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Solid Eye / Fruits of Automation / WIN (CD)
There isn't a track on Fruits of Automation that's actually
called "March of the Drunken Robots", but that's one of the first
things you'll think of. Imagine a disparate group of vaguely familiar,
semi-mechanical sounds, arranged in a logical order but adhering to an
entirely alien aesthetic. That's what's going on here. Almost every track on
Fruits... sends little messages to your brain -- "Perhaps you
should be playing this backwards?" is a frequent one, as is "How the
hell will I know if my copy of this disc is damaged?" Such is the
entertaining aural confusion it inspires. From the martial "Great Garloo"
to the symphonically ear-wrangling "Gilbert", Fruits of Automation
manages to sound almost, but not quite, entirely unlike any other
experimental music I've heard this month. -- gz
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Eddie the Rat / Eddie the Rat / 8-3-5 Records (CD)
I'm not sure who sonic collage artist Eddie the Rat is named after but he
definately owes a musical debt to Frank Zappa. I just can't get away from
thinking about Zappa as I listen to Eddie the Rat. While the
execution is squarely in cut 'n' paste land (Coldcut fans, are you
listening?), the spirit is very much the sort of
tongue-in-cheek/in-yer-face dualism one would have expected from the late
jazzer from Hell. If you don't mind how a CD looks -- for unfortunately, the cover art doesn't do justice to the CD within -- I can recommend
Eddie without much reservation. The only musical doubt I
have lies in the fact that some tracks just sit there, aurally speaking. But since the average track is only 2 minutes long, this isn't too terribly troublesome. -- nw
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Pendulabellum / Pendulabellum / Legpress (CD)
How does the phrase go? "I don't pretend to be an authority on
(fill in the blank), but I know what I like." -- cliched as hell, but eminently true
in this particular case. I like Pendulabellum. This Boston free-jazz
trio creates just the right balance of overt dischord and romantic
melody, while the absence of a designated rhythm unit/section
leaves the piano, guitar and wind instruments free to roam, though
sufficient synergy exists between these three musicians that
the suggestion of control remains, ready to be asserted at any
moment. Perhaps the highest points here are the gorgeous "Hymn"
and the sprightly "Red Shoes", though any cut here should satisfy
folks who name-drop Coleman, Coltrane and Monk with knowing
abandon. -- gz
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Sleeve / Cellophane Persona / Peachy Way (CD)
With thousands of bands already teeming in the stagnant rock and roll
waters, one more (named Sleeve) probably won't ruin the gene pool. In the
vein of Alice and Chains or STP on some of the harder stuff, Sleeve are all
competent players with sincere songs, but there isn't anything unique or
exceptionally notable in the song department to make this quartet stand out
from any other band on the block. Rock and roll for the uninformed, or
perhaps just the very undiscriminating. -- am
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Autechre / Peel Session / Nothing (CD)
Given the time constraints of the Peel Session production
process, you'd expect to find only the best -- or at least the
most organized -- electronic artists throwing together their
tracks in a single-day session. Such is the case here. The
austere blips, bleeps and chords that make up "Milk DX",
"Inhake 2" and "Drone" sound a lot more human, somehow,
when pulled out of a hat in short order. Or perhaps it's just
my imagination. Regardless, it's a purely relative matter --
you're not likely to find classical music fans dumping Bach,
Mozart et al in favor of Autechre after hearing
Peel Sessions. -- gz
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Various Artists / Dig the New Breed of Ska / Triple X (CD)
Hey, let's face it, ska isn't for everyone...especially since watered-down pop-ska's entrance into the mainstream a couple of years ago resulted
in the uncomely oversaturation of the airwaves with ska-tinged ditties,
which in turn caused normally sensible listeners to have murderous thoughts
towards anything spelled with one 's' a 'k' and an 'a'. Mark my words,
swing is next. On the other hand, variants of ska have been around for
nearly half a century and it deserves attention beyond its current
bastardized, mainstream incarnation. Dig the New Breed of Ska is a
collection of 10 contemporary UK ska bands, such as Big 5, King Hammond
and One Step Beyond. In a sense this is the post-post-2 Tone crowd, and
I'd say that fans of the 2 Tone era would appreciate their music heartily. -- nw
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Dressy Bessy / Pink Hearts Yellow Moons / Kindercore (CD)
How can you say no to fuzzy, yummy, jangly sixties-style girlie pop?
Face it, you really can't, especially when it's done in Dressy Bessy's
irresistable style. The recipe: short, hummable, danceable songs,
layered with Tammy Ealom's ageless vocals, suitable for beach parties,
back-yard barbecues or hula-hoop marathons. If past Kindercore releases
have been a bit too sweet for your tastes, this might be the time to jump
in -- Pink Hearts Yellow Moons is louder, happier and better anchored
in the real world than some of their labelmates, while retaining all that
childish influence upon which some indiepop kids thrive. -- gz
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Goober Patrol / The Unbearable Lightness of Bring Drunk / Fat Wreck (CD)
This group of Brits does a superb job of letting fuzzed out guitar and
screeching, hooting vocals take center stage. Like labelmates Snuff, there's an ingrained sense of pop sensibility on select
tracks, but Goober Patrol has a troublesome time unearthing it from the
mix. After a few tracks of this aural abuse, the sense of humour runs a
bit thin and the only thing you can do is cock your head to one side
and shrivel your brows into a questionable furrow. -- am
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