Scroll down for a review of the latest from Butch Boswel.

Old Time Relijun
Witchcraft Rebellion

(K)

www.kpunk.com

For those of you who find no beauty, humor, or amazement in Captain Beefheart's classic LP Trout Mask Replica, then I advise you to just go read another review right now. To me, that album will always be a monumental release from the late '60s that broke free from the clutches of hippie optimism and all of its utopian desires. The Cap had created some of the most bizarre, disjointed, and yet completely structured free-wheeling blues and "jazz" coupled with a hilarious knack for memorable poetry this side of Reseda on the double album set. The songs squonked and cried out, bled like hurt dogs, and basked in all their glory of sheer weirdness. Well, guess what. Old Time Relijun has done the undoable. With Witchcraft Rebellion they have created what I feel to be the true successor to Trout Mask Replica.

Hell, not even the Cap could reproduce his monster. His follow-up Lick My Decals Off, Baby tried to be as weird, but was only a faint glimmer of its gigantic predecessor. And that attempt was made back in 1970. So here we are, 31 years later and this scary as hell band comes out, throws down, and reclaims the glory. But Old Time Relijun are no spring chickens. Witchcraft Rebellion is merely the latest in a string of releases that have found the band doing their own thing with no regard to anything remotely declared as "popular" by those who would otherwise rule the fortunes of many a lesser group of musicians.

Featuring Arrington de Dionyso on vocals, guitar, and sax, Phil Elvrum on drums, and Aaron Hartman on string bass, Old Time Relijun makes one hell of a scary noise for a trio. Dionyso sounds like a cross between Frank Black, Gordon Gano, and Popeye. He does a fucking mean imitation of Yoko Ono on "Vampire Sushi". Elvrum's drumming is distorted like you wouldn't believe, as Dionyso wails and screams against Hartman's simple four note bass riff. "There comes a waitress!/Vampire motel!/Got a vampire waitress!/Vampire sushi/Sewer rat sushi/Frog sushi!" And then that Yoko screaming. Insane. "Vampire grandpa!/Vampire baby!/Vampire sushi!/Black widow sushi!" It's both hilarious and frightening all at once. Dionyso scrapes at his guitar and smacks his whammy bar to bend the notes even more.

My favorite track is the apocalyptic "King of Nothing" in which Dionyso puts on his Popeye voice, but not before doing a great Bobcat Goldthwait-like vocal freakout. This is one of the tunes most reminiscent of Trout Mask with its oddball guitar chords riffing up to the sky and the drumming backing that riff in thunderous rhythm. "The Book of Life and Crime" features Hartman's bass fending off some noisy amp static while a jew's harp provides the musical riffs and Elvrum's drums are pushed through various echo chambers which make them sound like those spooky sound effects you'd often hear in b-movie horror flicks of the '60s. Bells ring out and creepy noises swoop about the tune. No acid required for this trip. It's all built in.

Much of the rest of the album follows this apocalyptic trajectory, forming its very own Trout Mask mayhem. Be it in the full band freak out on the title track, or Dionyso killing his sax alone on "Fermentatio", all the bases that the Cap laid down so long ago are fully covered by the time the disc is over. Speaking of this kind of music is one thing. Trying to fully describe it is something altogether different. It's like trying to explain what falling in love feels like without resorting to the usual tome of clichés that often do their best to break that feeling down. What I do know is that Witchcraft Rebellion is a masterpiece of insane technique and free-form expression. Easily one of the best albums released this year, but undoubtedly for a choice few whom can get into such an idea. Long live Old Time Relijun. Anyone who can successfully update the best thing Captain Beefheart ever did gets my undying respect.

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Butch Boswel
Lo-Fi

(Something Sacred)

www.somethingsacred.com

If any of you are familiar with the group the Muses, then you'll undoubtedly already be familiar with one of its key members, Butch Boswell. When the band broke up, Boswell pushed on towards a solo project that would feature his talents as a multi-instrumentalist. Lo-Fi, Boswell's latest release on Something Sacred, is the result of that project. It's a work of simple beauty, embracing both Boswell's country and pop tendencies, and as such is a fine example of pure American music that stands uniquely on its own.

Lo-Fi was recorded entirely on a Boss BR8 eight-track recorder. Boswell also enlisted the help of Adam Farber on bass, Jeremy Davenport and Elliot Haro on drums, and Joel Tolbert on keyboards and accordion. Together, these men have created a warm, intimate sounding recording that is benefited by the simple production. It's at once both accessible and inviting; Boswell's version of "lo-fi" is strikingly almost anything but. On this album he has achieved a stately depth of indie grandeur while upping the ante in terms of what you can do with a standard eight-track recorder and the sounds you can attain from such recordings.

At the offset, Lo-Fi pulls you in gently and never lets go until the final notes. The opening "All Those Sinners" features Boswell's acoustic guitars, supplying both the backing rhythm and the riffs, which are gorgeously plucked out like magic from his six strings. And if you listen closely, you might just hear Butch's banjo clicking along happily in the right stereo channel. "Aw Jean, you're somethin' of a sight/Well I think I'd feel a lot better if you just spent the night/I'd sleep a lot better with you lyin' right beside me/Don't deny me, I think you're fine" sings Boswell, as some absolutely sweet vocal harmonies gather around the lines. Butch's voice itself has just the right amount of twang that suits this brand of acoustic bluegrass-like pop perfectly.

Those harmonies appear again in "Winters Lonely Song", a nice pop song that echoes such classics as the Kinks' "Autumn Almanac" or "Sunny Afternoon" with just a dash of Beach Boy harmonies tossed in. This time, Boswell's electric guitar plays along gently with his acoustic as Joel Tolbert sprinkles his electric piano notes into the mix. Alternately, "Like She Used To" is a delicate waltz featuring weeping steel guitars and more of Tolbert's beautiful keyboard touches. Probably the best aspect of Boswell's music is its ability to dip into more countrified territory without turning into some sort of cheesy or corny amalgam.

"The Knife Throwin' Kind" features some gritty lead guitar lines and nice mandolin rhythms as the brushed drums and sudden muted cymbal crashes add a simple dramatic depth to the proceedings. "Too Far Away" exploits Tolbert's fascinating keyboard work yet again, and "You Don't Have To Worry Anymore" is almost like a Cajun honky-tonk tune with its accordion flourishes. All in all, Lo-Fi is a majestic, understated masterpiece that reaches across the genre boundaries to tug in any and all who hear its sweet melodies.

Butch Boswell is not lacking in any talent. He has many influences, but instead of making them become the obvious driving forces behind his work like so many musicians elect to do these days, he instead neatly tucks them away in his deep pockets and only shows them when the time is right. You can listen to his songs and get a taste of what once was, but at the same time you hear Boswell's own voice, his own music on top of it all. The influences remain influences, as well they should. Boswell has too much talent of his own to cloak it in decades gone by. Thankfully he doesn't, making Lo-Fi an absolutely essential purchase and hands-down one of the best American releases this year. Don't miss out.

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