Friday, September 28, 2012

Review: 101 Crustaceans- Train Bolt Roller

A publicity sheet for a forthcoming album included this text:

How to reconcile John Lennon and Cecil Taylor.  Or Heinrich von Kleist and Captain Beefheart.  Or Donovan and Warne Marsh.  CCR and Ligeti.

I obviously had to check it out.  Having spent some time with Train Bolt Roller, the forthcoming album by 101 Crustaceans, I'll add a couple more combinations to the PR firm's list:

David Bowie's Aladdin Sane and James Blood Ulmer's Part TimeMarc Ribot and Raymond Scott.

The New York-based collective creates a self-consciously arty blend of jazz, rock and noise.  Willfully obscure, 101 Crustaceans is an acquired taste.

While I love the poetic lyrics, I simply can't tolerate the petulant vocals.  Had the singing duties somehow been assigned to any number of powerful and soulful vocalists ranging from, say, Bettye LaVette to Corey Taylor, Train Bolt Roller might be one of my favorite albums of 2012.  Instead, I'll continue to get my new art-noise fix from the slightly more conventional tandem of Neneh Cherry & the Thing.


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I reviewed performances by Slash, Foxy Shazam and the Follow last night. 

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Frankie Valli's concert at the Muriel Kauffman Theatre was most peculiar.  Here's my review.

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Here's Radkey's first video.  Call it a hunch, but I have a feeling the young men in the Kansas City band have heard of the Misfits.

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Ramona the cat, the namesake of Hospital Ships' "Oh, Ramona", has died.

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Steve Wilson, friend of There Stands the Glass, is a rocker.

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Lisa Hannigan and Joe Henry participated in a new session of the 78 Project.

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The EPK for the Preservation Jazz Hall Band's St. Peter & 57th St (A 50th Anniversary Celebration) is excellent.

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Faithful There Stands the Glass reader BGO is advocating for Canadian hip hop collective The Caravan.  I like it.  BGO may also appreciate F. Stokes.  The rapper has been booked at the American Jazz Museum's Rhythm & Ribs festival on October 13.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

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