Recorded in basements, bars, radio stations, and living rooms.
compiled and edited by akg

"God bless the world of obscure self-released CD-Rs. I've heard so many arguments against the loads of CD-Rs infiltrating the underground world, especially this year, that I'm starting to believe people just aren't paying attention. Am I biased? Of course. I run a label that releases predominantly CD-Rs. But my label aside, some of the best music coming out these days is on CD-R labels. And then there's the world of self-released CD-Rs that solo artists and people in bands are putting out themselves. This is where a lot of the garbage hides, but it's also where the real gems are waiting to be discovered.

Enter Meathawk & the Meathawks. From their name alone, you are probably getting the same first impression I got. "Oh great, another shitty band with 'funny' lyrics." However, a few minutes into the first song will convince you that you're completely misguided. Meathawk is a group of improvisers whose music is reminiscent of many excellent psych bands around. Clearly, they have a sense of humor, but it doesn't permeate their music in the way that it does, say, NOFX.

Each song represents Meathawk taking on some mythical foe. The opening "Meathawk vs Black Suits" takes the listener through a chaotic landscape filled with screaming banshees and wailing guitars. In the background, organ drones rise and fall from the ashes, like a phoenix that's not quite sure if it wants to live or die. This is raucous stuff. As they plod along, the echo-laden vocals swirl around your head like a squadron of Spitfires. It's a bit of a mindfuck, and is pulled off perfectly. This is an excellent way to open an album. They get your attention from the beginning and never let go.

Textured junkyard squealing is at the center of many of these acid laced jams. "Meathawk vs the Red King" feels like it was extracted straight from the black oil dirt underneath piles of crushed cars at my local scrapheap. Low frequency drones and clanging metallic percussion offset each other. It's like tha build-up to a battle royale between man and machine. Dueling keyboards are the highlight of this track, but the underlying guitar skronk is an added bonus. The track moves between frantic and relaxed, never quite settling on either. This mix is apparent throughout "Meathawk in Battle," and is one reason this band is as good as they are.

"Meathawk vs Babylon" even gets a bit of a reggae/ska vibe going, but not in a predictable convulated way. The layers of keyboards that drone on top of the mix make this an authentic hybrid form of music. I have no idea what it is, but I love it. And there's also the 20 minute epic, "Meathawk vs the Mountain and Sky." It's a microcosm of this album as a whole. There are psychedelic tinged drones, metallic romps, and quiet raga-like drones. There's so much happening on this one track alone that it's easy to get lost.

For the small price of admission ($6, I believe), you get a lot from Meathawk and the Meathawks. While this disc is a bit too long, and the recording quality may turn off some more discerning listeners (though it's not studio recorded, it sounds pretty good to me), this is worthwhile music. Meathawk is further proof that the CD-R is a valid format, and further proof that just because something is self-released, doesn't mean it should go straight into the garbage pile." 7/10 -- Brad Rose (25 May, 2005)

www.digitalisindustries.com/foxyd/reviews.php?which=257