As regards the avant audio terrorism of Philadelphia, PA, duo Hulk Smash, you’ll probably find all manner of interpretations when it comes to reviews and that sort of thing. By no means is mine to be definitive. That is, the band’s full-length debut, The Hulk Smash Album (self-released through the band’s own HSIndustries with gorgeous pen and ink artwork by Brooks Wilson), touches on any number of underground genres, from doom to punk and industrial in between. What ties it all together is the prevailing modern sensibility shown, mostly in the lyrics of bassist/multi-instrumentalist/vocalist BJ Howze (also of Dangerbird). Hulk Smash, oddly enough, remain in control throughout the entirety of their Album.

So, slap “progressive” and “experimental” on them and we’re done, right? Yes and no. While Howze handles an eight-string bass — think 12-string guitar, then fatten everything up — various synths and a vocal harmonizer and then-drummer Matt Garfield also contributes vocals and organ and more synth, underneath the multi-directional barrage, there is something determined about Hulk Smash, like a straight line running in the same direction through a squiggly one. This could easily be the band’s punk side coming through, but aside from “Treo 1250,” which is essentially just noise, tracks like “Funeral Plan” and “Red Planet” have a confidently-executed core within them that provides something for the listener to latch onto and adheres to a traditional verse/chorus structure. Within the confines of these tracks, and as abrasive as they can be, the duo manages to strike and maintain a balance that puts The Hulk Smash Album in an entirely different league of mad sciences.

If the record’s steady progression is leading anywhere, it’s to “Black Bear,” the unquestionable apex and most maddened of the material here, where a socially aware Pig Destroyer meets King Crimson and the two get it on for about 16 minutes and the whole room winds up smelling like peanut butter. I think you know what I’m saying. Whether it’s the repetitive lyrics (for the first part of the song, anyway) or the prevailing theremin-esque synth sounds, “Black Bear” is about as unsettling as The Hulk Smash Album gets, and thus also where it works best. Capped off with nine-plus minute closer “Sleep Now,” Hulk Smash take their twisted electro doom punk to ever scarier and more challenging places, but for the few out there willing to follow them for the duration, the experience will prove all the more satisfying when the synth line that’s been running throughout “Sleep Now” finally takes full charge of the song, closing the record once and for all.

It should be noted that there is a wealth of bonus material included on the disc: the band’s entire preceding discography and the album itself in mp3 form, including covers and contextual notes, a couple video clips, live recordings and performances from The Hulk Smash Collective (an alternate version of the band). Comprehensive, to say the least. Also, since the original issue of The Hulk Smash Album in 2006, Howze and Garfield self-released the 2008 (mostly) covers EP, The Mynah Bird, the Mockingbird and the Magpie, featuring drastic reinterpretations of Iggy Pop, Dio-era Black Sabbath and the aforementioned King Crimson, among others. Since Garfield’s departure, Howze has performed with a rotating cast of drummers, and will have a split with Wormrider out Spring 2010 and a new tape via Sloth Tapes. Just as with the album itself, there’s a lot going on, and though by no means are Hulk Smash the kind of band in which masses of listeners will be able to find solace or comfort, few a select and proud few, they can’t miss.

Hulk Smash on MySpace

Tags: Hulk Smash, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Unsigned bands

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 11th, 2010 at 11:14 am and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.