GUITAR SOLOS

A strange story: My brother, who mostly listens to fairly accessible 1990s alternative rock, loves the opening track off this album. Then again, he also likes Captain Beefheart and black midi, so I think he just has a hidden taste for crazy avant-prog. The opening track doesn't sound much like the rest of this album, though. It's more of a jaunty randomized atonal version of the Super Mario theme for 90 seconds. The rest of it is sparse drones and improvisation, with the occasional stranger sounds like on No Birds seeping through the already unique sheen of noise. I'd argue what he does here is more understandable (maybe not accessible) to the average person than Van Halen or the like, but that's a discussion for another day. All in all, this album is a real head-turner, some sounds with guitars that I haven't really heard replicated. Like, what is going on in Glass c/w Steel, or Heat c/w Moment, or Not Forgotten, or...