Space Streakings
7-Toku

Take Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Wile E. Coyote, and the Tasmanian Devil, drug them more than they already are, give them a guitar, bass, trumpet, and a drum machine, and perhaps what they produce might slightly resemble this (oh dear, what is it?) album.

Screaming Stomach, Captain Insect, Karate Condor, Kame Bazooka aka Space Streakings, in other words, the craziest and most creative band in the entire eastern hemisphere and, perhaps, the whole globe.

First of all, it's good to say that before inserting this... "thing" in a CD player, it would be wise to fasten your seat belts or at least grab onto something solid because the sound of our Japanese friends is the most disorienting and overwhelming a recording studio has ever hosted (not to overlook the production of Steve badass Albini).

The drum-machine drills out breathtaking rhythms from start to finish, but there's certainly no lack of variety and imagination in its use, the voices sound like those of the aforementioned Warner friends, and what totally drives the sonic logic of the (uhm...) "work" crazy are the brass section composed of trumpet and saxophone and the effects of the synths and other electronic contraptions used by our cartoon heroes (not just animated).

We find ourselves inside a carnival whirl of sounds, only the roller coaster is derailing and the merry-go-round is taking off to another planet.

The best track is "Kai Kai Scratch", an industrial slam-dance accelerated by electronic sounds reminiscent of Popeye's ship siren, perfect for pogo; also captivating are "F.O.J.K" and "Youngman 2", but it's the entirety that frightens and amazes with its forcefulness and the thousand effects devised.

The only band comparable to Space Streakings are the Canadian Vampire Rodents for the fragmentary nature of pieces coalesced only, and not always, by the drum machine, yet our friends stand out for their faster and more sustained rhythms and for a more playful and fun musical idea.

CRAZY!