DENNIS MOST & THE INSTIGATORS
Not The Normal Kind (No Excess Records)
Reviewed by Alan Wright

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Dennis Most is a singer from Indiana, probably best known for his 1979 "Excuse My Spunk" single, later featured on volume 18 of the "Killed By Death" series. Last year, Rave Up Records out of Italy released an LP of vintage tracks recorded between 1976 and 1983, which led to a brief tour of Italy by his latest incarnation of the Instigators. Recently, Dennis released this CD of new recordings that find him still mining the same hybrid of garage/punk/metal rock 'n' roll. A new version of "Excuse My Spunk" starts things off, and then there's a version of "I Wanna Be Your Dog," the first of two Stooges covers (the other being "Down In The Street"). I really dig this slow, menacing version of the Stooges tune that utilizes double-tracked lead vocals, with Dennis singing in different registers on each. It makes for a very cool effect. Dennis' love of '60s garage punk is evident as he also covers the Bobby Fuller Four, Johnny Rivers, the Seeds and the Troggs. Musically, this is some real kick ass stuff here. The guitars are loud, heavy and the speed metal/hardcore punk influence is in full-force, with guitarist Peter Poulos - also of the Foreign Objects - whipping out lots of fuzz-wah and speedy solos here and there. One of the most interesting tunes is his reworking of the traditional American folk song "Streets of Loredo," here turned into a slow, menacing dirge and sung in such a low register that it sounds like Joy Division's Ian Curtis singing with early Black Sabbath!

Dennis also sent along a five-song CDR of new stuff that really shreds, recorded recently with Keith Grave of Dispossed/Sanity Assassins fame on bass and in fact I think the overall production and sound is better than the Not The Normal Kind CD, so his next full-length offering should be rockin' indeed!

[Pick this up at dennismostinstigator.com.]

© 2003 - Alan Wright