AMBIENCE ((((brracckck...pingpingpi

[hogge@p.cs.uiuc.edu (John Hogge)]

[from hoffman]
>---- new live skull lp sounds better than their previous work... again
>mit der Sonik Youth thing-sound-wannabe but w/ more direckted lyrical
>content about pain, gov't experiments on sperm and pain, and pain, and
>pain... is living in NEW YORK reall-ee that bad?  and hey, it's got a
>"new age" cover of three nekkid wymyn hitting the surf - probably after
>clubbing each other's clam while digging Tom PAine's ultima tunage,
>no doubt, no doubt.  anyway, a fairly good entry in the noize 'n angst
>yet still rut 'n roll category.  didn't exactly "kick out der Jams" but
>still kicked something, probably all black and mushy and un-mentionable
>on this family-oreo-induated noosegruppe.

The cover of the "Cloud One" LP is from a postcard the band discovered over
in Europe; it depicts the Mediterranean or other nice place to be.

Live Skull's new "Pusherman EP" is pretty good.  "Pusherman" is a cover tune
of <unknown origin>, done slow and deadly.  The other two cuts are in their
typical style, yet fairly strong.  Live Skull in general aren't real
diverse--all their songs tend to sound the same.  I like them, but wish
they'd try some new approaches, even if it's within the death rock context
(suck what?).  As Bill Hsu commented, Marcie plays a fretless bass, but she
doesn't do anything interesting with it.

--John