Imagining a world where
This Heat
and
Can
developed their sound in the Bay Area rather than Europe,
John Dwyer
puts down the guitar in favor of an arsenal of synthesizers on
Hubba Bubba
, the debut album of his
Damaged Bug
solo project. While the sound is more electronic, with churning synths weaving their way around ramshackle beats, the album has an analog, handmade feeling that places it far from the lockstep polish of dance music. Free from the shackles of digital sequencing, with elements moving in and out of time with one another, the album feels distinctly broken. In the hands of
Dwyer
, however, what could be perceived as the album's weak point proves to be its greatest strength, providing an element of rhythmic uncertainty to the predictability we've come to expect from things like drum machines. In a lot of ways, the album makes a strong case for
as an auteur. Whether he's tackling garage rock, psych pop, or post-punk,
has a way of taking a sound and infusing it with a veneer of sweat and sunshine, allowing his music to shine through despite its grimy, lo-fi patina. So, is
a messy album? Of course it is. Is that a bad thing? Quite the opposite, actually.
is a celebration of the strange and often unstable world of analog electronics, and while there's considerably less "crash and bang" to the project than
's work with
Coachwhips
Thee Oh Sees
, it has a scuzziness that fans of the prolific noisemaker's other work will appreciate. ~ Gregory Heaney