Complexion – The Sunburned Hand of the Man

Complexion is a document of a live concert recorded by Sunburned Hand of the Man -- who had been crossing continents for nearly two years at that point -- at the Somerville Community Growing Center in Somerville, MA in August of 2004. Members for the gig included Chad Cooper, David Bohill, John Moloney, mjk, Paul LaBarque, Rich Pontius, Robert Thomas, Ron Schneiderman, Tony Goddess, and Valerie Miller. There are six cuts credited here, but there are no breaks between them. It's a long, free-form, flowing freak-out, where sounds are generated, coaxed, forced, and teased out of everything from guitars and percussion instruments to keyboards, unidentified string instruments, and who knows what else. Things begin softly, but within six minutes pick up steam. By ten minutes it's all getting away from the listener, taking her on some interior journey where excess, free expression, childlike indulgence, and experimentalism for its own sake become the sonic equivalent of rhythm, space, and sonic orgy. It may be spare in places but it will not leave you alone. By the time we reach the final 15 minutes, simple percussion becomes absent and returns as open dimension ushering us further into the psychedelic weirdness. Never letting go when the disc is over. Never. It may read like pure unmusical wank -- and in a way it is -- but it works too, it is an unforgettable experience to encounter. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide