Sunday, February 24, 2008

Blah, Blah, Blah, Complain, Complain, Complain.....New Mammal's Really Good Though!



Slasher Risk is a duo outta Brooklyn (okay, so I looked at their Myspace page. I was bored!) who are dabblers in the 'been there, done that' scene of post weird america. To say their sound is non meritorious would belie that it is unremarkable in it's unremarkability. Most indubitably! Thy got an lp called 'Triple Jesus' out & if you've got a nice little stockpile of Magik Markers, Zaimph or any of that sort of stuff at the head of your collection, this is crucial in it's sameness. If you are a collector of records in editions of less than 300, regardless of how they sound, again, we are talking must-have here (#rd edition of 100). If your a discernin type then you've already been hornswoggled w/enough of this kinda stuff at the beginnin of the decade. Is it me or does most everything comin out of NY & the boroughs just smack of pretense & affectation? Hard to know how affected or pretentious Slasher Risk are, maybe not at all. Which is how many more times I'm likely to play their lp. Beep, beep!
www.myspace.com/slasherrisk


I really wanted to like A.M Haines Triumphant Ghost lp & I consider myself a stalwart supporter of the Foreign Frequency label but somebody better tell him the Japanese were all up into this free noise, white noise, power noise, whatever noise a long time ago. I have slept through lawn mowers goin round my head, been woken up w/a vacuum cleaner up against my ear, played my fair share of Masonna, Merzbow, Hijokaidan records at high volume & at no point during any of them experiences could I say "yeah, I can live here". Visitin's one thing. If A.M. Haines want's to take a walk or leave the house w/his electric razor runnin at full speed, that's his prerogative. Me buyin an lp of said noise....I guess that's my way of chippin in for the utility bill. You might be sayin 'Roland, you just haven't heard enough of this to be fair' or you could opine 'Roland, I think you've heard plenty', which is exactly what I'm thinkin. Family Pet it ain't. Oh well.
http://www.foreignfrequency.com/


This 7" ep from a SF group called The Mantles really stokes the node in it's uncanny similarity to old school Paisley Underground, you know, before it had been so sadly tagged. The strains, strums & streams that permeate so lost & wonderfully on this remind my tired soul of early Leaving Trains, The Last as well as the roster that made up Steve Wynn's Down There label. Nice going.Check it out at; www.myspace.com/dulcitonerecords


I'll admit, I picked up the Alrightee's e.p. on account of their label wavin a banner what read "Not Siltbreeze"! I don't know if them's fightin words or not. Maybe they's just jealous. It happens. Anyway, The Alrightees stammer & stumble forth down the beer 'n blood soaked path of jagged garage punk, complete w/a blown out, buried in the red live delivery on this 5 song duster. Reminded me of any number of ace outfits headed by Rob Vasquez a decade ago. I see a Goner Fest in their future for sure. Boom Chick is right, it's not Siltbreeze but that don't make it not good. It's holdin up just fine. http://www.boomchickrecords.com/


Gary Beavuvais sent a copy of the latest Mammal release, this plain white sleeved 7" on white vinyl that he done for the Bloodlust! label. Story goes these two tracks was taken from an aborted Mammal lp entitled 'Death Rider' which also functioned as a soundtrack to a film w/the same name. I dunno, to me, seems a shame that the thing was shitcanned. Mammal's at his friskiest here, layin down some serious gnarled biker rock guitar squalls over layers of programmed percussions. It got me thinkin the film is probably noddin hard into some heavy Anger (as in Kenneth) homage but I guess we'll never know. If your lookin for someone what's come to bury OM & not praise them, Mammal sounds up to the task. And how. Write; bludlust@mindspring.com or go to; www.animaldisguise.com/mammal for availability.

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Der Schlachter Ist Mein Freund.....More reviews!






Ah, it's good to be home. I spent the day shoppin, gettin victuals for a splendid dinner. My buddy Orlando whose a butcher hooked me up w/a fine lookin leg of lamb which I dressed out myself & that dude is in the marinade as I write. He's gonna get roasted over a wood fire & served up alongside some fingerling potatos, sauteed swiss chard & (I'd reckon) many bottles of a certain Portuguese vinho tinto I have become partial to. Bully for me! But I ain't forgot you all. Here, eat this:



Killertree's got another archival release of Kzoo recordings, this time by Plants entitled 12/15/93. Plants was a trio consistin of Dunn-Olson-Ramirez (I'm assumin yr scorecard is up to date) & if you dug the Universal Indians lp what come out a couple yrs back, then this ought to satisfy in a similar fashion. Both sort've embody sounds what one might find on real early PSF releases, UI seemin more like Highrise where Plants're more tapped into a Haino-fied stylee. Turns out the Jesse Harper reish on Kissing Spell was the Excalibur for both. Oh well, hey, as inspiration goes, that's a topper. The Olson penned liners what lay out the history of Plants are hilarious & as you might imagine, embellishes the band/recordings w/way more ecstatic gusto than what actually comes through. I ain't criticizing none, just sayin that I got plenty of tapes of myself & friends + hrs of friends 'n friends makin a boss din & it sounds pretty great to my ears, takin me back to loonier carefree times. Who knows, maybe it's my bad I ain't thought about releasin any of it. But that's doubtful. Still, as rackets go, this is supremely racketable. And as a template it's also crucial; here's the edenic starting point for alls what has followed (UI, Graveyards, Dead Machines, Ex-Cocaine). For me road cone's is always a sure sign of trouble & if this Plants lp don't prove that in spades then my Kentucky grass ain't no more bluer than my blood. Dig it at; http://www.killertree.com/

I picked up this 7" from an Austin outfit called Finally Punk even if the clerk insisted on making mention that they was quasi Riot Grrl. Alls I got to say about that is I don't give a flying fuck about antiquated politics. So then I'm thinkin they must be from Olympia or thereabouts & was happier than a priest at a weiner roast to find out they was from Austin, TX. Sure, they got the hard bop of the Pac Northwest's more illustrious finger waggers but what I dig about'em is hows they come off like a modern day personification of The Foams. There's lot's of shameless fun & frantic dischord goin on. It don't seem about gender issues, trans or otherwise, nor is it seeped in allegorical mishmosh. Thank you! This also comes w/a cdr of further material that I'm lookin forward to as well. It's great that Tobi Vale's a fan & even greater that I didn't let that fact dissuade me from buy this (ding!). All you old Foams fans unite! Finally Punk is bringin it all back home. Who'd have thought? Available via http://www.s-srecords.com/ or direct; www.myspace.com/finallypunk

Another Tejas 7" that showed up on my doorstep is a 4 song ep by a band what's called Hearts Of Animals. Actually I suspect it's a solo effort but I'll check the facts later. Right now it don't matter. There's elements that smack hard of shoegazer nonsense like Velocity Girl & that ilk, but when it flys-which it does on 2 tracks-it soars through the same jet stream as Amos & Sara or Family Fodder. Really terrific diy dub/psych minimalism & it might be the 1st record to come outta Houston that I kinda like since Charalambides split that swamp. Thanks to the Dull Knife label for thinkin of ol' Roland Woode. Find this at either; http://www.heartsofanimals.com/ or http://www.dullkniferecords.com/

Lastly (& bestly), I wanna let yous all know about the 2nd release on the already esteemed Malt Duck label. Entitled Them, Themselves or They, this is a crucial swab of cracked weirdo experimentalism with stunning rich undertones that is as tranfixing & eerily bewildering-in real time-as DDAA, The Makers Of The Dead Travel Fast, Ludus or Kosmonautentraum was back in halcyon yore. Made up of former members of Eat The People, Sally Strobelight + others I have never heard of (either), I am very curious & anxious for someone to get the ball rollin on releasin MORE Them, Themselves or They as well as delvin into the vaults to get these other Sac-Town whackers works into the ears 'n arms of us appreciaters. Thankfully this too comes w/a a bonus cdr so I'll have somethin soothin to listen to later while that lamb rolls around on the spit. Shit, this thing has got me so giddy w/delight that I'm gonna have to call it one of my favorite 7"ers of the year thus far. Malt Duck is battin 1000% & I suspect they got nowhere to go but up. Write to http://www.maltduckrecords.com/ & get in on the ground floor.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Down But Not Out.....New Reviews For You's To Peruse!




Well I reckon I've done gone & pissed away whatever readership I'd built up here on Siltblog by bein so delinquent. Couldn't be helped none, that's just how the cards was dealt. It ain't everyday your girlfriend inherits a huntin lodge, so when MG got word that her Grandpa Jinks had left the family place in the Pocono's to us, we hightailed it up there to see what she got. We'd heard tell of the place from family stories but ain't no one mentioned nor visited there in a coon's age. Jinks & his 2nd wife'd done moved to Florida years ago while the rest of'em held tight in western Kentucky & thereabouts so this grand old chalet of yore was sittin up in them mountains, abandoned & forgotten. And it was in some state when we's got there, let me tell you! Once we got rid of all the critters, I got to settin about fixin the structural foundation. I was lucky 'cause there weren't much snow to speak of then, but once I got to orderin drywall, new tiles & all the rest've the labor intensive nut's 'n bolts of the operation, it got to comin down in buckets. I got hit with delays, was even stuck livin up there for a while too. It was like The Shining in a way, not as luxurious (yet) as that manor, nor was there any ghosts to speak of near's I could tell. Course, after a couple days of bein isolated I'd have welcomed a Lloyd as much for the Jack Daniels as the company. I finally got the hang of it & am now pretty much in the final stretch of construction. The drive to & from the Fishtown has done sapped me of just about all creativity & by the time I get home & settled in, my whole body aches. But I've done near rebuilt that place by myself & once it's finished, it sure is gonna be somethin to crow about. You go & fix up a dilapidated hunting lodge from near scratch-ALONE- in the middle of winter & tell me it's a walk in the park. I don't think so! Once spring hits & the thaw comes we's set to do the finish carpentry, paintin, crown moldin, get the floors brought back....by this fall I'll be a man of all seasons. I intend to be the master gamesman, takin on all comers. And let me tell you this; there ain't nothin more satisfyin than a saddle of bear! Even the old lavender chef himself, James Beard, knowed that much. I'm gonna make one of them Brazilian meat platters look like a Cub Scout cookout. But I got a little ways to go & since I finally got me some downtime, here's a few records what I listened to that I figured I'd pass on to you;

This new lp by Vizusa come just yesterday so I figured, why wait? It's on a label called Seres & if they's got other stuff out-either the band or label-I don't reckon I know about it. Anyway, this Vizusa lp has got a pretty cool heavy creep vibe to it, like a less self indulgent Jarboe outing, or a more Goth-warped Magik Markers. Then again, if I walked into a room while this was playin & you told me it was a Beme Seed record I wouldn't blink either. Ding! Check'em out at http://www.vizusa.com/

Another in a series of save-the-tape recordings has hit the turntable, this one by lost in time band, The Drills. Hailin from Seattle, these guys was definitely from the other side of the Punk tracks & I mean even further down the pike than Helen Keller, Solger, Fartz or Extreme Hate. Their manta was 'take it through the wall' & boy do they! They resided in a place called the Death House & at the time of these recordings the main fellas was long in the tooth, bein 30 & 32 yrs old. So I guess Ted Falconi didn't have nothin on these geezers. The Drills didn't waste no time on stance, politics, society, they went straight for the heart. The result was an astounding crud-fi racket complete w/chatterin vocals, signifying nothin. It's killer. Had this come out in real time it'd be as sought after as Opus, Billy Wizard or them Queers 7"ers. But it didn't & you don't have to wait for a boot or try & find it on a Killed By Death comp. At least not yet. Drop a line to dirtyknobby@yahoo.com & perhaps your prayers will be answered.

The Columbus Discount label has released a trio of new vinyl that have all made a lasting impression, one of which predates the label itself. Recorded mostly throughout the 80's (one track bein from '74) Tommy Jay's Tall Tales Of Trauma spent many yrs as an acorn (that's Woodbe code for cassette-Capt'n Siltbreeze) before the CDR crew seen fit to let it grow into the majestic oak it always has been. Some may know Tom's work as a collaborator 'n agitator to Mike Rep & I'd bet there's even some of you's what recall his True Believers 7", 'Accept It' on Rep's Old Age label from the early 80's. You might say Tall Tales is an extension of that record, albeit a more personal endeavor. Throughout the yrs of hearin it on tape I'd always looked at it like one man's attempt to make his own version of 'Berlin'. In the world of Lou Reed fans that's a record that seems to be either loved or reviled & in the hamlet of Harrisburg, Ohio it's no secret which side of the line these guys stand behind.Take away the Bob Ezrin production, the maudlin, heavy handed sap & snark of Lou's amphetamine ego & hey, I'd say you got as pretty close doppelganger. There's all sort's of sweet overdubs that makes this DIY effort so protean whether they be strings, keyboards, the odd creak or a fluttering woodwind. And in the middle of it all is Tom's vocals & arrangements, standin hard, like a moden day Prometheus. 'Tall Tales' ain't exactly the fire stolen from Zeus, I mean, Lou's 'Berlin', but it was sort've hidden from most humans for many yrs. Thankfully the format it has so richly deserved now claims it as one of it's own. It's a grower that knows no limits.
Guinea Worms are a Columbus mainstay what's released a slew of cdr's through the yrs but only 1 7" I knowed about before this one come into the fold. I don't know if it's the Rep LFW 'production' but the a-side ('Box Of Records') is a solid slab of Screamin Mee Mee's styled cheeseburger sludge that slides down the gullet like a sack've of White Castles. The flip (I'm A Cobweb') is another past soundin blaster, this time conjurin up Clevo art skronkers, Modern Art Studio & it has been a long time since I thought of them. The other 7" what needs hollerin about is a new one from Necropolis. All's I remember from a debut 7" & followup lp a few yrs back was they sounded like The Adult Net or somethin. But adherin to a steady diet of Vicodin poppers & Black Label floats will most surely spin a band's direction into the hazy, black pitch of the unknown. So when I tell you's all that this 'Song For A Working Man' 7" makes'em sound like they woke up in a scrap heap once called home by a certain band on the Shove label, hopefully you'll know what I mean. How'd they get there? Write'em at http://www.columbusdiscountrecords.com/ & find out yourself.

Last but not least is a local release by a band what right out of the gate has laid to waste the entire current crop of Euro synth/slush Chrome extractors. FNU Ronnies ain't in no way Chrome obsessed unless you call takin a huge shit on Helios Creed's head a form of tribute. The lip moves these guys gabble forth slur around the atmosphere like a mist've toxic mold spores before dropping into the wanton wire 'n drum carnage & the whole thing sounds like a drunken Borg short-circuiting to a lethal mix of equal parts Deutch-Amerikanischen Freundschaft's debut & Wire's 'Pink Flag'. This one needs to heard to be coveted. Track'em down at; www.myspace.com/fnuronnies & http://www.testostertunes.blogspot.com/


That's all for me right now. I gotta whole mess've other work what's callin my name. But I got lot's more to go on about, so hopefully it won't take a month to get back to you. Until then, eat more bear!

Out.