Cush

Item: E.P.
Author: Bert Gangl

E.P.

(2001)

Reviewed by Bert Gangl

Discogs YouTube

Label Northern RecordsThe Phantom Tollbooth2001

garage rock new wave punk

Although the colleagues of Cush hail from some of Christian music's most successful and revered alternative rock bands, tagging its collection of artists a supergroup seems somewhat of a misnomer. To be sure, the group's membership includes players from such highly esteemed alternative outfits as the Violet Burning, Duraluxe, Fold Zandura and the Prayer Chain, among others. But, in the words of the members themselves, Cush is more of a concept than anything else and, as such, is represented by a like-minded, but constantly shifting, roster of writers and musicians rather than by a formal band. Regardless, though, of how one chooses to define the group proper, the collective's second effort, the Cush EP, represents an ideal opportunity for the Cushites to shelve convention and explore a less structured, and more abandoned, approach to music making than might otherwise be available to them in their respective band settings.

To this end, the Cush collective succeeds splendidly. The EP-opening "Halo Sounds" bolts out of the starting gate like a champion thoroughbred and, from that point on, the band rarely stops to look back. "Sniper's Morning" and the equally lively "Anchor Deep" are filled to overflowing with the loose, sludgy guitar riffs and delightfully rowdy attitude that inhabited ground-breaking late '60s proto-punk stylings of Detroit's MC5. "The Brightest Light" is a similarly authentic-sounding nod to melodic '70s glam rock, down to its Bowie-like vocal inflections. "A Rock and Roll King" lifts guitar and synth riffs from "Baba O'Riley," "Can't Explain" and "Won't Get Fooled Again" for its boisterous salute to the British Invasion hard rock stylings of the Who. And "Rev It Up" is a hoarse-throated, all-out barrage of garage band rock & roll that teeters, gloriously, on the verge of falling apart. On the lyrical front, with lines like (Jesus, save our souls!/ Jesus, rock and roll!) and (Got a lot to say/ Gabba gabba hey/ Jesus saves), one is never truly sure if the band is paying tribute to the music it emulates or merely sending it up. But, given that the results are this gloriously high-spirited and well-executed, the answer hardly seems to matter. While the members of the Cush commune have, by and large, forsaken the dreamy emo rock musical backdrop and tangential, semi-poetic lyrics of their impressive self-titled debut, they have, at the same time, traded them for a writing style that is both earthy and immediate. And, given the magnificent way that the Cush EP has turned out, one is ultimately hard-pressed to object.

4 tocks