Can Can Heads

Something else that’s come along and barged its way into the track listing queue mainly for the fact that its totally off its chops is the second album from Finnish loons Can Can Heads. This lot hailing from Bothnia describe themselves as a ‘no wave / skronk’ combo doing ‘Ramones meets Albert Ayler’ groove. And with that we were tempted to leave it be mainly for the fact that they’d pretty much described themselves in a nutshell. But curiosity is a fickle and mischievous mistress, whispering in our ear, urging us to put in our tuppence worth. Now this lot number 5 in the ranks, they been around since 1993 apparently with ’butter life’ being their second album to date following 1999’s debuting ’headcracking lifestyles’ set. Work shy fops was our first thought quickly followed by where the hell is my copy of that killer ’inside ov a butchers shop’ CD from many years ago (prime example here being the fractured psych outpouring on ‘piece movement / moose pavement’) but I kid you not this is the most mental, deranged and controlled chaos we’ve had – I was going to say pleasure – but that’s stretching the description – experience is more appropriate albeit as though wired up to the household mains and shock treated out of apathy. Where do we begin, easier to give you an idea of reference markers – this heat, henry cow or more specifically the members of henry cow when they all went their separate ways to tinker on various solo and collaborative projects, volcano the bear, the fall (which if your scratching your head puzzled as you read this whilst listening to said fried stew may we direct you forthwith and speedily to ’too numb to step’), pretty much everything put out by the adored foolproof projects imprint (‘guilty bystander’ being the chief culprit – the latest from those FP dudes incidentally appearing shortly here) and APATT – and even that long list of art gouged aural absurdists doesn‘t fully cover it. The set – incidentally titled ‘butter life’ – is being put out by a tri-party gathering of labels – karkia mistika, verdura and bottom of the page by way of whom it arrives as a strictly limited 300 only wax bastard – a copy of which I want as I’m sure you will to. 19 tracks shoehorned herein, pretty much every note a blistered anti pop statement that fuses, twists and mutates vaguely familiar musical disciplines (post punk briefly appears on the chilling discordance of ‘the pee party’ whilst those preferring matters a little more shambling will insanely adore the Stump-ed like ‘in the middle of inheriting‘ – and while we are here how about spazzed out hardcore with ‘the hour of your annihilation‘ proving to be very Atari Teenage Riot) and mischievously spews them out in what might be best described as a sonic car crash so that you get on one hand you get the stabbing feral art pop agit pop of ‘anti locomotive’ going toe to toe with the frazzled and fried no jazz squall of the Ayler-ised cranium pummelling ‘breakdiscodance’ which in truth admirers of hey colossus might do well to check by and tune into. Matters draw to a close with what I suppose passes as the albums centrepiece – clocking in at a stonking 5 minutes plus – epic territories for these sub two minute artisans I can tell you – a kind of deathless disco Dadaist dub work out that has 23 Skidoo all over it albeit as though backed by the classic ‘slates’ era Fall players sneaking in a little extra curricula activities behind their leaders back while Smithy shuffles outside for a quick fag. Annoyingly annoying. Perfect. http://www.cancanheads.bandcamp.com/album/butter-life