Sparta
“Wiretap Scars”
(DreamWorks Records)
From the didactic dickheads at Rolling Stone to the jack-off jackasses at Stuff, a lot of critics are getting behind this album. Unfortunately, this time I must agree with the staff at Rolling Stone (motto: “sodomized monthly by MTV”). “Wiretap Scars”, the best album from a band with a six-letter name since Dredge, cuts with a melodic edge that reaches high into the air before crashing to dig for deeper skin and bone. The poetic vocals leap out from dormant chants into rageful choruses reminiscent of a mixture of Billy Corgan composition and rhythm and Frank Black belligerence. Accenting wispy but driving guitars, hints of machinery and light alien programming create a moody sonic backdrop that nicely destabilizes intermittent bouts of subtle and aggressive drumming.
Sparta spawned from last year’s disappointing breakup of At The Drive In. But while Sparta contains (in a little glass jar) three members of ATDI, the new band sounds original and inventive, not a derivative idea but a continuation of talent and style. Get this album.
