home > browse > cd-feature > view article

Random Stabbings 14a

  Tobias

Black Cobra “Bestial” (At a Loss Records)
A two-person operation in the manner of Dresden Dolls but concentrating on the doom metal approach of St. Vitus, sometimes pegged to Boris speed, ie a homestyle type of jam usually restricted to the garages of the parents of axe-novice teenagers but which now has become accepted by undergrounders mainly because so many 4- and 5-piece acts simply cannot offer such undiluted songwriting without calling for congressional hearings. Singer/guitarist Jason Landrian’s voice evokes summa cum laude punk yelling, his guitar sludged to the breaking point as it tries to drown out drummer Rafael Martinez. Comparisons include the aforementioned indie heroes, Motorhead, Cro Mags, Big Black and so forth. Even without a bass guitar this works just fine for seekers of the infinitely raw and adamantly uncommercial. Order from Amazon.com

Zeraphine “Still” (Phonyx Records)
An expensive import, but probably worth it for goth completists. Vocalist Sven is several ticks more animated than most kraut-rockers, not straining away at the chops-licking lasciviousness of Rammstein but clearly putting his back into it. Title track recalls Fields of the Nephilim’s recent doings, infusing them with Fearless Freep jangle and hand-wringing vocal lines. “Niemand Kann Es Sehen” re-creates the post-punk haunted-house vibe recently co-opted by Birthday Massacre (ditto for “Nichts Aus Liebe”), “Inside Your Arms” doles out some metallic EBM in the tradition of Megaherz (ferocious Rammstein mimickers if you’ve never heard them before, and you seriously should), “Toxic Skies” covers the obligato Sisters of Mercy ground, and “Halbes Ende” is the ghoul-rock ballad. A nice taste of Berlin for gothies trapped in the States, although it’d be nice if bands like this would stick to English if the few numbers in which it’s used got them signed in the first place. Order from Songsearch.com

##ad#1##

Paul Carr “Just Noodlin’” (Jazz Karma Records)
Paul Carr’s sax is a weapon of chill destruction, not too souped-up (there’s no sign that he’s battling for shelf space with fusion proggers) and not too old school either. His new album administers straight-up commuter feel-goodness similar to Sonny Rollins or a more freestyle Ronny Laws. The set boots up with the album’s eponymous track, a snappy metered original spotlighting his breezy but intense perspective not only on the notes themselves but also on the innards of his instrument. It’s not until track #4 (Carrie Fischer’s “You’ve Changed”) that there’s a turn for the nostalgic, but thankfully the feel is far less forlorn than smilingly introspective. Passages are traded here and there with trumpet player Terrell Stanford, and these are without a doubt the highlights of the record; a 6 1/2 minute version of the Gershwins’ “But Not For Me” starts as a thoughtful gift to the foxtrotters until Carr can no longer control an urge to get medieval on the scale, pianist Bob Butta returning a volley in kind. Order from Amazon.com

Sahg “Vol 1” (Candlelight Records)
Reissue of the superbly angry 1990 release. The album’s atmospheric intro alone is enough to set it apart from other Sabbath-esque product, but the music is even more of a pleasant surprise, with “Repent” utilizing the wobbly vocal effects of Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun” to a better end, opening a wide, deathly aural space which they fill with Trouble-like guitar passages and real, no-kiddin-around lead work. “Executioner Undead” leaves behind it a deathly impression of “Children of the Grave” augmented with a piece of mummy-metal riffage which was, one would gather, stolen in later years by none other than Nile. Bands like Sword and – dare we the sacrilege of it – St Vitus can only dream of writing tyrannosaurus-attack metal this cool. Order from Amazon.com

Brandie Frampton “What U See” (D&LF Records)
Dreary soccer mom pushes her drearily cherubic daughter’s C&W bullocks in an age of nothing but null-relevance American Idolbots molded from 100% Plastigoop, world reacts with blank, uncomfortable stares. The little brat sings her hookless Trisha Yearwood wannabe-isms with all the passion of a spanked Hansen, taking great pains to avoid straining her precious honky throat save for a rote nicking of Jewel during a Nickelodeonized version of “Brown Eyes Blue.” The title track would love to be used as a female WWF-er’s theme song, and there are some mad-skillz fiddle-glissandos to prove it, but the energy poops her out before she gets the slightest toehold. Order from D&LF

Outraged ranting, indie label release news and spaghetti sauce recipes are always welcome.  Email ericsaeger@mindspring.com