Technicolor Cleveland

DAMNATION OF ADAM BLESSING - S/T

So what we got here could be easily summed up as Mark Lindsay Presents... The Vanilla Butterfly! That wouldn't be doing these Cleveland boys a whole lotta justice, though. Frontman William Constable aka Adam Blessing certainly is a dead ringer for the former Paul Revere & the Raiders vocalist, with his soulful, R&B-informed delivery-- and his band, well, let's say they were "very much of their time". What set 'em apart from the innumerable hordes of hard rock bands of the era was their keen melodic sense and clever use of light/dark dynamics.

Formed in 1968 from the ashes of garage bands the Society and Dust, Constable/Blessing was joined by guitarists J.P. Quinn and Bob Kalamasz, bassist Ray Benich and drummer Bill Schwark (Trivia! He was in the Alarm Clocks who contributed the great fuzz punkers "Yeah"/"No Reason to Complain" to Back From the Grave Vol. 1). They quickly earned a deal with United Artists in '69 after creating a huge local buzz, and released this LP later the same year. Stylistically, they managed to combine the still smoldering embers of late psych with the then-burgeoning sound of heavy rock/(pre-codified) metal.

One thing that must be said is that these honky motherfuckers could FUNK. Their grafting of a big ol' wiggly ass to the Monkees' "Last Train to Clarksville" is a must-hear. Ditto "Le' Voyage", a hyper-speed, semi-psychedelic romp with shimmering harmony vocals and rippin' bass. Their version of "Morning Dew" is definitive, making great use of Blessing's husky-then-velvety croon and Kalamasz's subtle, jazz-inspired guitar licks. Particularly beautiful is the "when I wuz a little boy" ballad, "Strings & Things"-- it features a harpsichord with poignant-- mebbe a bit on the cheesy side-- lyrics. It doesn't matter though-- they make it work with a ballsy chorus and the sheer enthusiasm of their performance. They would release two more decent, if inconsistent, albums before devolving into Glory, a formulaic AOR act.

EDIT: Damnation guitarist Jim Quinn dropped by to add his two cents here.

Look in the comments, numbnuts.



AMOEBA (RAFT BOY) - Bad Fuggum from the Mysterium

When it comes to a band like this one, you don't so much hope for a masterpiece as you do an affirmation its members have kept the faith. Well, never fear: ex-Electric Eel John Morton, ex-Mirrors/Styrenes Paul Marotta and Al Margolis are still art-damaged punks to the core. Now well into their 50's, the filthy racket these lifelong Cleveland noise boys evoke still destroys anything tykes half their age will ever come up with. That said, I wish they'd included more original material-- the majority of this opus is devoted to past glories & nods of appreciation to their early-to-mid 70's contemporaries. Sure, it's great to hear the guys tearin' through the Pagans' "Eyes of Satan" and the Eels' "Agitated", but it comes off as a bit nostalgic if not redundant. My main point of contention revolves around newbie screecher Christian Brown, however-- sounding a bit like a caricature of Jonathan Richman, his goofy antics often derail great performances, making me believe he'd be better off in an indie novelty act like Ween or They Might Be Giants.

If it sounds like I hate this record, I definitely DON'T. Besides having the great originals "Karma Bank" and "Transmogrification", their paint-peeling interpretations of Love's "7 & 7 Is" and Cle-Punk standard "Jaguar Ride" will always be welcome in my collection. It's simply that, unlike many scribes who'd have you believe everything they post is The... GREATEST... Album... EVER!!-- I don't feel the need to bullshit you... today.

Look in the comments-- and leave one so this blogging shit doesn't get old!