Suicide Squeeze
celebrated its ten years as a viable
rock
label with this double-disc collection of hard to find tunes, rarities, and previously unreleased material. Ranging from artists like
Modest Mouse
and the late
Elliott Smith
to groups like
the Aislers Set
,
Minus the Bear
and
Black Mountain
, the album is an interesting compilation, to say the least. Beginning with the pre-
screamo
indie rock
of
"Now You're Swimming"
by
764-Hero
and the quirky, winding
alt rock
"A Life of Arctic Sounds"
Slaying Since 1996
takes on an invigorating life of its own. Most of the early material has a hushed tone, including the pretty duet of
Scenic Vermont
on
"Elementary,"
initially resembling a cover by
Sonic Youth
of a
Kathleen Edwards
song.
Smith
's
"Division Day"
is characteristically poppy and terribly catchy, as is the
alt country
-leaning
"Cycle Suitor"
Penny's Electric Workhorses Songs
. The first disc picks up with the deliberate midtempo groove oozing out of
Pedro the Lion
"June 18, 1976"
and the
Bowie
-esque
"Bird's Fly"
Aspera
. Artistically, the album veers from
into
garage rock
and beyond, led by the frantic, primal spunk of
the Constantines
"Dirty Business"
and later moving into the quirky dance
We Ragazzi
"Making You Queens Tonight"
or
"We'll Make a Lover of You"
les Savy Fav
. And if that's not right up your alley, then the
soul
the Black Keys
during
"Yearnin'"
would definitely suffice. Another pretty gem has to be
S
performing a light, almost folksy
"5 Dollars."
The second disc contains primarily unreleased songs from 2005 and 2006 and a few
demos
to boot, including the airy, flighty
pop
performing
"What Fades"
Crystal Skulls
'
"Baby Boy,"
which sounds like a keyboard-inspired
XTC
. One particular keeper is, without question,
"Voltaic Crusher/Undrum to Muted Da"
Of Montreal
that has a great bouncy quality to it. There's a thread of quality from start to finish, with only a few slight hiccups along the way, one of which is the rather odd
"Jean Baptiste"
Metal Hearts
, but the
lullaby
-tinged morphing to the
roots
-oriented
"Caruthers Boy"
Earlimart
more than atones for it. As does the crisp, polished
contribution titled
"Voices."
Perhaps the hardest, most brooding tune is the winding and challenging instrumental
"Upper Ninety"
that
Russian Circles
nails. ~ Jason MacNeil