Uh Oh. Everyone knows the kiss of death for any studio is to put out a compilation CD of the stuff that they've been working on. It's then that you find out that the hip, cool studio that Pavement cut a few tracks at really spends their time recording Michael Bolton imitators or jazz fusion crap. Well, I guess every time you throw Calvin Johnson into an equation things change. Dub Narcotic is Calvin's studio and band, and it's something he does out of a love for music, so instead of the usual "commercial" clients we get an impressive roster of artists, like the Make Up, Blues Explosion, Bartlebees, Beck, ICU, Versus, Miranda July and more. Calvin's audio verite style of recording can sometimes leave a track needing a bit more work but in some cases, like the Blues Explosion, it works perfectly and comes out really energized. Cool stuff. (K, Box 7154, Olympia, WA 98507)
Music Reviews | No. 10
DEFORMO
by Matt Mair Lowery
The only way I can adequately express my excitement over this record is to say that I haven't been so unexpectedly and pleasantly surprised by an album since I first heard Pavement's Slanted and...