(CDR)
1. Monkey Flesh
2. Choke
3. Chimney Sweep
4. Robot Chicken
5. Caravan Of Love
6. Get Away From Me
7. Nurse
| DEMO EP REVIEW |
1. Monkey Flesh |
| Welcome to the topsy turvey world called Changland. On entrance to
this world you will be stripped of any conventional thoughts and these will be replaced
with twisty, spinning, wobbly thoughts only. There is no room in this burlesque land for
anyone happy with pop punk or nu-metal, anyone looking for a tune to whistle or something
to play on your dad’s stereo. Fuck off now, you don’t belong here. Chang's music sounds like it was taken from a late 70’s John Peel session, dragged screaming and kicking passed Iggy Pop who shoves it at Captain Beefheart. As the maul turns to a ruck, both Boy Sets Fire and Fugazi join in to give it a good kicking. It’s such an eccentric range of influences, assimilated to produce one hell of a wild and unusual sound. It’s a heavy bass driven sound in a Stranglers-esque kind of way with a Dead Kennedys quirkiness. The bass is actually played like a rhythm guitar (at times quite reminiscent of Lemmy’s style – listen to the track Nurse if your not convinced). But, why should the bass guitar remain in the background just providing accompaniment to the drums? It has equal opportunities the same as the other instruments. There is a fresh and uncompromising feeling of early (real) punk and new wave mixed into a molten pot of modern metal. It’s the unique sound of chaos with structure. Jangly, spiky guitars with a pinch of discordance, vocals that erupt and play like an instrument, short sharp songs that average only 2 and a half minutes. Then the xylophone during Chimney Sweep and Nurse is just pure class. Just what you didn’t expect, a strawberry in a bacon sarnie. The songs carry enough shape to know roughly where the journey is taking you, but they dart here and there like a shoal of fish being chased by a grinning shark. Like being driven along a cliff face by Jeramy Clarkson on LSD, this is more than a little shocking but strangely your not frightened, as you find yourself wanting old Jeramy to enjoy the view. As you exit the topsy turvey world of Changland, you have to sit and think for a while. You have to savour the experience, reflect on where you have just been and wonder whether you will listen to music in the same way ever again... |
| Rigsby (9th April, 2002) Transcripts From The Downtuned www.downtuned.co.uk
Band Website: Band email |