RIYL: TV on the Radio, Animal Collective, Akron/Family
Enter the mind of Kyp Malone with Rain Machine, the new solo project of the booming-voiced TV on the Radio guitarist and co-frontman. The album cover bursts with bright colors and naked girls, leading the listener to believe there is a Dionysian sort of feast within. And is there ever, with Malone cutting loose with claps, whistles and bells throughout the album’s seemingly massive length.
The god of ritual madness and ecstasy would surely appreciate the content, with Malone sparing no appropriateness to sing about being a “Desperate Bitch,” or having “the fattest cock or the sweetest pussy.” Indulgence abounds on Rain Machine, in ways good and bad – of the 10 tracks, six of them hover above the five-minute mark, meaning there are some eye-rolling, “Okay, this song could be over,” moments. Then there’s the joyousness of “Give Blood” and “Hold You Holy.” The second half of the album transitions from the cacophony of paeans to love and politics into quiet, lightly strummed desperation. That does just fine for “Driftwood Heart” and “Desperate Bitch” but after “Free Ride” and “Leave The Lights On,” you keep hoping he’ll get back to being rambunctious. The closing track, “Winter Songs,” gets there at times, but at 10 minutes long, it’s hard to get more than five minutes in.
Malone’s mind is an intense place, but worth the journey. As for how listenable it is, those inclined towards extravagance may find something to appreciate here, but those whose motto is “everything in moderation,” would do best to look elsewhere. (Anti, 2009)
