+/- BUGSKULL

The Italian magazine Blow Up has reviewed a number of bugskull releases. Thanks to Luigi from UnderwaterNow who sent and translated several of their reviews:

BUGSKULL “Snakland” (Scratch)

arrangement, with flutes, clarinets, electronic gadgets everywhere and continuous games and exchange of roles between guitar, drums, keyboards and bass, which overlap and challenge the listener in a melange of sounds that fascinate the most stoned Julian Cope outweighed left to madness and sometimes even genius. But do not imagine confusings music: at best they are confusing. The young men who come up with all three (in small lineup compared to the first album) and called Sean Byrne, Brendan Bell and James Yu and for this their third LP still widening the net of its electronic sound while eliminating nearly all the vocal parts and the tepid folk accemts. The CD is great, although we must admit that the debut had better songs, more measured and calibrated. Here the band is spreading, stretching and jarring. They have also managed to avoid the tendency to get lost in your own sound. It will be easy but fall in love with the art of lysergic lullabies of Snakland and From the skies , as well as with the robotic camouflated rhythms of Bouncer. It will be a pleasure to immerse yourself  in that psychedelic oceanic remnant a la Mercury Rev that goes under the name of Mind Phaser and then drown in the following Egg chamber, capable of flirting with the environment. It is almost logical, then, to expect a tour de force as the Final Exit Wound, 11 minutes, where the multiple influences add up and break down into an excellent picture of acid post ambient. Missing this would mean neglecting one of the most intriguing musical experiences of recent months.

(8) (Stefano I. Bianchi)