Fortnight in Londria

I admit that I approached Savage Aural Hotbed’s new disc with caution. Though this album was released on the Innova label, The Unified Pounding Theory seemed to intimate dudes and aggression and pin-up calendars in the auto shop. That caution morphed into intrigue, however, when a quick peek at their website admitted that they are a group made up of “four people who can’t seem to use containers, auto parts or power tools in the intended manner.” Their ten-track disc actually reveals an ear-opening tour through the sonic possibilities of selected non-traditional percussion instruments. The performers themselves are not a crew of Teamsters, but more likely their artistically-inclined children at play in the garage. Though there’s plenty of testosterone-laced rocking going in, there are some surprisingly sensitive moments as well, and a good bit of amusing exploration from an adventurous crew: The disc was recorded live, “except the part where Bill drove his truck on I-94 while Mark held 3 different lengths of sump pump hose out the window, recording the whistling on a portable studio.” Mothers, lock up your kitchen appliances.

—MS