8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Razor Blades For The Mind, October 7, 2004
This review is from: Neon Meate Dream of a Octafish: A Tribute to Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band (Audio CD)
This is a very interesting CD for Captain Beefheart fans. It does have some appeal, although as in most tribute albums the quality of the recordings vary widely as does the artistic license taken with the songs. I have to admit that I was ignorant of the vast majority of the artists on this CD before I heard the tribute, but found several of them to be excellent. I was particularly impressed by "Orange Claw Hammer" by A Warm Palindrome, "Apes Ma" by Ortho, and "Wild Life" by Old Time Relijun. All these efforts are fairly close in execution (if such a thing is possible) to the originals, and I especially found the musicianship (as it were) on "Wild Life" to be greatly entertaining. I also found "Neon Meate Dream of a Octafish" by Miss Murgatroid to be entertaining, although I miss the original vocals when I hear it.
On the other end of the scale, many of the tracks are workmanlike, yet uninspired, and some are just plain rank. I particularly disliked "Electricity" by Racebannon, "Korn Ring Finger" by Bright, and the insufferably nasal rendition of "Beatle Bones 'n Smokin' Stones" by Dapper, which has the added annoyance of clocking in at 8:12, easily the longest song on the CD.
I think that this CD deserves an overall three star rating: some performances are inspired, some are wretched, but most are middling efforts that will leave real Beefheart fans longing for the originals.
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