If I were going to write a book about Mikaela’s Fiend, the first chapter would be exclusively dedicated to fuzz-busting bass/guitar scuzz. It would be about 43 pages long.
The rest of the book would be dedicated to examining how it’s possible for M-to-the-F to YANK so many indie-rock/hardcore trees up by their roots with only two members. Seriously, how do they do that? They make Lightning Bolt seem almost minimalist …
However they manage to pull it off, I’m grateful they came into my life when their first full-length record came out. Now that they’ve put out a few other things it’s nice to check back in with them via this split 7-inch with Abe Vigoda.
“Blanket” doesn’t exactly keep me warm, now that I think about it, but it does keep me feeling disoriented and drunk, with buzzsaw drill-guitar and nuclear drums providing a nice glow.
Among the super-noisy two-piece beasts they’re right up there; not, say, with Snack Truck — who are untouchable — but with second-tier acts like The Pope.
Not too shabby!
“World Heart,” eh? Not a bad idea! Now how to get this project off the ground … According to Abe Vigoda, the best start to any globally beating heart is an off-kilter beat.
Next, you add in simple bass-guitar runs that get the blood pumping. HUP, two, three, four, HUP, two, three, four …
Then you throw in sprightly guitar swipes circa Vampire Weekend and a few wacky changes in tempo, VOILA, you have a Millencolin track that is way too awesome to have been penned by Millencolin.
Not to mention the Au/Animal Collective intro/outro which, if held up at the right angle to the sun, just might map out the coordinates to a song that will turn our collective consciousness on like a light switch in the dark and link us all together like the fat, pus-heavy sausages we are.
Or something like that. Whether it happens or not I’m glad this Half Past Human-esque tune rambled its way to my door.
