Review Summary: Kicking arse and taking names.
Never underestimate the power of a strong name. With just the right hint of quirkiness, you’ll get people onto your work on name alone. There are humans on the face of this planet with names like Wolfgang Van Halen and Max Fightmaster. And they’re not made up. Ever heard of them? Probably not. But you probably want to check out what they do, right? Which leads us to right here and now: somewhere out there in this big, beautiful world of ours, there is a band named Captain Kickarse and the Awesomes. Now THAT’s a name. And it works, too. Admit it, you’ve clicked onto this review purely on the basis of the name – it’s okay, nobody’s judging anyone here. The point is that it works, and that is half the battle.
Of course, you just can’t have a killer name and not do anything with it – lest we forget Homer Simpson’s brief stint as Max Power. You’ll be relieved to know, then, that Captain Kickarse certainly has plenty going for them beyond the name, as proven on their
Falsimiles from the Facts Machine – although, fairly possibly, not in the way you’d expect.
You’d be easily forgiven for thinking that a man with a name like Captain Kickarse would have a lot to say. What a surprise for listeners, then, when it is revealed that he’s got as much to vocalise as Marcel Marceau. The band is a guitar-bass-drums trio that plays instrumental, progressive rock with influences ranging from funk to metal to jazz-fusion and back. Once you’ve gotten past the initial confusion, however, it’s quite easy to find yourself immersed in this unique and exciting sound. Opening number “Street Corner Mormons Dancing on Their Goat Feet” is a solid introduction to the Kickarse (in more ways than one) sound with slicing guitar locking horns with thick, lucid bass patterns and a flow of pounding, shapeshifting drum fills and rhythms. It’s effortlessly cool, and a treat to listen to – and that excitable feeling doesn’t drop for a second in the twenty-five minute entirety. With three of the EP’s four tracks expanding beyond the five-minute region, each idea that the band flows into is given plenty of space to weave itself out – and ever the musical adventurers, the band don’t stick to anything to the point where it overstays its welcome. Exception to the rule, “Always on Your Person”, throws itself right into a thudding, quickly-paced piece of music that one would expect a young Cedric Bixler-Zavala to be screaming over the top of, in the vein of At the Drive-In. Despite having the drawback of actually sounding like an instrumental version of a song with vocals, it’s still a worthwhile addition to the EP
The musicianship is skilful and very open to adaptation and transition, giving that strong feel of jazz at its core that’s hard to shake – not that you’d want to be doing that, mind. “That Ole Chestnut” plays off a bopping, bass-driven grove before shifting gear into a slinky funk-rocker, dropping down to a tripped-out slow motion jam session complete with echoing cymbal splashes and a wall of guitar noise before picking up the pace for one final tear-through the musical stratosphere – all in eight minutes.
With
Falsimiles from the Facts Machine, Captain Kickarse and the Awesomes are out to prove exactly what’s in a name. Clever, energetic and a significant display of power-trio creativity is what’s to be found in theirs. Give it a shot – once you’re done Googling Max Fightmaster, though.
