CHAIMING THE KNOBLESSONE

‘Chaiming the Knoblessone’ was Cerberus Shoal’s ninth studio album, and arguably their best since 1999’s avant-post-rock ‘Homb’. Like ‘Homb’ (and just about everything else the band put out) the music here is largely unclassifiable, blending elements of math and post rock, folk and RIO with clear influences of world sounds from Africa, the Middle East, India and possibly even a few undiscovered primitive tribes that nobody else knows about yet.

Also like most of their other music, this album is not exactly approachable, and is definitely not something meant for casual listening. All the members of the band are formally trained musicians, and I suppose many of the more technical nuances of their craft are lost on those of us mere mortals who are simply looking for something interesting to listen to. For students of the arts and serious musicians I suspect these songs offer up much more cerebral stimulus than they do for the rest of us. Selah.

A comment on the packaging: the foldout liner notes in the digipack consist of a large page of colorful, mostly abstract musings and pencil sketches that range between poetry and bathroom humor. I’ve really no idea what they have to do with the music, but if nothing else they give listeners something to muddle over while trying to make sense of the songs. Good luck with that by the way.

You get your money’s worth at least – the seven tracks run nearly the maximum 80 minutes of music that a CD can hold, and five of them are more than twelve minutes long each. That’s great for avant-garde nerds who enjoy wallowing in endless experimental jams and haphazardly overlaid field sounds (as well as all manner of percussive instruments); but for most semi-normal music fans the record does become a bit tedious after a while. I would recommend planning on several sittings to get through the whole thing, at least the first time.

“Mrs. Shakespeare Torso” features some great ethereal vocals from Earth-Mom and apparent band guru Colleen Kinsella; I much prefer her more traditional folk singing with Fire on Fire, the current project for many members of the now-defunct Cerberus Shoal. Check out Shoal’s final album ‘The Land We All Believe In’ for a preview of what that group sounds like, as well as Fire on Fire’s 2008 debut ‘The Orchard’ if you are into free-range American weird folk – you won’t regret the experience.

“A Paranoid Home Companion” is a spoken-word piece that consists of some sort of weird philosophical interview with a digitally-altered voice that I think is supposed to represent some other-dimension creature; the intent seems to be to present an alternative view of the human condition and our reason for collective being. Heady stuff, just don’t look for any spiritual epiphanies here.

I think sometimes Cerberus Shoal’s song titles are more ambitious than the music itself, although again I’m sure knowledgeable music scholars will find plenty to be impressed about in those stretches during the songs when the band members are actually playing their instruments as opposed to weaving digital sequencing in and out of recorded sounds. “Scaly Beast vs. Toy Piano” is one of my favorite Shoal title, although much of the eleven minutes consists of little more than a xylophone being picked at while an accordion (or computerized representation of one) whines in the background. Their finest title by the way has to be “The Man Who Loved Holes” from ‘The Ducks & Drakes of Guapo and Cerberus Shoal’, their 2003 collaboration with the indie band Guapo.

Like I said, this album isn’t for casual listening, and fans of music that emphasizes recognizable song structures or even melody won’t likely be too impressed. I have to admit I don’t play any of Cerberus Shoal’s CDs often, although I am close to completing my collection of their entire discography anyway for reasons that are unclear even to me. I suppose math rock, post rock, avant-garde and possibly even Zeuhl fans may find this album interesting, but if you really want to check out the band and are risk averse, I’d recommend ‘The Land We All Believe In’ or ‘Crash My Moon Yacht’ instead. I’m going to go with three stars since the album shows an appreciation for continuity and creativity, but will withhold any sort of specific endorsement or recommendation.

peace