THat's a shame, Belew has always been "outside" but never unlistenable. THanks for the tip.

I'll still pick this up, even if it is just him squanking about with his midi-fied guitar. I might not listen a whole lot if it really is this disappointing, but I'm holding out hope that it's simply a matter of taste. I like Side One quite a bit, and apparently Three will have Claypool and Carey back, which should be out before the end of the year. Hopefully that'll be more like One.

Oh, and not to be nitpicky, but Side One came out this year, not last year. I only say that because Belew intended this entire cycle of work to be released in a short period of time.

"Now imagine a retarded cat with a broken leg spending 40 minutes on the keyboard trying to get comfortable... that is the sound we have achieved here."

That's the funniest thing I've read in a long time. Thanks for the laugh!

not only is it funny, it makes me want to buy the CD!

Just listened to some clips of this over at CDUniverse and I'm happy to report that it sounds excellent (and weird, but in a good way.) People who enjoy adventurous music will enjoy it. If you're looking for the usual straight-ahead, boring, been-done-to-death blues-guitar wanking, this is not the right album for you (nor is anything by Belew, for that matter.)

Lono, were you listening to the same CD that I just did? Because Side Two follows very closely what was accomplished on Side One - which you seem to like. I seriously do not understand how anyone who liked One would not like Two just as much. Listening to the album a couple of times and reading your review again, it really doesn't read like you actually listened to the album - it sounds more like you had a preconceived notion of what was going on, which you decided you simply didn't like, and you skipped through most of the album and didn't actually listen to the music.

It's also clear you didn't even bother to look at the liner notes or do any research. As is noted in the booklet, "Dead Dog On Asphault" is about when Belew accidently ran over a dog, and event that prompted him to paint for the first time ever (which is what the cover art is - his first painting. As a former art student, it's not a fantastic piece but it certainly has an energy about it and shows a desire to grow.)

Seriously, dude, you do actually owe it to the readers to take some responsibility when you write reviews to try and be as informed as possible. You don't have to like everything, but you sure as hell should at least respect the artists in question enough to do a decent, well thought-out review, especially when the music in question is so obviously outside of the genre that you appear to enjoy most (blues-rock, from what I've seen.)

Tom,

I listened to it several times, and just found it totally directionless. Honestly, my intent was not to slam the disc at all... I was hoping to enjoy it. Also, I have heard Side 1 and enjoyed that one better indeed. I think that is because there were other musicians and styles balancing out the space rock.

An honorable mention as a Music Editor pick of the week.

Thank you.

Go HERE for a nifty button you can put on your blog and to look at the other picks.

Belew is a fearless artist - check out amazon for some real reviews or this amazing work

Try Op Zop Too Wah-It's great