VOLUME
The Amazing Spider-Band (Indie)
Reviewed by John Sekerka

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As everyone has rightly given in to the year of the spider, there is still room to up the geek factor on your web-slinging life. Never mind Hollywood, we're talking late sixties small screen here. Accompanying the rudimentary, herky jerky animation adventure of the Saturday morning superhero onslaught was the ominous pulsing soundtrack provided by Ray Ellis. The choppy, bombastic bit of exploding orchestration and creepy suspense exotica provided a perfect complement to the chocolate coated cereal pulsing through the bug-eyed kiddies as mythical action beamed from the tube. Relive those glory days with the band called Volume, as they take Ellis cues and crank out a throbbing disc of Spidey tunes. The killer theme song sets the stage, but the album's gift lies in the instrumentals that follow. Instead of rushing through the material with guitar amps cranked, this Spider-Band delves deep into Ellis' theatrical music vision, producing a monumental soundscape that is thundering, atmospheric and musically impressive.

[Pick this up at www.thespiderband.com.]

© 2002 - John Sekerka