In Bath of Bacon

A true style chameleon, the Jazz Butcher is a hard act to categorize -- and nowhere more so than on this album, which is primarily a one-man effort with help from assorted sidemen. The songs here are embryonic forays into styles he would explore more confidently on subsequent albums. The title track is a punky blues number complete with squealing Elvis Costello-style organ. "Poisoned by Food" and "Sex Engine Thing" are thin, raw, folk-pop influenced numbers with an irresistibly nervous beat; the former paraphrases Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild," while the latter snitches Jonathan Richman's "Bye-bye" line from "Roadrunner." The musical feel of that Modern Lovers song is also evoked in a jazzy way on "Jazz Butcher Theme." "Partytime" is best described as cocktail folk. "La Mer" is a faux French folk song with surreal lyrics about elephants. Clever, unusual accompaniments are put forth in "Chinatown" (flutes, glockenspiel, click track) and "Grey Flanellette" [sic] (glockenspiels, bass, organ, sandpaper blocks, click track). The songs have unusual, improvisatory nonsense lyrics that veer from the obscure to the semi-clever. The sound and playing have a homemade quality that sometimes crosses the line into sloppiness. This is a strange yet intriguing record. ~ David Cleary