(Downtown)

www.downtownmusic.com

Like Spoon and Trail of Dead, this Austin trio defies what we usually expect from their mostly roots-rock hometown.  Their explosive sound is compared to post-punk as much as it isn't, suggesting that they may be onto something bigger or stranger.  On their major label debut, they sound like Meat Puppets, taking the wild-eyed psych(o) territory and pushing it into blustering boogie.  It isn't until the fifth song here, "I Start To Run," that they find the right funky groove to ride on.  After that, they mostly serve up funk jams ("Sex Prayer") and ballads ("Paint Yourself"). 

On the plus side, the 2nd CD here is an excuse to reissue for the 3rd time the material from their first self-released record, the wonderfully unhinged Workout Holiday - check out the rabid "Shake Shake Shake" for starters.  Nice to have this compelling early stuff easily available now.

Standout Tracks: "I Start To Run," "Shake Shake Shake" JASON GROSS