Editorial Reviews

It's a strange name for a strange band, one whose members (bassist John Castro, guitarist Devon Goldberg, keyboardist/guitarist Jefferson Rabb, and a drummer whose real name is not given and may or may not be a full member of the group) are all veterans of the alt-rock scene and have spent time in bands like Morricone Youth, the Rugburns, and A Lesser Dog. The music they make together is by turns quirkily charming and genuinely befuddling; some of the most engaging numbers on this album are instrumentals which draw at times on spaghetti western flavors ("Crawler") and at others on polka and Latin American sounds ("La Valencia Hotel"). The songs aren't especially tuneful but are somehow catchy anyway. The lyrics? Well, they tend to sound like they were generated by a randomizer: "Silent weapons for quiet wars/Ancient virgin star can't ignore/Flowers, fishes, plants, fruits and trees/Mohammed practices alchemy" -- you get the picture. They maybe sound a bit smug, but this is only their debut album and it promises great things to come if they can focus their approach a bit. Rick Anderson, All Music Guide

Customer Reviews

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