MIND INVERSION

From my point of view, there are only two reasons why any instrumental rock band would choose to remain vox-less these days: 1) they are frightened that vocals would destroy the aesthetic they’ve developed, or 2) they don’t have time for a fucking vocalist! ¶ Power of 2, a Minneapolis based prog-rock band featuring Max Becker on drums and Joe Clark on guitar, clearly falls into the latter school, as evidenced by the new self-titled album of driving, explosive, ball-bustin’ rock ‘n’ roller coaster rides they’ve nailed down for release on Friday.  It’s a guitar centric album (vocals finally make an extremely brief appearance on the final track, “Eight Chupacabras”)  that simply has no room for a third wheel to disrupt the charging energy that pulses between the two, one jperson seemingly acting as a anode and the other as a cathode .

In modern rock, opting not to include a vocalist in your troupe can often be career suicide for any band trying to succeed at gaining any level of commercial acceptance, but the interplay between them is so strong, artful, and intricate that you begin to immediately understand that the Power of 2 has wholeheartedly chosen to walk another path. This is a band that doesn’t cater to anyone’s perception of what progressive rock should be. Instead, they’ve established a sound that nuances bits and pieces of every type of the best and most rocking aspects of the genre and produces something totally unique to their own 2-man craft. Frankly, their influences are hard to pin down, but if you enjoy such cult favorites ranging from Dysrhythmia and Lightning Bolt, to Melvins and Torche, to (… heck, why not?…) the White Stripes and Led Zeppelin then you should give these guys your ear!

At times unpredictable and at others steadfastly barreling forward like a frieght train on the rail; from heavily distorted to soberingly sparse, and every and any other sonic texture in between – it is an album that knows no bounds and refuses to to sit still. Although it may take you a few listens to digest it all and get in tune with exactly what’s driving these dudes, for a two piece to rock out such a grand and attention grabbing release is to be commended.

Methinks Max and Joe have made the perfect album to absorb on a long drive through the Minnesota countryside, weaving through valleys and rolling over hills at 65 as the sound waves do the same in time.  Fans of the prog, if you’re traveling anywhere by yourself this summer, make sure you’ve got a copyof Power of 2 in your visor before you hit the road. I’ll be making the trip back to Winona down Hwy 61 for a weekend tomorrow, so I’ll comment back and let you know if my prediction is correct..

DIG DEEPER: Power of 2

Power of 2 will be debuting their new album with a cd release show tomorrow at the Hexagon Bar! Join them at 9pm for a free show to celebrate the album with performances from Economy Team, Buildings, Young Pretenders, and The Yoleus. Click read more to view the awesome flyer for the show!

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 4, 2009 at 7:34 pm and is filed under Music Reviews with tags album review, cd review, distorted, DRUMS!, guitar, minneapolis, minnesota, power of 2, prog, Rock. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.