Excellent Italian Greyhound

Epitome of quintessential “crunchy” Chicago sound that they invented. This is Steve Albini’s band, formed after Big Black. Guitar, drums, vocals, bass that merges with downtuned guitars. Their sound is heavy, deep, crunchy-clean. Songs are schitzo explorations in dynamics, volume and quiet. But its all about the recording/production: signature depth and intensity. Its what Cobain gave Albini 1,000,000 dollars up front to record “In Utero” for. Its what made the Breeders first album (Pod) sound overwhelming. Its what made the Pixies first album change the face of rock and roll. Albini is one of those outspoken critics of the industry and record producers that people love to hate. But they are just jealous. He somehow knows exactly where and how to place a mic. Just give a listen. Play with locals The Enablers, Scratch Acid, Big Black, or other Midwest bands. Watch lots of false endings, seeming non sequitors.

1) slow bass chord progression, sparse incongruent drumming, spoken word vocs, apt radio theme “the end of radio”
2) upbeat “rockin good stuff”
3) a bunch of false starts to a basic rocker, then discombobulates into a gallop, then down to a dirge
4) heavy rocker with a veritable drum solo in middle
5) FCC in middle (too bad) sparse with lots of quiet, parts, spoken bizarreness in the middle
6) almost pretty meandering guitar melodies
7) driving mathy, smacks of Big Black in its dissonance
8) a good jam
9) almost a poppy drumbeat/feel, with a strange intro, upbeat and driving