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STATS, Crowned: Doing the Math

Posted in Reviews on December 27th, 2010 by JJ Koczan

When last they were heard from, the all-caps Brooklyn math/noise rock trio STATS had just issued a three-song sampler EP of their heady wares. Some things, it seems, haven’t changed at all, as the instrumental unit deliver three new cuts in the form of the Crowned EP on The Path Less Traveled Records. The songs, which total just under 21 minutes, are a logical extension of the prior material, their angularity and linear structures walking a fine line between technical prowess and song flow, and presented with cleaner production and full jewel case artwork, Crowned gives an overall aura of a tighter, more established unit.

It’s a short release, and one wonders if STATS aren’t just going to adopt the EP as their formal modus operandi, realizing that a full-length of this kind of tech material would be asking a lot of their audience. Robert Fripp once said of his soundscapes that the average listener could only take about 20 minutes of it at a time, then they needed a break, and if we apply the same to STATS, then Crowned is right on target. Opener “Guthy Renker” twists ably and offers flashes of noise rock groove, weighted by the bass of Tony Gedrich, who also adds a piercing noise flourish near the 1:50 mark. I’d be lying if I said it was pleasant to the ear, but it serves its purpose. Guitarist Joe Petrucelli doesn’t shred or try to fill the space vocals might otherwise occupy with lead lines, instead setting and keeping the course of sub-noodling scale work, drummer Hank Shteamer deftly maintaining pace in purposefully awkward time signatures.

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Looks Like I’m Drivin’ to Brooklyn

Posted in Whathaveyou on July 21st, 2009 by JJ Koczan

August 2nd at Public Assembly. We’ll see if I’m cool enough to get in the door. Congrats to the recently-reviewed Stats for getting on such a killer bill.

Flier by Seldon Hunt.

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These United Stats

Posted in Reviews on May 26th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

They only dress this way to surprise people, I'm sure of it.They might look like they could use a sandwich or two, but Brooklyn trio Stats (formerly known as Stay Fucked) specialize in a dense, sludgy brand of technical instrumetal, like a less outwardly intense early Dillinger Escape Plan or what forgotten Minnesota tribe Figure of Merit pulled off so capably on their equally forgotten Vatic record, and so their indie garb is a kind of disguise from which the sonic nastiness emerges. Very sneaky, you thick-framed strategists.

Be that as it may or may not — and even if it isn’t, I like the narrative Here's the actual disc, in sleeve.so I’m keeping it — the three-song CD the band sent in for review came with little fanfare, no art, no track listing and no real explanation; just a black CDR, a short bio and an email address. Under normal circumstances (i.e., if they sucked), I probably would have put it in the pile to be eventually filed away, never to be heard again, but my curiosity was roused by the crashing noisy rhythms of the first track and I’ve gone back for multiple repeat listens since, each time hearing something new from Stats that I’d missed previously.

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