Pylon
Gyrate

THE REVIEW

Pylon is one of those bands that made music history without anyone knowing it. Despite not having had the commercial success of their younger brothers, R.E.M., Pylon certainly influenced the underground rock of the '80s (back then, even R.E.M. had something underground about them).

Both bands hail from Athens, Georgia, USA, and listening to the record, you find many similar sounds (particularly guitar riffs) typical of the music from those years and that area. Michael Stipe & CO. were openly inspired by Pylon's rock, with naive sounds, "martial" rhythms typical of the '80s, and a voice that's easily recognizable. Bill Berry dedicated the "best American band" award, given to R.E.M. by Rolling Stone magazine in 1987, to them.

Vanessa Briscoe, the singer, has something really special... I would even say irritating in certain songs as it seems she could do better (unfortunately, that's a characteristic of the underground...), but she is the soul of the band and gives her best in "Crazy" (not present in the album, but absolutely worth listening to). Gyrate, their first album, does not include the only two most famous tracks by Pylon, "Crazy" and "Dub," but it is certainly the band's most consistent album. This is not a masterpiece nor an album that must be owned at all costs, however, it can be interesting for those who are fans of R.E.M. and generally of '80s rock.