The Black Lips November 27, 2010

The Black Lips are what you could call true visionaries of a skeptical age. Even from their very first 7" EP, you could tell they were doing their own thing on their own terms, and of course it didn't sit well, even with the dawning of the 21st century and all it promised. Wildly cross-eyed broken stars destined to waver in their importance in the cosmos, they know no boundaries and they take no pretense. Like a volatile and teetering amalgamation of the Swell Maps trying to cover the Swingin' Medallions, it's just not right for this world. Unless you long for the unhinged freedom that comes with music that challenges everything without becoming an unlistenable mess of sound. It's a dazzling catastrophe that needs to be absorbed before it vaporizes into thin air. The fun these guys have is hard to hide either live or on record. Seriously slurred swashbucklers living out the ultimate teenage dream, yet breaking through another layer of remarkable idiocy, transcribed through hallucinations, exasperation, and perfectly casual fumbling.

Official Website: http://www.variety-playhouse.com/