COLISEUM
No Salvation
(Relapse)

TERHEN
Eyes Unfolded
(Firebox)

OXBOW
The Narcotic Story
(Hydra Head)

THESE ARE:
Scare Tactics
(Hold True)

TOMAHAWK
Anonymous
(Ipecac)

CAPITAL
Homefront 

(Revelation)

GET BACK UP
Weathering the Storm

(Organized Crime)

MORE REVIEWS

Two things immediately caught my attention; the beautiful package that wraps the latest work by this Mike Patton vocalized project and the Native American inspiration that the band has based Anonymous on. The record opens up with what sounds like rain calling chants, I don’t know much about Native American costumes, but I assume this is the case because towards the end the sounds of dropping rain close out “War Song”. “Mescal Rite” is incredible. Totally unorthodox stuff, with the kind of jaw dropping performance Mike Patton has us used to, it balances a heavily percussive track. There are certain passages that got me thinking about Oriental culture instead of Native American Indians, and I get the same feeling for the gorgeous “Ghost Dance”. It’s sort of like the soundtrack to a great dinner at a fancy Chinese restaurant.

I am wondering if this release should have come out under a different moniker. You know, just to keep Tomahawk as an adventurous rock band instead of as an experimental band with an obsession for cultures that have been abused and mistreated by the white man, but Patton, guitarist Duane Denison (Jesus Lizard, Firewater) and drummer John Stanier (Battles, Helmet) don’t play by anybody’s rules, so making a point would be totally absurd. The rest of Anonymous, much like the work of a band that is strictly playing for kicks and under stiff instructions, ranges from the flawless and gorgeous panoramas of the first three cuts to the more light hearted more Chinese dinning experience of “Antelope Ceremony”. Basically, all this track lacks is a geisha dancing behind a biombo and the trip will be complete. “Song of Victory”, is more like Tomahawk. There is a spirit of pure fuckery running through it, but the band is at least kicking ass, dropping chops, fast notes and displaying that playful spirit that is so Patton-esque, regardless of whether this is called Tomahawk or China Pearl.

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