I don’t know if I’ve ever heard anything this strange be this effective. There is something that’s just enchanting about it. It’s not the kind of thing you’ll ever hear on the radio. There is a bit of an awkwardness to it. Yet, somehow that becomes one of its charms.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2016 Volume 2 at lulu.com/strangesound.
Track by Track Review
A Clown Around Here
The verses on this have a cool bluesy rock vibe. The thing is, the rest of the song has a twisted kind of progressive rock vibe. This is an odd, but quite effective, jam. It’s oddly compelling. I particularly enjoy the hard rocking, grinding, proggy jam at the end of the piece.
The Saddle More of a pure hard rocker, this is incredibly cool. There is a bit of a psychedelic flair to it, but it’s also quite in line with a lot of glam rock. Yet, there is a modern alternative rock edge, too.
Ugly Garden Psychedelic rock, trippy prog and more merge on this cool tune. It’s definitely on the odd side. It’s also suitably a bit ugly. It’s also very cool.
Head Full of Stone There is a parental advisory on the lyrics to this cut. It has another bit of trippy prog built into it. It’s also a bit bent toward something almost like hip hop at times. The extended instrumental section late in the song is pure prog, though. This isn’t a huge change, but it’s another oddly compelling piece of music.
Careless Talking There is a bit of a Rolling Stones element to this piece. Add that to the more rock and roll aspects of some of the other songs, and you are on the way to understanding this number. I suppose I can also make out some things like Lou Reed and New York Dolls here.
The Feeling This is more of a straight forward rocker. It seems to have some punk rock in the mix, along with some hints of something a bit like Alice Cooper. It still manages to move into more artistic territory, too, though.
