DOSE HERMANOS
Search For Intelligent Life (Relix)
Reviewed by Shaun Dale

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Tom Constanten and Bob Bralove were matching bookends of a sort for the Grateful Dead. Constanten, trained in classical and avant garde music, was the keyboardist on some of their early efforts, the man responsible for planting some of those seminal "Dark Star"'s in deepest space. And speaking of space, Bralove was the midi mastermind behind the "Space Jams" that became an essential part of the Grateful Dead concert experience during the band's last several years on the road.

A while back, the duo hooked up as Dose Hermanos and have been exploring the outer reaches in their inimitable way every since. This time out, they're joined by guitarist Henry Kaiser, no stranger to jam band weirdness himself. The result is sure to please that portion of the music audience that likes it best with headphones on, and even better, perhaps, with a little chemical attitude adjustment.

Which, of course, is not to say that there's not something here for those with more pedestrian tastes as well. Spacey? Perhaps, but these guys are both accomplished players and composers, whose greatest weakness may be having more ideas between them than the audience can readily assimilate. Never more, though, than their mutual talents can translate into sometimes challenging, often amusing, and invariably entertaining sounds.

Track List:

Take A Giant Step Outside Your Mind * Midnight Train From Bangladesh * Reflections Of A Sultry Summer Evening * Hot! * A Million O'Clock In Zanzibar * People Are Strange * The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of * Search For Intelligent Life * Dark Star

© 2001 - Shaun Dale