Intense Men - s/t - CD (2011)

Labels: Nacht Records
Review by: Captain Fidanza

With song titles like “œThe Pussy is the Bomb” and “œIdiot Asshole” I wasn’t expecting that much from this, even a loose pun on the name of quasi famous, quasi Cherokee, quasi talented American actor Lou Diamond Phillips was not enough to prevent me from thinking we might have another Bobby Joe Ebola on our hands here.

Speaking of Diamond Phillips, did you know he was in Miami Vice once ? I didn’t, I found out when I was researching a script I am writing about a parallel universe in which Ritchie Valens didn’t die in that plane crash which killed Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper and the knock on effect of the event meant that Lou Diamond Phillips came 185th in the 2009 World Series of Poker rather than 186th. We’re talking to a couple of studios at the moment but it’s looking like they want Lou Diamond Phillips to play himself in the film and I’m just not happy with that, I think it would compromise the overall integrity of the project.

But to finer things.

This here album compromises a whole series of unforeseen left turns, comprising as it does, a curious hybrid of stoner metal reminiscent at times of Sleep and John Coltrane’s “œtrial of strength” album Ascension.

I’d like very much to recommend this but I have no idea on what grounds I would do so other than by saying there really is no way of pinning it down with an easy classification. The cover art and choice of song titles suggest some puerile frat boy joke, but the first class musicianship on show speaks of infinitely higher aspirations. Definitely an oddity, possibly a curio, certainly an artefact, but of what, I’m not sure.