LINK WRAY & THE WRAYMEN
Slinky: The Epic Sessions (2 CD)
(Sundazed)
****

What in the HELL can I say about Mister Link Wray that ain't been said before? Well, NUTHIN'! Hmmm... however, since I AM here... ought I remind y'all he IS the KING of the DER-TAY instrumental rock 'n' roll? For y'all not "in the know"... the "instro" was a REAL popular "rock" form in the late '50s. And I do say Wray is the damn "KING"... this, knowing some folks dig the Duane Eddy or the Dick Dale--which is fine, I dig them fellas too--BUT for MY dosh, I'll take a North Carolina boy every time! SO... what's this collection then? Well... as it's subtitled, it's The Epic Sessions, so there you go--Slinky is the Epic material covering '58 to '61, packed hot and tight too. Oh, alla you "roots rock" folks take note: This is one of THEM motherfuckers. Dig? MIKE NIPPER

PEDRO THE LION
Control
(Jade Tree Records)
***

Pedro the Lion frontman David Bazan's Christianity used to creep me out. I like my music secular--unless it's country, in which case, I expect the lord and whisky to shadow one another. I stand before you now, though, to ask your forgiveness: I was wrong. Control is a great album, crackling with driving rhythms and loud guitars--a harder version musically and lyrically than Pedro's previous work. Bazan's voice brims with resignation and sadness. The simple guitar, bass, and drums underscore his words with mid-tempo resolve. From Control's quiet opening, the album explodes into tension and deceit with the adultery and apocalypse metaphors of "Rapture." Control plumbs moral failures and disappointments, making temptation sound like a hell of a lot of fun. NATE LIPPENS

THE MELVINS
Hostile Ambient Takeover
(Ipecac)
****

Hitching a ride on a Melvins record is like riding shotgun with a driver who swerves through hostile terrain at one of two speeds--kinda fast, or really fucking slow. The band squeals the feedback, peels out lots of noise, drives doughnuts in its own effects, and swerves all over the punk/metal map. That said, Hostile Ambient Takeover is a dizzying--in the best sense--Melvins adventure, even by the band's experimental standards. The album mixes dark, snort-the-speed-off-the-carpet metal with electronic electrocutions and noisy interludes of one- and two-chord moans drenched in sludge. The dynamics on Hostile are shiftier than a scumbag's worst intentions, and the tracks sound nasty, violent, and caked with a heavy layer of grime. My brain hasn't enjoyed this warped of a meltdown since the last time I sucked down whippets as Black Sabbath methodically tortured my speakers. JENNIFER MAERZ

IMPERIAL TEEN
On
(Merge)
***

Starting with 1996's Seasick, Bay Area quartet Imperial Teen mined a sugary power-pop vein that mixed brattiness with sexual/musical ambiguity. With the Teens' follow-up, What Is Not to Love, the band expanded its sound with more hard candy pop and spiked the noise with plenty of dissonance. With its third album (and Merge records debut), On, the band adds more keyboards for a sound that leans more heavily into new wave. "Ivanka" opens the album with all four bandmates sharing lead vocals as they sing about Donald Trump's socialite/model daughter, continuing their obsession/repulsion with celebrity. Singer Will Schwartz's voice has developed a stage-whisper quality that plays against type; he's a pint-sized, ambisexual Marilyn Monroe on "Sugar" and "Million $ Man." Drummer Lynn Perko and bassist Jone Stebbins add tough girl-group backup vocals and bouncy rhythms throughout. The guitars and keyboards tangle like Holly and the Italians, creating a pop gem that is sly, smart, and well crafted. NATE LIPPENS

THE CRYAN' SHAMES
Sugar & Spice
(Sundazed)
**

THE CRYAN' SHAMES
A Scratch in the Sky
(Sundazed)
***

THE CRYAN' SHAMES
Synthesis
(Sundazed)
***

I'm a sucker for the Shames, 'cause, like, they're a mid-'60s band heavy on beat harmonies, with a feel for garage pop!! Anyhoo, their three LPs have finally been reissued!! Sugar & Spice, the first LP, has their kickass first 45, but suffers from "padding" cover tunes. Of course, the Shames' covers are great, BUT they'd done damn proved themselves with the first 45 they could bang out! Next, A Scratch in the Sky proves the Shames had the chops to write the pops... and ASITS woulda been a flawless pop LP, 'cept for "Up On the Roof." Fuck! "Roof" is that "oldies" Rascals song... and IT IS SO FUCKING BAD (in every way)... they NEVER shoulda recorded it in the first place... and THEN they stuck it on the LP and completely ruined the flow... shit, now I'm all shook up... CHRIST. The final LP, Synthesis, is more psyched up but ain't "trippy." Dig, the song "Painter": It's a strong, maybe intentional, rewrite of the Creation's "Painter Man"! Well, there you go, but... I reckon since there ain't one definitive CS LP, you can just get 'em all. MIKE NIPPER