Blind Idiot God Albums (3)
What The Critics Say
For its third and apparently final recording, the high-voltage instrumental power trio Blind Idiot God joined John Zorn's Avant label, though retaining Bill Laswell as producer and changing the band's overall sound and direction not a bit. One might have expected that Zorn, who guested on Blind Idiot God's previous release, could have steered the trio toward more overtly experimental ground, but the band instead continued with its unique mixture of anthemic hardcore explosions and spacy, sensual, dub-influenced ruminations. Guitarist Andy Hawkins, who had begun to issue more exploratory solo pieces on his own, does leave himself a few opportunities for some ventures into feedback and looping that had been absent on earlier efforts. There are also a few more tastes of Parliament/Funkadelic-inspired groove, presumably as a result of the band's successful cover of a George Clinton piece on its prior album. But essentially, Cyclotron is a continuation of the ideas set forth on Blind Idiot God's initial self-titled release, and those ideas, once so bracing, were beginning to lose some luster five years down the road. While still head and shoulders over most thrash-influenced "math rock," it was becoming clear that this particular well was beginning to show signs of dryness and that perhaps the band members would be advised to think of drilling elsewhere. For fans of the first two albums, this is still certainly a necessary record to own, and one wonders what else may have been produced by these three immensely talented musicians working as a unit but, at the same time, more records retracing the same, or similar, ground may have been overkill. ~ Brian Olewnick, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Concocting a unique blend of thrash, math rock, and dub, the instrumental power trio Blind Idiot God burst onto the scene in the late '80s, recorded three fine albums, and evaporated by 1993. Apparently only just out of their teens, the three musicians exhibited startling originality and impressive technique both on their instruments and in the depth and style of their compositions. Their faster, louder pieces are intensely churning, though essentially melodic in nature. Often they begin with anthemic lines, precisely and forcefully etched by Andy Hawkins' guitar, backed by the supple, powerful drumming of Ted Epstein. But, midway through, the melodies tend to be twisted and pulled like taffy, elongating into mutant forms only hinted at previously. This creates a marvelous tension, as one is never certain how a given song will resolve. The listener feels buffeted about, as if inside a roaring engine at 30,000 feet. In a complete and utter about-face, the album ends with three pieces that could hardly be further removed from the divine cacophony of the initial songs. Suddenly, the listener is in a spare, ethereal dub landscape, with Gabe Katz's muted bass throbbing beneath light, floating shards of guitar sound, echoing into the distance. One is all the more impressed by the range of this band, capable of so expertly handling such disparate song forms. This is an extraordinary debut album by a group that proved all too short-lived. ~ Brian Olewnick, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
For its second album, Blind Idiot God enlisted the services of producer Bill Laswell, but the results show little difference from the attack evidenced on the band's initial release. Once again, the band alternates between surging instrumental barnburners like "Sawtooth" and "Drowning" and spare, evocative dub-oriented songs. Both are handled with the same imagination and confidence that the group had previously exhibited; this was one extremely tight and talented power trio. Andy Hawkins' compositions often take surprising turns during their short duration, themes bending and elongating in a manner providing delicious tension. Ted Epstein's drumming is a marvel to hear, combining an overwhelming strength with an unusual subtlety of rhythmic choices that one doesn't often hear in music as ostensibly rock-based as this. Two tracks stand out as departures from the group's first album: a cover of George Clinton's "Alice in My Fantasies" wherein Blind Idiot God shows that it can also handle power funk quite capably, and the final cut, "Purged Specimen." For this number, the trio is joined by saxophonist, composer (he wrote the piece), and lover of hardcore thrash John Zorn. The track sounds much more like a Naked City song than a typical Blind Idiot God rave-up though, again, it's an example of the band successfully navigating hitherto unexplored territory. Listeners who enjoyed the band's debut album will find more of the same here, even if they suspect that a bit of a rut is being established. ~ Brian Olewnick, All Music Guide
