A slimy, eyeless alien bares its teeth in a ghoulish grimace, all sickly pink clashing against an electric blue background, colourful yet disturbing. Fear on the Corner is an acid trip that could go ‘bad’ at any moment. What’s not to like?
Mamuthones, named after the mysterious creatures featured in an obscure Sardinian festival, is a freaky Italian psychedelic project fronted by Alessio Gastaldello, former drummer for Sub Pop’s Jennifer Gentle. With line-up changes, an appearance at Liverpool’s Psych-Fest, and a split 12″ with masked Prestonians Evil Blizzard, the unholy spawn that is their debut LP has had a slow gestation.
Opener ‘Cars’ is a feverish ball of nervous energy, skittering drums and glockenspiels, reaching a manic collage of Remain in Light Eno synth boings and jitters. ‘Cars, people in the cars’ Gestaldello squeals, like an alien observer watching our bizarre routines in the silly little worlds we’ve made. ‘Show Me’ is a krautrock burner, steady motorik beats attacked by dissonant guitar jabs and static blasts before unnerving electronic Paul Lanksy keys ooze in, a cold unease fighting against the Nuggets freak-out. ‘The Wrong Side’ is a funky frenzy, boggy bass and scratchy guitar which takes over you, forcing you to dance in a sweaty possessed mania. The swaggering menace of ‘Simone Choule’ changes pace toward the end, a strutting stomp behind Damo Suzuki whispers and murmurs interrupted by atonal synth noodles and soft piano drops. Things take a turn for the truly weird in finale ‘Here We Are’, a nightmarish soundscape of buzzing electronics wash over each other, building to a hellish brontide of impending peril. Primal and tribal percussion loop against the screaming vocals, bearing witness to some ritualistic conjuring of evil. It’s like Apocalypse Now in space, and you’re the caribou.
Mysterious and curious, yet utterly direct and accessible, Fear on the Corner is a fascinating and original marriage of the peripheries of imagination that psych music can take you to, with a determined urgency to make you move like you’ve never moved before.