keepers-5
keeper avg-.455
Though it may be more angular and harsh than Underwater Moonlight, pop hooks and kooky lines abound. "Do The Chisel" begins with the mystery of early Pink Floyd, but unleashes a busy punk/ new-wave instrumental. A heavy rhythmic drive also pushes "School Dinner Blues" and "Return Of The Sacred Crab" at a frantic pace. The first two tracks, "Give It To The Soft Boys" and "The Pigworker" aren't the strongest. Hitchcock's witty lyric sense in lines like "I'm a pigworker mama gonna work my pig on you" is entertaining, but the former is an obvious bluesy shuffle, while "Pigworker" is musically off-kilter but one-dimensional. "Human Music"**** presents some much-needed melody, and "Leppo And The Jooves"**** (joo- joo- joo- joo- joo- jooves!) works the complex instrumental interplay, angular riffs, and Hitchcock's animated delivery into a focused force. "Sandra's Having Her Brain Out"**** works an entire Zappa-esque suite into trippy 4 minutes lampooning conformity. The live tracks closing out the side are actually the highlight. The ballsy cover of John Lennon's "Cold Turkey"**** destroys the classic but badly-recorded original, while "Wading Through A Ventilator"***** redefines frantic and deranged (mu-wahhhhhh!), coalescing into intricate but melodic bridges before inevitably succumbing to the raging torrent.
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