Cassette Review: Guide To Bizarre Behavior "Guide To Bizzare Behavior" (ShanGORIL La Records)

[$5 // Edition of 70 // https://shangorillarecords.bandcamp.com/album/guide-to-bizzare-behavior]

For those who don't remember, there was a time when Record Store Day was about promoting independent record stores and releases, you know, back before it was taken over by the bigger labels and re-releases of things no one but hipsters wanted to pay waaayyy too much money to own.     Cassette Store Day was made to combat this, but record stores have always kind of been known as record stores and so CSD just doesn't really make much sense to me.   I only bring this all up because this cassette was apparently a Record Store Day exclusive and if this is the only good thing to come out of RSD (I say it is) then, well, gosh darnit we might just have to keep RSD around.

The "Guide To Bizzare Behavior" begins with funky synth keys with background modem waves.    There is a sitar twang, singing and bottle rattling.   It is a very interesting collection of what the general term for would be "noise" and then it also brings out some weird modem/ringtone type of sound as well to seal the deal.

But when you think you've got it figured out, here comes the guitar, singing and possibly a moog (I'm not sure, but it has that sort of sound) and this just blends into some weird rock though the vocals remain.     And, no, I have not heard a cassette that has started the way this one did turn into this before.

A song is sung to someone named Bill and then it just becomes eerie and haunting in the frequencies.   Side A comes to an end with aliens and beeping and it has taken me on quite a wild ride that, to be fair, I kind of had to listen to this, take notes and think about it in the way that I might otherwise think of reviewing two releases.

Side B starts off with more of a rock with keys sound and even though those aliens return this is more traditional and reminds me of something along the lines of Schatzi.   (Is that too vague of a reference or does everyone know who Schatzi is?  Seriously asking)   Some X-Files trill comes out next (Yes, really, they somehow did it) and then there is an audio clip and these harmonies just have to be felt.

It turns to a garage sort of sound, somewhere between Superdrag and Hunx for a moment and then drifts into some sort of combination of Oasis and Radiohead.   There are also some elements of The Beatles on "Corporate Whore".    Space whirrs and jazz flute turn this into the sound of a jam band and it all sort of ends on oriental tones.

I'm never one to count things out in terms of song by song let alone by the minute or second, but if I had to guess here I'd say that this is pretty evenly split between being instrumental and having vocals.   If it's not 50/50 then it's either 60/40 or 70/30 *tops* with the instrumental parts being larger.

With the name implying that this could be bizarre, I do enjoy the fact that it kind of touches on that with some weird rock, but overall it isn't really so much bizarre as it is just... not ordinary.   And there is nothing wrong with being ordinary by any means, but if you can be extraordinary then choose that because this cassette obviously did.