Land Speed Record - "On A Racetrack"
(Honey Records 2000, HON11, 10" Vinyl EP)
Land Speed Record - "On A Racetrack"
(Honey Records 2000, HON11, 10" Vinyl EP)
From Aural Innovations #16 (June 2001)
Have you heard of the band Drugstore? I haven't, but apparently they have several CDs out, and Land Speed Record is a solo project from their drummer, Mike Chylinski. Of course it's always hard to get a real feel for someone's music when you only have 4 tracks to go on, but On A Racetrack whet my curiosity and appetite for more of what Chylinski has in the works.
"Keep Going, Baby" is a collage of big band jazz, oddball voice samples, and intermittent space synths. The clarinet and upright bass set a nice groove that I wish would have stretched out a bit more. "Monster Truck" is a steady rocker with wavy trippy tones and guitar lines. I love the guitar sound which is so subtle, yet contributes so much to the overall atmosphere of the music. Dancey, but psychedelic too. The title track is my favorite on the disc. A Stoner rock drone rumbles in the background as steady percussion, trippy synths, and a simple guitar melody meander about, until settling into a Dub-like groove. The drone is used to good effect as it slowly pulsates, making its quiet presence known throughout the track. And the guitar continues to trip along as a glom of electronics swirl about. A SOLID track! The last track, "Don't Really Mind", is a little different, being a simple song with efx'd vocals (every track has freaky voices) that sing to a floating keyboard melody. You got my attention Mike. But let's hear some stuff where you take a few more minutes to stretch out. You get a great groove going and then it ends too soon. LOTS of possibilities here.
For more information you can visit the Land Speed Record web site at: http://www.landspeedrecord.com.
Contact via snail mail c/o Land Speed Record; 161 N. Mission Rd; Los Angeles, CA 90033.
Reviewed by Jerry Kranitz