Customer Reviews

Fucked Up Friends

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I could easily say "my favorite album of the year" and "if Tobacco is a cult, where do I offer my first blood sacrifice?", but you probably want details, right? The subtle difference between Tobacco's day gig, Black Moth Super Rainbow, and this disc is the synthetic dusty beat, neck-snapping rhythms and vocals courtesy of Aesop Rock on "Dirt" (a heavenly union, I might add), pandering to hip-hoppers more than Flaming Lips fans - but, again, the discord is marginal. Otherwise, Tobacco drenches the tracks in his signature vocoded vocals/vintage analog synths/trash-pit drum machinery sound, a stylized niche resembling something between the cracks of Boards of Canada's Music Has a Right to and Geogaddi. Attacking all your faculties at once, Tobacco's million-mile aesthetic will have you both staring at the sun and uncontrollably nodding your head like a crazed toddler during a The Wiggles taping, your hand slamming the repeat button again and again.

I'm glad I waited a while before reviewing this, as it had to grow on me a little. Actually, upon first listen, not knowing what to expect from this solo release by Tobacco of Black Moth Super Rainbow (in my opinion one of the most original and creative bands around today), I didn't notice much difference between the two projects. The liquid synths, vocoded vocals, funky beats and all around awesome weirdness were in full display. This time the beats had a bit more of a hip-hop, electro flavor to them, and the melodies were (at times) darker and more menacing. While BMSR's past releases leaned towards a warped organic psychedelia, "F'ed Up Friends" is slightly more electronic and futuristic sounding.

So, as I'm listening I'm thinking, "cool, sounds a lot like BMSR, I'm all for this", but as the album kept on (16 songs strong) it all started to sound repetitive, as there is little difference between the sounds and instruments used throughout (except for a dope cameo by underground rapper Aesop Rock on "Dirt"). But, as I found myself wanting to hear this album quite often, I was hard pressed to decide which tracks could have been left off. Now I'm at the point where the album ends and I want to play it again! This music is highly addictive.

These sounds put me in a state of mind where my hazy childhood memories (skating rinks, animatronic singing dogs at Showbiz Pizza, collecting Garbage Pail Kids, 8-bit video games) melt into the even hazier memories of my teenage and young adult years (backwoods bonfires, underground hip-hop, chemically enhanced basement jam sessions). I know this sounds strange, but there is just something magical about BMSR/Tobacco's music that I haven't heard anywhere else. People like to reference Boards Of Canada, and while there are similarities, this is a whole 'nother trip. Now, if I can only get my hands on that out of print F***ed Up Friends DVD...

This CD is certainly one of the best I have heard this year. A unique sound that never gets boring. I really can't see much difference between this release and prior BMSR CDs. But that is a good thing. The sound is kind of dark and mysterious. Definitely worth buying.

When I saw Amazon had FUF on vinyl, I just bought it, and I don't regret it. I've probably listened to this more than any other record I have.

It's kind of hard to find. The style is totally unique, I've never heard ANYTHING that sounds like it. Amazon shipped me the first pressing with "Dirt (ft. Aesop Rock)" on the A side. I think there was a second pressing with that song on the B side, so you can tell them apart that way.

If you can get this, GO FOR IT. Not only will it be a collectors item at some point (only 1000, according to the sticker), it's just a great thing to have.

This is the best. Tom Fec "Tobacco" is something we have never seen. It takes the colorful and mysterious side of Black Moth Super Rainbow (his band), and adds in a load of dirty bass, kick ass samples, and so many more beautiful aspects that makes Tobacco an experimental Mozart. I hope that Tobacco continues to make music, not only as himself, but with the infamous Black Moth Super Rainbow. Get this. Also check out "Maniac Meat" it will not disappoint.

Here is the consumer math on this one: If you are a fan of Tobacco's work as a member of the group Black Moth Super Rainbow, you will love this solo effort. If you don't like BMSR, you may still like this record a lot. If you don't know what a Black Moth Super Rainbow or who Tobacco is, this is a perfect place to start.

Much like the music of BMSR, this stuff is crunchy, vocodered out, trippy and at times really psychedlic. Unlike BMSR, Tobacco focuses on his bread and butter: beats. Stripping down some of the production candy noise of BMSR stuff, Tobacco offers a more accessible, yet still remarkably forward-thinking record here. And it pounds! This stuff is as close to commercial as Tobacco is likely to ever get, which is to say not remotely commercial at all, but there is a clear attempt to infuse strong and straight grooves here, as well as an exceedingly refreshing degree of transparent counter-melody. Also, the singing has been cut back a lot here so the music gets a lot of breathing room. This stuff sounds like an early 80s television series blew up and Max Headroom put it back together.

If you don't know anything about this cat or BMSR, listen to "Street Trash", "Little Pink Riding Hood" and "Truck Sweat". If these three songs don't do it for you, then you may not dig much else.

Found BMSR a few months ago and even saw them in concert last night and i have yet to be disappointed. This CD is great and follows the same BMSR formula of catchy beats, psychedelic and trippy sounds and effects, simple and enigmatic lyrics, and a little bit of pop. It's definitely not like anything else you've heard before, but also not too inaccessible either, as is the case with a lot of pretentiously ridiculous indie bands nowadays. BMSR music is apparently 100% written and composed by Tobacco, as i discovered from an interview, so it makes sense that his solo project would sound similar. Didn't like the Allegheny Whitefish album mostly b/c it's REALLY obscure and abstract and sort of sounds satanic at times.

"Berries that Burn" is definitely my favorite off this album. I would highly recommend this album to anyone who considers themselves a BMSR fan, especially if you liked the Dandelion Gum album, which came out around the same time. This won't be leaving my CD player anytime soon :-D

The other reviewer pretty much hit the nail on the head sizing this album up. I've been listening to BMSR & satanstompingcaterpillars religiously since I first heard them about 6 months ago, and this album IMO is better than any of the BMSR stuff. I lean towards the more hip hop driven sound so that's partially why FuF strikes me as slightly better than the other records. It feels like a regular BMSR album (especially Dandelion Gum) for the most part with more of a hip hop influence and less vocoder than the other BMSR joints. Aesop Rock shows up for the only guest spot on the record and drops some really interesting rhymes over one of the strongest beats on the disc. There's not a single track on here I don't love, but the standouts include: Dirt, Grease Wizard, Gross Magik, Street Trash, Berries That Burn, Truck Sweat, & Hairy Candy. So basicly if you're already a fan of BMSR then you shouldn't hesitate to give this a shot, it's not too far off from Tobacco's work with the band yet it stands out in a good way. If you've never heard the band before, but you're curious I'd start either here, or BMSR's Dandelion Gum (or better yet get both!). Easily my personal favorite album of 2008 so far.

This album could have been made in the 80's, but it probably was not easily possible without the compositional tools on a PC for a single individual outside of a studio. Think Boards of Canada with a bit more beat to the byte. I discovered this because of the association with Black Moth Super Rainbow and stayed for the deceptive simplicity of the sound. There is more going on here than you might think.

This old school analog sound has been coming back in the form of such groups as Crystal Castle, but in some form bears more resemblance to Cabaret Voltaire. Not only are there the electronic beats and waveforms, but the (fortunately) infrequent vocoder adds an element of (at least on one song) rap monologue and hints of a less produced Air.

I do like this album, but wonder what it would be like in a multi-channel mix with more digital tools in play to screw around with the sound space. Definitely lots to hear on this recording, either with drugs or without, headphones on or speakers cranked up. Also, recommended Eating Us and Dandelion Gum....

then maybe I could give Tobacco a higher rating and worship it like everyone else. But, I caught wind of this just after the Eating Us release from Black Moth Super Rainbow (which is tobacco's band). I love this kind of music, trippy, sugar-synth/pop. But the sound on this release is exactly the same as the last two Black Moth releases, making this "solo" album seem pointless.
The exception, is the brilliant guest spot of Aesop Rock on the track, Dirt. If gives the listener an idea of where new and innovative hip-hop can go (as in ANYWHERE).
But outside of that, I don't feel a need for this album, since I already have Dandelion Gum.