THE THING THAT KNOWLEDGE CAN'T EAT

1. "Logos" (3:12) pure Zappa-esque comedic satire. (8.5/10)

2. "Both Sides of the Street" (2:41) raw American rock 'n' roll in the vein of THE BAND with Roy Orbison-like lead vocals and more brilliant persiflage. Just not my style. (8.6667/10)

3. "Mercury in Second Grade" (4:42) Mike's channeling a bit of Lou Reed on this one. (8.25/10)

4. "Celery" (5:03) now channeling some hard rockers, part Grunge, part 80s metal hairband (sans vocals), mostly LENNY KRAVITZ. Nice, confident guitar play on display--with some great lead solos (which happen to all come from guest artist Steve Vai). (8.75/10)

5. "Spigot (Draw the Pirate)" (5:11) my favorite song style and vocal performance on the album, it's as if THE MARS VOLTA were channelling a bit of THE ALLMAN BROTHERS (or vice versa). The amazing guitar work on this one is neither Omar Rodriguez-Lopez or Duane Allman or Dickie Betts--or even Steve Via: this is Mike! (9/10)

6. "Ack" (3:33) a jerky jazz-rock piece that, while reminiscent of many of Frank Zappa's orchestral workouts, also sounds a lot like both DAVE NEWHOUSE and ALLAN HOLDSWORTH. Mike's Dutch collaborators do quite an amazing job pulling--and keeping--this song together. (8.875/10)

7. "Lana" (4:35) this one opens sounding like one of ADRIAN BELEW's BEARS' songs, but then there are some Crimsonian twists and turns that sound as if Tony Levin and the multi-drum lineup were at work behind Mike's heavily-treated industrial-psychedelic vocal (which reminds quite a little of Brian Eno's vocal work on "King's Lead Hat"). More great guitar work in the instrumental final third. Great song. (9/10)

8. "Big Hit Song" (5:09) more ENO-esque performative music played through a serious THE BAND filter with some Todd Rundgren shenanigans on top. (Which makes me wonder how Todd and Frank would have got on.) (8.875/10)

9. "The Carousel of Progress" (7:24) another brilliantly rendered song that conjures up the work of Frank Zappa, solo Brian Eno from the 1970s, experimental Todd Rundgren, mischevious Adrian Belew, with a sprinkle of David Byrne and a pinch of Andy Partridge. (13.33333/15)

A lyrics-driven album (which are full of brilliant word-play) of rather mundane (though obviously skillfully rendered and engineered) songs reminds me of why I've never been a fan or devotee of bands like The Kinks, David Bowie, The Pentangle, The Velvet Underground, or Americana acts. The whole album is a series of one-act vignettes each featuring Mike wearing different hats as he tries to step into the roles and costumes of other musical acts. The music and sound engineering are impeccably rendered, the imitations/homages brilliant and spot on (and, I'm sure, far more nuanced and history-imbued than my little brain can pick up) it's just that Mike feels connected to types of music that I've never gravitated to. Ever.

Total Time 41:30

B-/four stars; an album of supremely crafted and rendered songs that some prog lovers will adore while others will find them more of a side-act.

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