KTB – “KTB” – [Feeding Tube Records]

KTB as in “Ketamine The Benevolence” (naturally? I was going
to guess Kick The Bucket). A Boston splinter project from
Guerrila Toss guitarist Arian Sahfiee along with Shawnie
Brando from Bugs and Rats. Deep booming bass left over from
a rave a couple of weeks ago, and razzle-frazzled vocals
(cartoon tweaked, or maybe Brando is just a modern Mel Blanc?).
Artful swagger rock guitar from Sahfiee and thump machines
programmed by Brando, but it’s his vocals that stick in your
ear (reminds me of hip hop guys creating imaginary figures,
like “Chief Chinchilla” from the recent J-Zone album). The
vocals end up providing a cross of humor and swagger to me,
especially on “Medic” which has a sing-songy patter on the
verses and then just sort of wounded howl for the choruses.
Tracks are short and shweet (well the four I could download,
“Right in the Sun” and “Thrown” are apparently only on the
cassette. Maybe I’ll try cueing them up in my car but the
last cassette I listened to in there got munch and crunched.
But this is a kinda munchy, crunchy rock.
-Thurston Hunger