The title track kicks off their latest demo, and it brings you south of the border. Heavily Mexican influenced, you'll want to put on a sombrero and eat a spicy nacho while listening to this one. It definitely shows a different side of the band from their previous CD, and the song is a lot of fun. The song is well composed, and has some nice horns in it. "Pavlov's Dog Vs. Schrodinger's Cat" is a pop number with some heavy rock riffs thrown in. The first few times you listen to this it's pretty good, but the more you listen to it, the more tired you grow of it. And after ten listens, it gets pretty stale and boring. "Swing Set," the best track on this tape, brings us some hot keys, strong horns, and a great swing flavor. Get up and dance with this one by choice, or the music will force you to do so. "Love, Honor, Obey" brings in some jazz with the pop, and tries to make everything interesting and long lasting, but just like "Dog vs. Cat" you'll grow tired of this one pretty quick. The slower pop feel doesn't work for them. They close out the tape with the theme from "The X-Files." Done in a surf manner, it falls flat on its face. I just couldn't get into it, not even a first time.

"If it isn't broke, don't fix it," someone once said. Although I do believe bands should progress, rather than record and release the same musical form over and over again, changing your music this much is taking it too far. Although, they are able to crank out a few interesting songs, and "Swing Set" (which is a great number), for the most part they just flounder around. Maybe their forthcoming CD will find them back on their feet, with a better understanding of their own musical visions.

Crash A/D: Thermal System

Crawdaddy: The 19th Annual Badger Convention

[Issue Seven // April 1998]