Redefining Music

Atom & His Package: Atom (vocals, guitar, programming); Package.
Recording information: My Apartment (2000).
Philadelphia native Adam Goren and his sequencer (the package) have been rocking the indie and punk communities since the mid-'90s, and with Redefining Music, their riotous skills are given a fine representation. Atom's songs are humorously simple and often-skewed takes on his own reality, and this project is, of course, more of the same. Along the wild '80s-tinged ride, he throws in a twisted love song or two, a Madonna cover ("Open Your Heart"), and the brilliantly titled ode to necessary political correctness "If You Own the Washington Redskins, You're a Cock." His abilities on the sequencer seem to improve with each recording, and instead of cheesy synth blips, the rhythm tracks on Redefining Music are pretty well developed, even reaching rock status when Atom throws in the occasional punk and metal guitar riffs. The overall product is still pretty goofy, but with his nasal voice and sometimes ridiculous-sounding instrumentation you've got to realize that that's the point. Atom's perspective on things is consistently funny, and credit has to be given to a guy who writes lines like "You have a five string fretless bass, you stole our song now we rock your face." Atom and His Package will always be a band that was best seen live, but this recording is still a fun representation of a very entertaining performer. ~ Peter J. D'Angelo