Cabled Linear Traction

Hood | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 27, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: SLUM
• ASIN: B000253UKK
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #806,660 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Norfolk

2. Evening Return

3. The Hay Harvest Had Special Charms

4. An Oblique View of an Irrationally Happy Time

5. Small Town Prejudice

6. Abstracting Electricity

7. A Spell of Rain

8. Fades to End a Day

9. Fashion Mistakes of the Decade

10. Summers Last Annual

11. Coastal Driftings

12. British Radars

13. Church, Circular

14. Be Nice to Everyone at All Times (With a Few Important Exceptions)

15. Finite Differences

16. Highly Competitive Cut Throat World

17. Hurt

18. A Thinly Veiled Excuse for Something More

Editorial Reviews

Hood's first full-length effort embraced all the contrary impulses of the band's earlier singles work and played them up to astonishing affect, resulting in a fine if still formative listen. More than a few numbers are simply conventional indie-into-shoegaze pop of the early '90s -- itself already essentially dead by the time of recording in 1994, though the results are usually pleasant enough. It just isn't totally magical, as with the band at its best. Compared to both the wider emotional impact of Silent '88 and Rustic Houses Forlorn Valleys lengthy, restrained compositions, Cabled Linear Traction is notable for individual elements. There's the regret-tinged, melancholic singing, the short bursts of random noise experimentation in between larger songs and sometimes on them directly, the brisk nature of most compositions. There's nothing as flat out gripping as "Her Innocent Stock of Words" when it comes to the individual songs, but more than a few selections -- "Small Town Prejudice," "British Radars," "Untitled #2" -- are noteworthy. The bedroom-studio nature of the album, though not all tracks were recorded at the musicians' homes, helps unify Cabled Linear Traction thematically as well as aesthetically. There's the sense of ambient sound from around corners or through walls, murky collages like the start "An Oblique View of an Irrationally Happy Time" suggested a chaos that's actually calm or at least digestible around the edges. Meanwhile, the sheer distortion and distinctly lo-fi vocals and instruments at points will please the likes of the Sebadoh crowd, though it might be better to refer to New Zealand bands like This Kind of Punishment instead. The singing and arrangements are much less forbidding than that outfit, though, making Cabled Linear Traction the agreeable listening experience it is. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pastoral intelligent noise bliss, April 12, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Cabled Linear Traction (Audio CD)

I have this on vinyl (I don't think the CD reissue will contain extra tracks or be any different except in format) and it is superb, as is all of Hood's catalog. It blends My Bloody Valentine with Pavement and Sonic Youth and Flying Saucer Attack (just for starters) and is nearly as rich as "Silent '88" -- their incredible follow-up to "Cabled Linear Traction." Even though, like Slint, Hood sounds best on vinyl, it is great to see their work available to more new fans.