fun. Go on, pick it up. * * * *
Substandard Records - www.substandard.com - P.O. Box 310, Berkeley, CA, 94701
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SUICIDE: American Supreme -
Simple electronic repetition and ranting too muffled to be distinguishable . . . is it just music, or is it ART? ?Televised
Executions? gives up some funk bass and scratching with a shuddery echo on the vocals and some jive organ in the background;
?Misery Train? is a simple redundant new wave strain punctured by dismal moaning; garish techno backs ?Swearin? To the Flag?;
and there?s more of the same on a great number of other tracks, plus lots more groaning and moaning throughout. The liner
notes repeatedly refer to the failure of success, begging the question of whether the various mutations of pop music overlaid
with deathbed moping is intended to be ironic or merely irritating, a lazy ?fuck you? to music culture and the very consumer
who happens across this CD. It?s all very ?New York?-sounding, with haughty disillusionment pasted down as world-weary blurts
of careless cynicism coating tired keyboard programming. Deliberately arty stuff, this must be one of those ?proper? albums
to play when one wishes to impress jaded uber-hipsters. Fuck that, albums too sophisticated to be enjoyable are way too important
for my humble home stereo, and it sounds like American Supreme is headed straight for ?the little box in the back.? (A single
point however for the song title ?Dachau, Disney, Disco? and the actually brilliant swirling neurosis of the closing ?I Don?t
Know.?) *
Mute Corporation - www.mute.com
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TEN FOOT POLE: Bad Mother Trucker -
The warm, head bobbing, bad-boys-cleaned-up kind of power pop/punk stylings that are just right for summer teen movies. In
fact they?d probably even list the band name in the commercials to plug the soundtrack. It?s perky, it?s bouncy, it?s mildly
enjoyable, it?s all about girls, and friends, and hypocrites, it?s kind of like an even peppier and more wholesome modern
Vandals album, and if you can stand that sparkly ?keep your chin up, kid!? sound you?ll be bopping along to this on your way
to the show. Doesn?t really do it for me, though. ?Happy Daze? actually made me wince, and the other snappy sugar-chorded
retreads of universal themes may have had me tapping my toes but they also kept me looking ahead to see just how many of these
little numbers were left to go. *
Victory Records - www.victoryrecords.com - 346 North Justine, Suite 504, Chicago, IL, 60607
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THE TRAMPS -
This horny, motorized, female-led punk combo has something of a Loudmouths/440s sound to them as they bang out numbers like
?Backseat Baby? and ?Gonna Get It,? lending energy to standard tunes about picking up boys and breaking up with them. Highlights
come with the amped-up Patti Smith ring of the last part of ?Shakin? My Soul? and the final song of regret, ?Chains,? but
on the downside No Doubt also came to mind a couple of times, so you?re taking some chances here. Nothing really new or outstanding,
just good old short, sweet, saucy stuff packed with estrogen-laden howls and good time riffs. * * *
Broken Rekids - www.brokenrekids.com - P.O. Box 460402, San Francisco, CA, 94141-0402
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UNDER A DYING SUN -
Anguished positivism? I guess that?s as fair a way as any to describe Under a Dying Sun?s non-traditional punk-bred tunes.
There?s a kind of shuddering nervous intensity to these songs, as if they?re being built on good intentions that may fall
apart at any moment. Calamitous segments segue into gentle passages in non-cohesive changes of pace and mood, between one
and three people join in with quavering vocals, instrumental effects come out of nowhere . . . As a five-piece the band doesn?t
always seem to be keeping the same time, and even if this is an intentional art/jazz punk signature it gets a bit messy-sounding
at times. On top of all of this, footnotes to the lyrics have a sort of metaphysical seminar quality to them, a bit preachy,
like. Which together with the rest of the package indicates that Under a Dying Sun isn?t quite yet at the point where they?re
able to make the difference they?d like to. The result, not unexpectedly, is something of a frustrating listening experience.
*
Substandard Records - www.substandard.com - P.O. Box 310, Berkeley, CA, 94701
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V.A.: Go-Kart vs.The Corporate Giant 3 -
A fat 30-track (half of them previously unreleased) punk rock sampler from Go-Kart Records: Capture the Flag, The Control,
G.B.H., Heads vs. Breakers, Revolution Summer, Guff, Anti-Flag, Icons of Filth, Lunachicks, The Hellbenders, 46 Short, Plan
A Project, Star Strangled Bastards and more all show up here, with some of the best songs being those offered by Varukers,
Two Man Advantage, Leftover Crack, Sick On the Bus, and the almighty Brothers of Conquest. Style varies from band to band,
so you get a little party punk (Daycare Swindlers), some emo stuff (Pseudo Heroes), metallic crustcore (Toxic Narcotic), bubblegum
(Manda & the Marbles) and saucy chick-pop (Bantam), preachy derivative crap (Justin Sane), good old-fashioned thrash (I Farm)
and mosh food (INDK), and speedy oi-style action (the aforementioned Varukers), along with other subgenres of the mainstay.
I don?t have the price in front of me but I?m guessing it?s priced to move at a hell of a deal. * * *
Go-kart Records - www.gokartrecords.com - P.O. Box 20, Prince St. Station, New York, NY, 10012
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V.A.: No Colours Records Label Compilation Vol. III: Victory Through Total Domination -
A truly massive discful of selections from the No Colours Records discography. The first piece, Lord Wind?s ?The Ancient Beginning,?
sets a majestic tone with a processional dirge along the lines of the medieval danse macabre, properly heralding the following
collection of dark metal variants. Weltmacht?s ?The Second Wrath of Nihilism? grinds and growls along in a more traditional
European black metal fashion, followed by the mighty furor of Nargaroth?s ?. . . vom Frein Willen Eines Schwarzen Einhorns?;
Juvenes adds a gothic metal touch to their ?Born Out of Flames?; Slaves goes for a straight-out Slayer impersonation with
?Down to Heaven?; and Gaahlskagg?s offering is the quickest and most rabid of the lot. Some songs drag and meander a bit more
than necessary, such as the contribution by Abyssic Hate and the unintentionally hilarious balls-in-a-woodchipper-shrieks
of Wigrid, but all are so steeped in metal misanthropy that they still manage to fit perfectly into a wicked atmosphere that?s
alternately bleak and exhilirating. A number of these tracks are unreleased, and averaging around five minutes apiece they
represent a fine (if sometimes long-winded) collection of the various artists? takes on the genre that?s well worth the price
of seven euros. * * * *
No Colours Records - www.no-colours-records.de - Postfach 1119, 04767 Mugeln, Germany
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V.A: The Philadelphia Sound -
Four like-minded brands of hardcore from the Philly scene: The Curse, Paint It Black, Knives Out, and Go! For the Throat.
It?s all emphatic, brash, and energetic stuff, though it?s kind of hard to tell who?s who here as not only do the bands sound
somewhat similar in their emotional barrages but the promotional CD didn?t come with a track list. Still, it is a good blend
of unspoiled hardcore from rising bands who haven?t yet had the problem of being overexposed. * * * *
Chunksaah Records - www.chunksaah.com - P.O. Box 974, New Brunswick, NJ, 08903
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V.A.: Sonic Assault � Reptilian Records Fall 2001 Sampler -
All right, so this punk/metal comp. is from a while back, but just looking at some of the contributors you know that not only
is it gonna be worth playing but it?ll damn sure be worth owning as well. Easy Action starts it off mean with the wah-wah
vocals of ?Can?t Kill You?; the brilliantly beyond-Unsane Cutthroats 9 gives us ?Believe?; there?s the harsh Surgery sound
of Thrall?s ?Where Are My People?; the fuckin? Dwarves? ?Domination?; Ironboss? bracing ?Motherfucker?; The Nits? ?I?m the
One? (with video, yet); Mastodon goes nearly death metal with ?Thank You For This?; and the Heroine Shieks close it up with
the mixture of grief and puerile cursing in ?Effity Eff.? Also included are tracks by Swampass, Cherry Thirteen, and The Exploder,
which are probably the least rousing of the collection, but for the most part this is some damn good shit and, I?d bet, most
reasonably priced. * * * *
Reptilian Records - www.ReptilianRecords.com - 403 S. Broadway, Baltimore, MD, 21231
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V.A. : Your Scene Sucks -
Your Scene Sucks starts hard with The Control?s ?December 21st,? gets filthy and frantic with ?We All Do Time? and ?Does the
Path of Glory Lead to the Grave?? by Breathe In and Downpour, throws in some crusty thrashcore by C.R. (?MTV Activist?), there
are a pair of good old-fashioned rough & raw hardcore numbers from Tear It Up, a truly brutal offering with Missing 23rd?s
?A Song For the Ex,? the defiant anthem ?Obstructed View? by Rise Against, Wage of Sin?s heavy witchy ?Severed,? the perfect
aggression of Toxic Narcotic?s ?People Suck? is the best misanthropic testimonial since Ludichrist?s ?Most People Are Dicks,?
and ?Hello Good Friend? by Let It Burn is perhaps the best contribution on the album. The variety of Your Scene Sucks doesn?t
end with the preferred tracks listed above, as there?s still straight edge (Most Precious Blood), activist core (Kill Your
Idols? ?Fur Is For Fucks?), rather poor emo action (Heads vs. Breakers, Capdown), and even some death metal stylings with
Stampin? Ground?s ?Officer Down? to be had here. A few other songs by the likes of Sick Of It All and Ensign build this up
to a mighty good 28-track jukebox. * * * *
Go-Kart Records - www.gokartrecords.com - P.O. Box 20, Prince St. Station, New York, NY, 10012
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VINTERSORG: Visions From the Spiral Generator -
This is a strange mix: Scandanavian folk and black metal blending together into an album of ?Viking metal.? Borknagar singer
Vintersorg takes a number of vocal approaches on Visions . . ., chanting, growling & snarling, cutting loose with ?80s-style
heavy metal abandon, and (apparently) providing his own backing vocals, which together with the rapid death metal drumming
and guitar noodling gives the disc a distinctly European flavor. But then there are the acoustic-sounding strings and retro
hippie-folk singing portions (not to mention a little spacey keyboard diddling here and there) that appear throughout the
album; pretty at times, they still sound out of place in what seems to be a predominantly metal performance. (Even when they
aren?t contrasting drastically with the more roaring and hell-spawned selections such as the final ?Trance Locator.?) But
then again there is something of a new age taint to some of the song titles (?A Metaphysical Drama,? ?E.S.P. Mirage,? ?A Star-Guarded
Coronation?) which indicates that Vintersorg may be heading down a more rainbow-colored path than one leading toward either
pure black metal or Viking legend. It?s quite a conflicting and uneven mix, and while by the end of Visions . . . it?s clear
that Vintersorg has covered a lot of ground, not much of it is a soundscape you might wish to retread. * *
Napalm Records - www.napalmrecords.com - P.O. Box 1983, Port Townsend, WA, 98368
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VOLUME: Requesting Permission to Land -
Straight from the opening chords of ?Habit? Volume tips the amplifiers skyward and cuts loose a heavy blast program of acid-washed
stoner metal. With a couple of Fu Manchu members (Pat Brink, Scott Reedic) and a truckload of effects you can pretty well
know what to expect from Volume: vacuum-packed vocals, space invader guitars, galactically heavy drums, and a diaphragm-rumbling
bass join together with needle-thin feedback and interplanetary radio waves to produce an electromagnetic 5-song broadcast.
Requesting Permission to Land includes an organ-driven cowbell-clanging cover of Mountain?s ?Don?t Look Around? and closes
with the fucked-up quarter-hour drum-heavy trip ?Headswim,? and for those looking for something heavy but none too hard in
an Electric Wizard/Dead Meadow vein these roaring soundswells will not disappoint. To my undosed ears however it does sound
a bit like Volume is trying to put forth a specific and identifiable sound rather than generate a truly unique lysergic emanation
of their own. So while theirs is unquestionably a big wild sound, a lot of it?s just background noise to me. * *
Highbeam Music - www.highbeammusic.com - Box 322, Thirroul, NSW, 2515, Australia
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WANTED DEAD: Repercussions -
Despite the novel concept of putting pictures of buds in their CD booklet, Wanted Dead still has that unfortunate and uptight
straight-edge sound to their standard brand of punk/hardcore. Repercussions rattles through all of the usual stereotypical
topics, barking away about the scene, man (?Shout Out?), bein? a punk rock outlaw (?Revenge?), bad love (?Black Roses?), fightin?
(?Violence?), fuckin? cops (?Mace In My Face?), and society, man (?Society?). All are slammed out with high school lyrics
and a three-chord mindset, with the occasional rallying cry about ?the scene? thrown in for good measure. ?Mace In My Face?
does churn along as one of Wanted Dead?s more energetic and enjoyable offerings, but maybe only because it sounds so damned
familiar. So as you can see it didn?t do much for me, but hey, at least the kids at the Warped Tour liked ?em. *
Chunksaah Records - www.chunksaah.com - P.O. Box 974, New Brunswick, NJ, 08903
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THE WARLOCKS: Phoenix EP -
More Sixties psychedelic slag jams from the cult of The Warlocks. The Phoenix EP (see full album review following) begins
with the gentle decadence of ?Baby Blue,? melts into the electro-spacey instrumental ?Oh Sandy,? and runs through the other
two listed tracks and the disc?s lengthy bonus program to time out at around 65 minutes total. Guitarist/vocalist Hecksher?s
voice sounds more nasal this time around, and the harmonica and tambourine a little more prevalent, which in conjunction with
the overly long filler segments of the 12-minute ?Oh Sandy? and the only slightly more alive ?Minneapolis Mad Man,? as well
as the painfully long hidden tracks, give Phoenix a significantly lazier sound than the band?s debut and follow-up. Some of
that alluring Warlocks magic is missing here, as the band?s signature drone has grown considerably less hypnotic, which is
rather perplexing given some of the Warlocks? previous recordings and their riveting live shows. Perhaps I?ll give the EP
another stab when I?m in a more medicated frame of mind, but at the moment the vibrato organ pulse of the final ?bonus? round
just keeps going, and going, and going . . . and I?m gone. *
Birdman Records - www.birdmanrecords.com - 1118 W. Magnolia Blvd., P.O. Box 208, Burbank, CA, 91506
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THE WARLOCKS: Phoenix Album -
Having thought the Warlocks? Phoenix EP their weakest release to date, I had hoped the follow-up full-length would bring them
back to their hallowed heights of psych-trance priesthood. But with this tamped-down low-energy release it sounds like the
nods have completely taken over. There?s still a discernible Sixties buzz and jangle to some of the tunes, if you?re looking
for that, but the band no longer seems to have the same shivery electricity they once had, causing Phoenix to roll considerably
more than it rocks. The sitar on ?Inside Outside? lends to the heavier beat of that number, and gives the 14-minute closer
?Oh Shadie? a faint raga-like quality, but more common is a blas? decadence that almost seems tired of itself. There is a
certain strung-out soundtrack quality to these anemic tunes of dope, shakes, and blues, but it?s one that never finds a peak,
just drags itself out to the lingering half-lidded end. *
Birdman Records - www.birdmanrecords.com - 1118 W. Magnolia Blvd., P.O. Box 208, Burbank, CA, 91506
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YO LA TENGO: Nuclear War -
Four versions of Sun Ra?s early Eighties protest standard. The first is a laid-back cover on which all three members of Yo
La Tengo chime in on vocals and percussion; on the second a gang of kids sings along to the ?Yea-ah?s and the ?Motherfucker?s;
on three the band brings in additional musicians for bongo, timpani, trumpet, and freestyle sax duties; and the last is a
fudgy remix of the kids? version. It don?t sound to me like Yo La Tengo has much soul here, as after four long, long, and
rather monotonous repetitions of the title number the impression of the band?s performance is one of lackadaisical redundancy.
But if you?re a fan of the original it?s your call as to whether these are worthy tributes or not. (Although if ?Nuclear War?
just isn?t your song these four lengthy jams probably won?t get you marching.) Still, the farting trumpet on #3 ain?t a bad
touch; after all, ?What you gonna do / Without no ass?? *
Matador Records - www.matadorrecords.com - 625 Broadway, 12th Floor, New York, NY, 10012
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tmcrites@earthlink.net
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