Screwdriver!

Actually a group effort among keyboardist Walter Horn, drummer Gary Kendig, and electric guitarist Hugh Dickey, with tenor saxophonist Eric Hipp appearing on one track, this rock-drenched, eclectic, esoteric, and surprisingly coherent set of seven frenzied pieces surprises with Zorn-like distortion, droning intensity and postmodern noise. Each of the performers doubles (or triples) on other instruments, but the thrashing guitar and pounding drums lay the backdrop. A touch directionless at times, and even sometimes juvenile, there are nonetheless moments of superb musicianship and excited, ecstatic, and disjointed clashes. Sounds come and go, with variety the only constant. Dickey stretches his guitar to explore new landscapes, with the others not far behind. The results confound established patterns and spray the walls with energetic and bombastic blasts. ~ Steve Loewy