Black Nasa--Deuce
MeteorCity 2004
Sometimes, you start off with your course clear in mind, but eventually wind up on some new uncharted path to a place much more exciting than where you were originally headed. So it goes for Black Nasa's new album Deuce. While both its halves are superb, it's definitely a tale of two very different cities.
For the most part, Black Nasa possess a sound and vibe similar to band leader Chris Kosnik's previous outfit, the Atomic Bitchwax. However, on Deuce, Black Nasa aim to merge that downtuned groove with more of a 70's arena hard rock approach. For half of the album, they do just that. The flip of this achieves something even more impressive, though--taking that riff-conscious base and melding it with the space rock of Hawkwind and Nik Turner's best solo efforts. Slide guitar is all over this album, but on these spacey tracks, it's so awash in phasing, delay, and dense reverb, the sound often resembles synth strings. The results are inspired and these particular cuts hold an originality often lacking from this style of music.
Still, according to the press release for Deuce, mainstream hard rock was what Black Nasa were after. From that rationale, "Thanks Anyway," "Boozer," and "New World" are the choice cuts. It's a virtual dead heat between the three as to which should be the album's single/video--all would appeal greatly to Queens of the Stone Age fans. Still, it's the spaced out tracks that really make Deuce worth hearing--cuts one through four, as well as "Talking Candles." This portion of the album is something truly special.
Whatever your preference, besides the horrible throwaway cover of Run DMC's "You Be Illin'" that closes Deuce (a failed attempt at humor which only serves to end things on an unfortunately weak note), this album is solid as a rock. Whether mainstream hard rock fans besides the ones already entranced by the desert rock sounds that have infiltrated the airwaves will flip out for this album remains to be seen. What's certain though is, for at least half of Deuce, Black Nasa created something fresh and magical with this release--even if it wasn't in the direction they intended. For this fact, Deuce is a worthy listen and the most important release from this realm of the rock universe in quite some time.
Score this CD directly from METEORCITY
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