SSM’s 2006 debut totally forced the issue, ramming a prog proboscis into any available garage rock orifice. Gross, right? But the record totally worked, particularly when the Detroit trio’s flair for the lyrical fantastic really jibed with Marty Morris’s rock-n-roll moan (he’s from the Cyril Lords, remember), John Szymanski’s rack of vintage keys (Szymanski from the Hentchman, that is), and drummer-about-town Dave Shettler, who propelled the whole bit from an electro-disco land of willing women and readily available drugs. Shit was addicting, especially live.
Now, remember what was written about the band’s set at the Detour Launch Party. “If psyche-garage-stoner-disco isn’t an official genre, it will be by the time SSM release their new record in 2008.” No lie there. The mechanized and caterwauling center riff of “Deja Vu” is what plays in the heads of those who do the robot, or maybe the tin heads of all robots, while “Regenerate Your Face” builds from blowsy-stoned riffs that ooze off the fruit of the moon. “Start Dancing” threads a motorik beat into a chiming chorus built from 60s garage rock, then dissipates like oxygen released in a vacuum, while “Now We’re Six” and the anxious gas pedal headache of “Emotional Tourist” wind some hooky crackle into the mix to ensure a little of what the first album’s experiments occasionally lacked. Break Your Arm for Evolution still turns star charts into question marks, but it grooves clean like the 2.0 version of anything. SSM aren’t just talking about an evolution. — Johnny Loftus
Tags: SSM, John Szymanski, Dave Shettler, Marty Morris, Break Your Arm for Evolution, Alive Records, Cyril Lords, Hentchmen
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