CD review, Feb 09. Akimbo – Jersey Shores (Neurot Recordings)

I used to think these guys sounded like our homegrown uber-heroes Taint, but on this album Neurosis approved Akimbo are a decidedly less riff-led but still angular proposition, in a more Harvey Milk meets Shellac kinda way. Natch there’s plenty of riffing still, but also lots of heavy interlude moments, which I guess explains why three minutes of rhythmic warble and a few minutes of chill in and out accounts for half of the eleven minute Lester Stillwell. What’s my point? Well my point is yes you can have long songs when nothing much happens in half of them. But then that’s art, so really what’s my point? Well I like riffs, so those moments can occasionally lose my attention. Besides, when did it become law to laud ecstatically over every single experimental-art-prog-neurosis-garage band that screams into a microphone? All that said, Akimbo flow smoothly through their sonic experimentation and when they jam, they jam hard in that heavy-stoner Roadburn friendly way. So then, not exactly easy listening, thank Thor, and certainly not to the point, but heavy and rocking nonetheless.