A concept album about John R Brinkley? I suppose someone had to eventually do it and the name in the frame for this particular musical exorcism is “Xenoblaster” from Salt Lake City’s very own Tycoon Machete.
Why would any band choose this as their inspiration is anyone’s guess but, nonetheless, Tycoon Machete have done it. If you would care to imagine the B52s going out on a two week bender before heading into a recording studio with a book on the history of snake oil peddlers then you might get somewhere close to the listening experience that comes with this album. Tycoon Machete – cool name, by the way – are never going to be a mainstream band yet, with their twisted art rock sensibilities, they have little problem emulating the the kind of band who would be ideally suited to emptying the bowels of history into the grooves of an album. Think, therefore, of this album as a rather caustic commentary of the gullibility of the consumer in a time when more things were based on trust than should have been. Fortunately, things have changed for the better now. Oh no, they haven’t.
I will give credit to Tycoon Machete for daring to go for a walk on the dark side of history and they successfully conjure up the kind of sonic nightmare that will make you wonder if Sabrina Crapenter is so bad after all. When all is said and done, art takes many forms and Tycoon Machete have an undeniable talent for splattering blood red paint all over their canvas.
Available from Bandcamp and the usual digital places.