A warp-drive tour of Branca's vast, dark, musical universe
mdraine@juno.com | Boston, MA | 10/10/1998
(5 out of 5 stars)
"NY composer Glenn Branca is probably better known for his influence on Sonic Youth than for his own formidable oeuvre. This seven track compilation provides a warp-drive tour of Branca's vast, dark, and often breath-taking musical universe, while conveniently skirting the thematic repetition that links his work to Minimalism. In Branca's hands, a phalanx of ten guitarists becomes a single super-instrument summoning weird, spectral harmonies that shimmer like aurora borealis above cascades of bone-crushing percussion. A heaven-storming urgency and acceleration lies at the heart of the Branca ethos; the fact that Thurston Moore, Lee Renaldo and members of the Swans perform on four tracks only hints at the sonic onslaught in store. Recommended. --Michael Draine (appeared first in Vendetta #10)"