VIRGINIA CREEPER: "Jazz Mesopotamia", "Ice Cues", "Fling" b/w "Hepzibah, If a Girl", "The Intellectual Head Nod" 7" single

Using no more than 8 tracks (songs 1 & 3 were recorded on 4), Virginia Creeper doles out competent jangly pop with increasing/decreasing dynamics to liven it up a bit. A deadpan vocal style cuts through the din nicely, and careful use of minimal equipment results in a serviceable example of lo-fi possibility. It's worth a sigh to note that the availability of low-cost recording in this age has resulted in a staggering onslaught of records like this one, and plenty that aren't even a fraction as accomplished. When faced with piles of such vinyl, tapes, and CDs in unfathomable number, the critic searches for something to say other than "yeah, well, this is okay, I guess." As a document of a band's budget and creative output, this 7" works as well as any. I imagine that it will hang out in the stacks for a while, unlike the incredible mound of simply bad stuff I'll haul to the used record store on my next trade-in trip. Unfortunately, I can't make any promises.  In fact, as I write this I can't recall a single goddamn note. (Elsinor Records, P.O. Box 5463, Bellingham, WA 98227)