ATR 142: Red China – ‘The Wax Ocean’ CDr $8
Red China have been making oddly accessible psychedelic weirdness for almost ten years now, and The Wax Ocean sees their singular craft honed to a fine point. Songs like Paco 35 and SCIENTIST (the latter’s refrain of “Black President!” an homage to Fela Anikulapo Kuti, and apparently not the head of the current administration) are downright apocalyptic. Horn sections, sideways rhythms, blasts of noise – it all comes together on their strongest set of songs yet.
ATR 043: Sound & Fury – ‘Songs To Make _______ To’ cassette $5
Keith Bedore’s raw, Dead Milkmen-y punk songs find their full realization in this minimalist three-piece. Simple drums, rolling bass and Bedore’s stinging guitar and howling yelp examine the trials of love, murder and most things in between.
ATR 044: Lizzie Temple Black – ‘The Afterman’ cassette $5
Ross & Worden, principle songwriters of Red China, let their freak flag fly high on this set of true oddness. Past the harrowing avant-blast of opener “Jenny Quarry”, these taut-loose songs head to some fairly dark (yet often whimsical!) places and feature instruments from every corner of the globe. See “I Was Slaked” and “Polyester Slacks” for catchy examples of their weird craft.