Armpit - Reaches Out

Armpit, the duo of CJA and Sugar Jon, have been banging their heads against the extremes of New Zealand underground for many, many years, and have not yet made the cover of any glossy magazines. It shouldn't be a surprise that the same people who cherish the scuzz of the The Dead C. get scared off by these lunatics, but it is a shame, because Armpit make a thrilling (if frequently frustrating) howl that takes the Xpressway DIY aesthetic down several clarity pegs but still scorches and drifts in its own stubborn way. There are folk/rock song-like moves buried beneath a fog of hiss, poor microphone placement and inebriated (or otherwise chemically affected) sloppiness. There are also passages of searing free improvisation, harsh feedback noise abandon, and jarringly gorgeous drone epiphanies. If wading through what-the-fug taxes your patience, though, then you're better off sticking with something friendlier, like Birchville Cat Motel or Gate. Armpit is not for beginners, and this 5xCDr set is for an even smaller subset of the already-converted. Tracks end abruptly. Edits are made seemingly at random. Recording quality shifts with the drunken violence of a band that truly doesn't give one hoot about pleasing anybody, a trait that I find endlessly, perversely, pleasing.

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