V/A - The Rap Pouch / 15 Tracks / 2003 Breaking World Records / http://www.breakingworldrecords.com / Reviewed 17 October 2003

A first in my reviews : the first small-sized CD to grace my desk, and by far the first to focus on Western Massachusetts. Truly noise at its greatest degree, the acts on The Rap Pouch mislead their audience – sounding more like Atari games than Raekwon (Anthro Rex, diagram A), no one can fault them for being innovative. Oh, did I mention the case that the CD comes in : a hand-sewed sleeve which comes with a screenprinted card. Moving from the straight noises of the previous two tracks, a half-talking, half-yodeling individual puts a voice to all that noise in Fat Worm of Error’s “Rod Melting Plastic Box”. I know that before this song, I had a fever for cowbell, and Fat Worm of Error is the panacea on this disc! Moving into a reversed-drum machine beat in Moxy Van Float’s “Feathers”, the tone of the disc moves more into a celtic-influenced shoe gazer indie deity. Unfortunately, the breakneck brilliance of the disc-so-far is halted by the utterly bland “Secret Surface”, which mixes repetitive beats with equally repetitive vocal-like sounds, even going so far as to infect “Moth Attack” with the same general malaise.

In a very Albatross-like vein, the untitled track by the Noise Nomads mixes an old audio clip with growing, animalistic sounds. One thing that can be gleaned from this disc is the extreme desire by all of these bands to never let their music become truly stale. Even with limited times and funding, each band spins the disc to their own agenda. The aforementioned cowbell came into play early in the disc, and Tumble Cat Poof Poofy Poof uses an accordion and some classical instrumentation in their magnum opus “I Want to be Eaten by a Giraffe.” “Tedious Buttscrew” by Dekin Squad Buttfire as ‘Destructive Blast’ reeks most of the spontaneity that inculcates itself into each and every song on the disc. The recording on some of these tracks may be downright rough, but it only adds to the ambiance of these bands, makes one feel as if they are actually watching the conception of a musical baby on the stage.

“Norse Divorce” by BenGeorge7, “I will fingerfuck your squish,” is the defining vocal moment of the disc. Where Tumble Cat Poof Poofy Poof made art out of an accordion, BenGeorge7 makes art out of obscenity. What else is obscene : that you aren’t aware of this disc. Pick it up!

Rating : 7.5/10

Top Tracks : I Want to Be Eaten By a Giraffe, Norse Divorce