Drums and Tuba - The Flying Ballerina
(My Pal God)
The second in a series of reissues by Drums and Tuba, the aptly name group that now
lives in New York, The Flying Ballerina was recorded over two years ago. The
instrumental Drums and Tuba also contain a guitar and some trumpet, at times, and
sound not unlike you would imagine a post-punk band would with such instrumentation.
Comparisons to the Minutemen are unavoidable (and they even cover "God Bows to Math"
on this disc, as well as a Charles Mingus song) but Drums and Tuba hold their own
ground, serving up a post-punk marching band feel. Anthony Nozero's drumming keeps
a steady foundation, but dances lightly around the beat in a pretty effective manner--he seems to be more of the focus of the band than the tuba.
Brian Wolff's tuba does sound pretty good, especially when improvising with guitarist
Neal McKeeby (as on "Chummus, a Challah, and a Whole Lot of Chutzpah"). Drums and
Tuba seem to play the ground between composition and improvisation pretty well,
though I hesitate to call them jazz, as their songs do hold onto a rock structure.
I bet this would be a great band to experience live, as I can imagine a lot more
energy coming from this band in the flesh than the record carries across. Still,
this CD shows a lot of promise for this unique band.
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