THE COMA SAVANTS
Coma Savant (Uvulittle)
Reviewed by Erick Mertz

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The Coma Savants are tough to put a finger on. Late of the long running Madison Wisconsin band Your Mom SRO, the foursome have re-created themselves with a strange, eccentric disc entitled Coma Savant (Uvulittle records). Blending circus sounds and "art-rock" riffs into a quirky lo-fi collage, there are moments where the disc goes overboard, tending toward an inaccessible oddity, but for fans of Frank Zappa or Beck's ethos it provides some grabbing moments.

The Coma Savants are at times musically gorgeous and others nearly nonsensical and jilting. Fronting the quartet is vocalist and pianist Stephanie Rearick whose voice shows a moody range, going from deep and rich to a nasal sneer. "Eating Machine" drones on repeatedly, listing food items for conspicuous consumption, such as "popcorn and pepsi and bagel and buffalo wings in a red plastic basket." The track "Charlie" is the bizarre story of a character that ate the brown acid at Woodstock despite persistent warnings, and "Baker St." is jazzy, New Orleans style with dial tone interruptions. The album does crest with some really uplifting, sunny songs like "Ferris Wheel" and "Bloan" that sound almost out of place on this disc that distinguishes itself with strange, experimental sounds.

© 2002 - Erick Mertz