Pere Ubu
St. Arkansas
spinART
Hard to believe that Pere Ubu has been around for 27 years (they formed in Cleveland in 1975 and released the still ahead of its time The Modern Dance in 1978), but it’s true, and all along, leader David Thomas has been ranting and raving like a late night radio preacher on a station in Hell. Even when the band tries to focus its sound into the “alternative mainstream,” such as on “Slow Walking Daddy,” they come off like a demented Talking Heads, with Thomas sounding like what David Byrne might if that large stick was removed from his nether regions. Ubu’s art is a confrontational, frightening sort, discordant in the way the best of Captain Beefheart is – spooky, confusing, but primarily real. When Thomas sings “My home is on the moon” (“Michele”), he might not be kidding. Despite the often strident tone, this record is at moments soothing. Lullabies for bipolar babies, perhaps.
spinART Records: http://www.spinartrecords.com
