Introducing their disembodied drummer
John Q. Cyborg
-- in reality a drum machine, publicity photos of the time to the contrary --
Chrome
moved into the next phase of its existence with
Read Only Memory
. The five track release reconfirmed them as being some of the craziest musicians out there working with in a rock format at the time. Beginning with a rising swell of processed
Creed
guitar shooting towards the skies as
Edge
provides rumbling keyboard loops, before switching over to the varied cut-up format the early
/
partnership favored,
is, unsurprisingly, strange and eerily compelling. One curious thing about the release is that, rather that specifically highlighting separate songs, the same
Cyborg
beat continues relentlessly throughout, fading and reappearing from time to time.
and
make a variety of different noises over the top as they choose, from soft guitar chimes to punchy randomness, all to good effect. The most distinct number is
"I Am the Jaw,"
if only because
's brief lyrical part at the start identifies it as such, while the two musicians add more guitar and keyboard moodiness all around. ~ Ned Raggett