.22 The Worker (Roydale) I wince when folks talk about the “Chicago sound”–there are just too many different kinds of music in town for such a generalization to make sense. But some styles do prevail more than others. For instance, elements of the first Tortoise record–nimble bass melodies, wide-open drumming–have spread like dandelion seeds over the past decade. This second record from .22, which recalls other post-Tortoise output by combos like Dianogah and Pinebender, features zigzagging bass and pronounced shifts in dynamics. Front man Brian O. adds spare guitar accents and shadings, and sings with the sort of doleful articulation that helps make Silkworm so compelling; unfortunately .22 lacks that band’s songwriting skills.
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APHROHEAD Thee Underground Made Me Do It (Clashbackk) Last year veteran Chicago house producer Felix Stallings Jr. (aka Felix Da Housecat) rode the electroclash wave to modest fame and fortune with Kittenz & Thee Glitz, a savvy mix of electro, Prince, and synth pop. But as Aphrohead (one of his many aliases) he serves up the kind of relentless four-on-the-floor house and techno tracks that have been paying his rent since 1986–when, at the age of 15, he scored the club hit “Phantasy Girl” with DJ Pierre. Unfortunately the endlessly looping electronic grooves, with only dub and EQ effects to distinguish them from Casio presets, are a chore to listen to at home.
RESPLENDENT In a Wilderness (Mixx Tape) For most of the past decade Michael Lenzi’s been musically married to Seth Cohen, moving from behind the drum kit in their indie-pop band Number One Cup to play guitar in their postpunk project the Fire Show. For this solo endeavor, his focus since Cohen moved to England last year, he’s pushed guitars and drums to the margins and created an unkempt mishmash of rudimentary drum programs, babbling vocal rants that mix nonsensical wordplay with hip-hop cliches (he’s particularly fond of “flip the script”), abstract instrumental colors (I can make out synthesizers, xylophone, percussion, and melodica, but they rarely all line up in any sort of conventional fashion), and the occasional vocal sample (the Hideout’s Tim Tuten turns up on the title track). It’s a lot like the Fire Show’s dub-fueled art rock–minus the rock.
