Sequenza21/The Contemporary Classical Music Weekly

Gutbucket: Messiaen-ic Punk

Gutbucket's Sludge Test is the latest salvo in the war against genre barriers. Accordingly, the Cantaloupe Music-released disc doesn�t make a reviewer�s job easy, but here�s my attempt at encapsulation: imagine jazz approached from metal on one side and contemporary classical, primarily of the Downtown variety, on the other. And now imagine that after the ensuing crash, klezmer, noise, Primus, and Roxy Music�s first album pull up in the next lane to rubberneck. Got it?

The group, consisting of sax, guitar, and rhythm section, looks like a quartet, plays like a band, and doesn�t quite sound like either. Head melodies and solos might make an occasional appearance, but they're not what the music is about. Likewise, rock energy is at the heart of what Gutbucket does, but it�s not the whole story. The group�s sectional approach to composition, which juxtaposes as much as it joins, is where the meat is. Tracks like �Money Management for a Better Life� and �Punkass Rumbledink� are onslaughts of riffs, licks, crashes, and squeals. �Circadian Mindfuck� and �Throsp%� offer glimpses of calm, but eventually refuse to give in. �Disciplining the Fugitive� and �Where Have You Gone, Mr. Squeegeeman?� are engaging rides through some of Sludgefest�s most lyrical, most frenzied, and most subdued (well, comparatively) moments. Then, there�s the concluding Messiaen cover. Yes, that�s right, Messiaen � in particular, �Danse de la fureur, pour les sept trompettes� from Quatuor pour la fin du temps. Perhaps surprisingly, perhaps not, the piece fits in perfectly once adapted for Gutbucket�s instrumentation.

I should warn listeners, however, that Gutbucket probably isn�t for everybody. As their naming conventions suggest, there�s something crass about the music; they�re loud, dissonant, and unapologetic. Accordingly, how I�d really like to see the labeling dilemma end is with these guys christened the New Punk. There�s a lot more to offend your parents with on Sludge Test than can be found on the collected discographies of today�s preened, major label �punk� bands. There�s a lot more to be excited about too.

A quick note for those of you who�d like to see take the test in person and live in New York, Gutbucket are playing a CD release on March 15th at Northsix in Brooklyn and at the Whitney on the 24th with labelmates Ethel.

posted by Lanier Sammons 3/14/2006