Friday, August 1, 2014

CASSETTE REVIEW: Present / CT Assaults split


                Sometimes two different artists can just gel so well that they can convince you that their split is perhaps not a split at all.  As easy as it might be to distinguish Present and CT Assaults from each other because their vocalists are of opposite gender, it is just as easy to think of them as perhaps the same artist and that is not at all a bad thing, as they have the same underlying rock qualities.

                The Present side of this has a mixture of distorted spoken word vocals, as if they are being said through a megaphone, and there those weird experimental moments of shrieking feedback and crazy guitar notes.   It is a little bit of psychedlia like maybe The Doors even, though the intricate complexities in the notes could also suggest Primus.   Obviously one of my first comparisons for the megaphone vocals sound goes to Stone Temple Pilots, but it also just on the whole reminds me of this band called Blue Meanies who were closer to a ska-punk than Present but still had that same idea of “Ladies and gentlemen, come one come all and see the show tonight”.

                On the flip side of things we have CT Assaults- and my mind always goes to Connecticut with CT because it’s where I’ve spent most of my life, sadly- and though they start with a synth and string sound that is somewhere between Rush and Darth Vader, they carry on in a style that is musically similar to that of Deerhoof or possibly even Why?.     There are some woodwind instruments being played here as well, and I want to say clarinet but I might be wrong.    I am definite that there is a violin though, and that does help it to also have a bit of melody.

                Not only could I see Present and CT Assault sharing the same stage, I could see someone as a fan of both and not just one because they both just bring out what is best in the world of rock and being weird.     Perhaps it is only fitting that such an experience should be on cassette, and not just because I prefer all of my music on this medium. 







1 comment:

  1. http://www.ctassaults.com

    https://www.facebook.com/PRESENTbandLA

    ReplyDelete