Wednesday, March 29, 2000

Somehow, I've always associated Third Eye Foundation with abrasive guitar terrorism over nosebleed breakbeats. In fact, the number of such TEF songs can be counted on one hand. Of course, the first 20 minutes of "Semtex" and the mind-blowing "Corpses As Bedmates" (from "Ghost") make a long lasting impression. However, "Corpses As Bedmates" can now be viewed as a sign-off, Matt Elliott waving goodbye to his lo-fi roots with his finest statement of anarchic noise. Finally, on this this year's "Little Lost Soul" he's composed an full flow of an album, rather than a seemingly unrelated consortium of tracks. The album is like a dream, scenes slowly fade to grey and then a new one appears, each lonelier than the one before it. Whereas the "Sound of Violence" EP evoked physical pain, "LLS" evokes emotional pain. Like the final scene of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show", in which Brad and Janet aimlessly crawl in circles around a fallen Dr. Scott, it's the sound of sweet confusion and aching memories which won't get out of your head. And yes, like that scene in "Rocky Horror", there's a tongue-in-cheek element as well (just look at some of the song titles).