Various Artists - Membranaphonics
(Monitor)
You know you got to give the drummer some! Membranaphonics
is a project of Monitor Records whose goal is to totally, once and for all,
give the drummer his due, compiling songs from 12 drummers of
various bands, from Oxes and Golden to Fugazi, Modest Mouse,
and Don Caballero.
There seem to be three types of drummers in the world:
the musician committed to playing the drums, the musician who
really wants to lead his own band but is willing to play drums,
and the bro' who joined the band when they couldn't find a drummer.
To the compilation's benefit, it seems to mostly cover drummers
of the first sort, those people who are truly only interested in
percussion. Few of the songs on this compilation really attempt
to be full songs; instead most rely simply on the rhythm of the
drums, with added effects and percussion.
There is one drummer on the compilation, though, who is able to
both demonstrate in his song that he is able to lead his own band
and is also dedicated to the art of playing the drums. That person
is Damon Che of Don Caballero. His seven-plus minute song starts
with a guitar intro, but quickly leads to a long, frenzied drum
solo, during which Che freely explores rhythms. At first, his
sticks stutter and roll at frantic speeds, but as the mood hits
him, he settles into a purer beat, only to break it up later with
other textures. After the solo ends, Che picks up the guitar
again, this time mixing the two instruments into a full song, the
guitar mixing several different phrases against a steady rock beat.
Kyle Crabtree of The Shipping News shows he can play a little
guitar, as well. The drums are very prominent in the mix, and
follow an interesting but steady beat. However, the focus of the
song is the guitar part, leading one to think he is really a drummer
of the second sort. The guitar playing is reserved and spacious.
Like The For Carnation, spaces between the notes become as important
as the notes themselves, creating a very relaxed, soothing sound.
Other drummers show all they really care about is the beat. However,
they don't do this with extended soloing, rather creating lo-fi electronica
pieces where fuzz and effects round out the sound. Simone Pace of
Blonde Redhead records some beats and then electronically alters
their pace, and mixes and matches them for an arty but not very
fun song. Jeremiah Green of Modest Mouse records only drums, but
the recording is so heavily echoed and tin-sounding that it gives
the song a very interesting sound. Christina Files of Victory
at Sea plays a nice drum part and then adds a little xylophone,
windy sounds, and spoken vocals for an atmospheric but bland song.
Jon Theodore of Golden focuses on the beat, but adds a little more
to it, creating a Trans Am-like keyboard piece. A dance beat
is surrounded by a car engine-sounding hum with one-finger keyboard
playing and oddly-processed demon vocals for a funny and relatively
interesting song.
The drummers Fugazi, Brendan Canty and Jerry Busher, show they
are full fledged drummers of the second sort and create a full song.
Canty, of course, has helped Lois Maffeo give her songs more weight.
Here though, Canty and Busher create an annoying post punk piece
with an grating, persistent keyboard repetition and very poor
off-key vocals. Chris Freeland of Oxes is a little more successful,
creating a Rollerball-like cabaret piece with his guest female
vocalists. The song doesn't flow very well though; the guitar
seems hesitant and doesn't match well with the drums, and the
vocalists are subpar.
Overall, Membranaphonics is an interesting but uneven compilation.
Crabtree and Che show solo albums would be well worth listening to,
and, along with Theodore and Green, give evidence that it does
take musical skill to be a competent drummer. Even the guy in
the background has to know what he's doing for a band to be
successful.
|
