Sleazy is no joke...
Sean J. Stanley | Baltimore, MD | 02/29/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I bought this CD because my lady absolutely shivers when she hears "Comanche". She will even skip over it on the "Pulp Fiction" soundtrack, blaming the sense-memory recall it invokes of that uh "uncomfortable" Ving Rhames/Bruce Willis scene in the film. You know the one I'm talking about. She told me "I bet every song by that band sounds sleazy...". So I dug around and found this collection. I got it for her birthday and immediately played it when it arrived. She didn't know what to make of it, wasn't sure why I'd buy her a surf rock album, until that guttural saxophone kicked in. She freaked out, and said "You didn't!". I totally did, and they did too - the producers who put the album together did a fantastic job. The Revels are only a small chunk of the wonderful Downey catalogue. She eventually enjoyed listening to the album, with the caveat that I skip over the offending track 14 ("Comanche") whenever it comes on. I enjoy the entire album. It is one of those small chunks of rock-n-roll ephemera so removed from mainstream consciousness, yet close to anyone who has listened to later artists who were influenced by the sound. Pre-psychedelica, low-fi, unbridled, and you can tell the musicians knew how to enjoy themselves. A fantastic party album, also great for driving, but probably not mood music for love unless your name is Zedd and you have a ball-gagged gangster tied to a pommel horse in your basement. Good times..."