Search - Matmos :: Rat Relocation Program

Rattling the Cage

Catfood03 | in front of my computer typing reviews | 08/16/2004

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Fans of Matmos will recall "For Felix", one of the more affecting tracks from their A Chance to Cut Is a Chance to Cure release a couple years back. That song was a heartfelt tribute to the a loss of a dear pet, albeit constructed in a noisly manner by the audio manipulation of a rat's cage.



Here we have a continuation of that theme, except this time the cage is occupied by a freshly caught rat stray. Track one is a recording of the panicked animal protesting its imprisonment, which it express by screams and relentless clawing. There is seemingly no manipulation of these sounds by the band for what basically amounts to a 14 minute field recording. It was depressing that when this track had finished, half the CD's playing time had been spent (not to mention my hard-earned cash!)



The second track is more satisfying, if only sporadically so. On this piece Matmos twists the sonics heard in the first track into new forms. Although this track is also 14 minutes if feels a lot longer due to the large amounts of empty space in the track. Blasts of drum machine beats and Rock music ocassionaly enters into the composition, only to be teasingly discontinued without rhyme or reason. The best parts come into the minute and a half mark with a few seconds of a brutal glitchy beat, and then at the five minute mark with a groovy two-minute jam with guitars and drums.



Unfortunately these few minutes of excitement isn't enough for me to recommend this release, unless you're a Matmos completist. (I felt a bit ripped-off, actually). I am still a great admirer of the band's music, and I would recommend without hesitation A Chance to Cut and The Civil War as highly creative examples of constructing sound into musical forms. This CD is a beer coaster."