Fantômas
http://www.ipecac.com

styles: ambient metal, drone rock, cartoon metal, modern composition
others: Mr. Bungle, Sunn 0))), Tomahawk, Melvins, Skullflower

Suspended Animation
Ipecac, 2005
rating 4.5/5
reviewer: grigsby


I've found myself, on more than one occasion, debating the criteria of what constitutes a "musical genius." Though in these discussions I advocate labeling David Bowie a genius, the long shadow of everything he's done after 1980 looms overhead. To compensate, I came up with a "golden period" theory whereby my musical heroes can be called "genius" if they do no wrong for a certain period of time; think Lou Reed circa The Velvet Underground, or Bowie in the '70s (yes, that is including Diamond Dogs). I like to keep my deified artists contextualized, all nice and tidy.

Alas, the definition goes a bit astray when attempting to apply it to Mike Patton. For instance, his collaboration with Kaada, Romances, and Fantômas' (Patton, Buzz Osborne, Trevor Dunn, and Dave Lombardo) Delirium Cordia were two of the finest records of last year, but I didn't really care for the Tomahawk album. While pondering the premise for Fantômas' new album, Suspended Animation, I realized a new category for a musician like Patton must come to fruition: the "mad genius."

Let me explain.

As 'normal' folks, we live our lives with all sorts of ridiculously stupid ideas running through our heads; but we don't act on them, we repress them. Now let's imagine what sort of thoughts might've been swimming in Mike Patton's head when it came time for a new album: "Hey, why don't I make an album dedicated to the month of April, and on top of that make every track an ode to a different day of the month!?" And "Hey, why don't I make this 'April' album cartoon-themed!?" I know, I know, we've all thought of that, but who acts on it? Mike Patton does. And that's precisely why he's on tour right now and I'm typing up this review.

Skewed sensibilities are not enough, however. I could write down all the idiotic things that comes into my head, (and in fact, many of you might think I already do, but you should see what I left out), but that wouldn't make me a literary great. Rather, you need some sort of ability to work your unfiltered ideas into a coherent piece (which is all the harder because they're so weird). As luck would have it, Suspended Animation serves as yet another demonstration that Patton is a mad genius.

Now that we've gotten this far, many of you might violently recoil at my use of "coherent" and "Mike Patton" within the same paragraph, let alone same review. You'll have to follow me a bit to get there, but allow me an attempt to elucidate: Repeating the structure of the first, self-titled Fantômas album, Suspended Animation has 30 short tracks. However, each track leaps so spasmodically from style to style, riff to riff, noise to silence, that the album could have easily been divided into 60 tracks (that is, if April had 60 days) or one track (April with only one day, what a nightmare). Despite these musical contortions, the album is held together through a series of recurring motifs, including cartoon sound effects, Patton's inimitable vocals, grooving sludge metal, nursery rhymes, and spaghetti western atmospherics. Though difficult to ascertain at first, a structure begins to vaguely appear only after several listens. The album is so densely packed with ideas that it is unlikely that it can ever be fully absorbed (honestly, I can't believe they play it live). On the other hand, every time I listen to it, I discover something new, and it really does make more sense. Thus, the album is not coherent in any traditional way, but it certainly has its own logic; the logic of--ahem--a mad genius. That being said, this album is not going to win the band many new fans, but it is certainly a treat for the converted. And it certainly proves that, despite repeating the structure of an earlier album, Fantômas are clearly not running out of ideas.

1. 04/01/05 Friday
2. 04/02/05 Saturday
3. 04/03/05 Sunday
4. 04/04/05 Monday
5. 04/05/05 Tuesday
6. 04/06/05 Wednesday
7. 04/07/05 Thursday
8. 04/08/05 Friday
9. 04/09/05 Saturday
10. 04/10/05 Sunday
11. 04/11/05 Monday
12. 04/12/05 Tuesday
13. 04/13/05 Wednesday
14. 04/14/05 Thursday
15. 04/15/05 Friday
16. 04/16/05 Saturday
17. 04/17/05 Sunday
18. 04/18/05 Monday
19. 04/19/05 Tuesday
20. 04/20/05 Wednesday
21. 04/21/05 Thursday
22. 04/22/05 Friday
23. 04/23/05 Saturday
24. 04/24/05 Sunday
25. 04/25/05 Monday
26. 04/26/05 Tuesday
27. 04/27/05 Wednesday
28. 04/28/05 Thursday
29. 04/29/05 Friday
30. 04/30/05 Saturday

Delirium Cordia
Ipecac, 2004
rating: 4/5
reviewer: amneziak


Delirium Cordia, Fantômas’ third collaborative effort between Mike Patton (Faith No More), Buzz Osbourne (Melvins), Trevor Dunn (Mr. Bungle), and Dave Lombardo (Slayer) is a nightmarishly haunting experience that, like their previous work, has been executed with surgical precision. The ride you are about to take is one that will lull you into a complacent state of consciousness, while it intermittently yanks you from your content psyche to rattle your emotions. Over the course of this lengthy one-song album, you’ll find it shifts moods very frequently leaving you to never be quite sure of when it’s okay to fall asleep. As with previous works by Fantômas, their visually creative music, attention to detail, and elaborate CD packaging is what makes them an artistic force to reckon with. 

There are at least a hundred different words one could use to describe the multitude of decadent layers in this dark and fantastic album. In essence, it’s an improvisational nightmare that leaves you feeling extremely uncomfortable for an entire hour, while concurrently having you wish you could lie down to listen. It sometimes reiterates some of the clowned-out, demonic tones of Patton’s work with his first band, Mr. Bungle; however, we never get to hear him sing. Infrequently, he will utilize his voice as an instrument to make noises that do not typically come out of a human. The most accurate words to describe Delirium Cordia, however, would be an uneasy listening experience with touches of ambient landscapes. If you’ve ever watched a horror flick, which I’m sure you have, this album will create many images in your head. I believe I even heard a spot from Hitchcock’s Psycho. Some of the other images I get from the album are of old gothic churches and old houses with windows slamming open and shut due to high winds. Mostly, these are images of places I’d rather not be. 

With this album being the volatile experience it is, you may find yourself becoming worn out by the time you reach the halfway point. Don’t think I wasn’t one of them the first time I heard it. It’s somewhere between background music and something that needs to be studied. Everything about it is a dichotomy. For sure, it’s an album that should be enjoyed with headphones to catch all the quiet little sounds that lurk deep in the background. Dunn, Osbourne, and Lombardo bring a very dense rhythm section to the table and match the field recordings of Patton. After listening to this album several times, though, I still can’t help but wonder what it must be like to be inside Mike Patton’s disturbed head. Is he a man of genius or a man of trouble? Delirium Cordia shows that he is both.       

1. Delirium Cordia

The Director’s Cut
Ipecac Records, 2001
rating: 4/5
reviewers: dunc


Check it out. Mike Patton, deranged genius of Faith No More, continues to be willfully avant-garde/uncommercial/ mad cap? No, not really; just the most creative artist since Bowie. On paper, this kind of self-indulgence looks like a bad idea. Buzz Osbourne of the Melvins, Dave Lombardo of Slayer, Trevor Dunn of Mr. Bungle and Patton on Vocals, team up to do Death Metal/grind core cover versions of mainly film soundtracks.

None of them are straight covers, and you would be right to guess they basically butcher them. Cape Fear, The Godfather, Rosemary’s Baby, The Omen, Mancini, John Barry, Lynch’s Fire Walk with Me get the Patton treatment - he raps, screams, croons, gibbers, howls, whispers, sings, laughs, cries, chants, woo-has, etc. through all the tracks. "The Godfather" has him chanting "The Godfather, The Godfather, The Godfather, Woo- Ha! Woo Ha!".

Highlights for me were the cover of "Vendetta," which is deathly funky and "Cape Fear’s" guitar coda, you know the riff. Oh, and Mancini’s "Experiment in Terror." "One Step Beyond" has the sinister chant "Dream, little one, dream", before "Cape Fear" creeps in. It’s pretty scary, really.

Although it at first seems like a bloody mess of noise and guitars (and screaming), I think there is some sanity to the madness and conclude that it is beautifully produced. Sort of death metal for movie buffs and audiophiles a like. There’s even some kind of deadly nursery rhyme about "Frankenstein and Dracula and even a Mummy, are sure to end up in some ones tummy." So it’s funny, too. I find "The Omen" one funny. "Minmus, Corpus, Manimus." Speed metal cover version of the Omen Soundtrack. Yeeha! It has some chants as well. No need for attention span either; the tracks are mainly short and intense. Anyone like Ennio Morricone – they’ve done "Investigation of a citizen above Suspicion," "Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer," and "Charade" by Mancini.

What can I say? If you’ve got an open mind and some time to spare, this is great. It’s completely unique. It’s not the party animal record of the year. You may not be able to play it to your friends. But fuck it, I deny you to not love it. You just might have to endure for a bit with it. For me an unmissable experience. Track 13 is just 6 seconds of nothing. Pawn your Grandma for it. I love it, so you must too. Whatever you think it might be like, it won’t be, just check it out. Believe me. There’s something for everyone. No reggae, though.

1. The Godfather
2. Der Golem
3. Experiment in Terror
4. One Step Beyond
5. Night of the Hunter [Remix]
6. Cape Fear
7. Rosemary's Baby
8. The Devil Rides Out [Remix]
9. Spider Baby
10. The Omen
11. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
12. Vendetta
13. Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion
14. Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion
15. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me
16. Charade