Review Summary: If you are not a fan of John Frusciante avoid at all cost. If you are a fan you might find it to be a fun listen and it may or may not help you to understand John Frusciante as an artists just a little bit more.
I don't know if this warrants a review, but I am bored and I just listened to this for the first time. This EP is simple, short and hardly even something I could see any serious musician releasing. Not that it is bad; just that it is so lacking in content that I don't see why Frusciante bothered releasing it. If you are looking for an album that has intelligible lyrics and a professional quality vocal performance, look elsewhere. This EP sounds like John shot up and pulled out a few microphones and a 4 track and just played a few chords and jammed with himself. Then he skipped the mix and made a few copies. However, if you look at music the same way you look at obscure artwork and actually pick it apart and see what it is comprised of you may actually enjoy the Estrus EP.
"Estrus" is a simple song. It is simple in every sense of the word, but that does not stop it from being effective. While throughout most of the song Frusciante is just whining in various off kilter pitches. He shouts and screams a few times like he is in agony and almost non of the lyrics in this song are intelligible. However, the song is raw emotion. It's the world of a junkie with nowhere to go trapped in an eternal audio track. It is bleak, sorrowful, energetic, whimsical and mournful. It is art even if you do not want to accept it as such. It isn't brilliant by any means, nor is it ground breaking, but it is something to appreciate just for the obscurity and simplicity that allows such a range of feelings to be evoked.
"Outer Space" is just a jam. Some may call is psychedelic, some may call it experimental, but if you break it down its really just a jam. For the first minute a simple acoustic chord progression is played and a lone stereo electric guitar track plays a simple melodic riff over it, droning in and out without actually lining up with the rhythm of the acoustic guitar. Off an on throughout the track a lead guitar jumps in and out playing a few shredder riffs and eventually just grooves out at the end. This piece is really just a calm little ambient track. It kind of reminds me of the guitar work from Elliott Smith's "Roman Candle" even in the lo-fi quality.
Estrus EP is quite the unique animal. It's strange obscure and extremely short, but that does not stop is from being a half decent EP. If you are a fan of John Frusciante's work this is worth checking out. If you are just getting into him steer clear of this for a while and check out his album "Curtains," as it is far more accessible. If you are not a fan of lo fi music or nonsensical drugged out jams then don't even bother listening to this as you will hate it.
