Pylon
's 1980 debut album,
Gyrate
, sounded like the work of the best sort of enlightened amateurs, musicians who were still fairly new to what they were doing and making the most of their simplicity, which worked brilliantly in their favor. 1983's
Chomp
was a somewhat different affair;
were a more accomplished group with far more practical experience under their belts, and instead of the streamlined hands-off production of
Bruce Baxter
, the second album was produced by
Chris Stamey
and
Gene Holder
of
the dB's
, and engineered by
Mitch Easter
. As a consequence,
sounds fuller and less minimal than
, with
Vanessa Briscoe Hay
overdubbing vocal harmonies on some tracks, keyboards popping up here and there, and
Randy Bewley
adding some new flash to his
James Brown
-style chicken scratch guitar. However, if
were capable of doing more on
, they also knew what not to do. The textures are more complicated, but the music still feels efficient, with no wasted gestures in the songs or performances. The grooves are as potent as ever, with bassist
Michael Lachowski
and drummer
Curtis Crowe
anchoring this music with lean, funky rhythms that sound edgy while still filling the dance floor. The added production polish and instrumental niceties add atmosphere without weighing down the songs, and reinforce how tuneful the material is despite their clean surfaces. "Crazy" is a beautifully ominous pop song that
lacked the sophistication to pull off when they made
; if their early music was full of sharp angles, "Crazy" showed they could create something more accessible without compromising their vision in any way.
would break up the same year
was released, and it's fascinating to speculate where their broader musical range and studio smarts would have taken them if they'd stayed together (they would periodically play reunion shows, and they even cut a third album,
Chain
, in 1990.) However, if
closed the book on
's first era, it was a grand finale, an album that stands apart from their debut yet is just as brilliant in its own ways. ~ Mark Deming