REVIEWS:
Post your comments about Mike Merz & The Can O' Worms
(reviewed by Nick Karn)
This is probably one of the best 'lost gem' albums I've come across, as I believe Mike Merz & The Can O' Worms are buried somewhat deep in the underground. Despite the really lousy band name, however, The Odd Side Of The Street is a somewhat intriguing and creative as all heck audio experience. The album's overall sound is rooted in a laid back, coffeehouse folk style with added neo-psychedelic overtones. The production is surprisingly strong and not thin at all, which is quite impressive for an 'indie' recording (or at least that's what I think it is). Merz's extremely pleasant, down to earth, slightly twangy voice fits the material perfectly, and his lyrics are cryptic but very cleverly phrased and never sounding ridiculous due in large part to the vocal delivery.
The album opens with the beautiful acoustic number "Easy For You To Say", which showcases a whole lot of melodic talent, and the laid back feel works in particularly effective fashion, while "One More Time" enters into even more gorgeously romantic territory in the same vein, with the background music, lyrics, melody and vocals being extremely inviting. "Like Riding A Bike", meanwhile, is musically atmospheric number with introspective, emotional and at the same time goofy lyricism that works, and "Human Resources" is one of the album's most interesting and experimental major highlights, lyrically centering on a killer giant earthworm and its' effect on nature with background music as wacky as its' lyrics, and an almost progressive song structure. "Kites" is an even darker number in its' ambience with a slow, menacing riff and melody switching to a radically more uptempo chorus.
The second half opens with "Higher Beings Command" is very evocative of the experimental late R.E.M. stuff, especially in the background nuances and the vocal tone in the chorus, and "Place In The Sun" again enters the exceptionally beautiful acoustic territory which Merz tackles so expertly, but that song certainly doesn't prepare anyone for the bizarre extended avant garde sound collage "The Gates To Hell", which mixes in orchestration, acoustic guitar, freaky creature noises, spoken samples, and tons of background noise while still remaining listenable and very very interesting. The Odd Side Of The Street ends with two more quieter numbers, the personal, stripped down "More To Life" and the shuffling closer "Don't Wanna Go There", both of them very singable and emotional. Overall, this is a very pleasant surprise that caught my ear purely by accident, and it's an excellent listen. You'll be very lucky if you're able to find it, though.
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