Send "Pylon " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Pitchfork |
 "Life is nothing but death and taxes/ And all the trees that get the axes," Pylon singer Vanessa Briscoe Hay dryly coos on "K", against a backdrop of prickly guitar tones and a taut bass line. "I'm tired of moving my jaw," she also sneers, in case you didn't pick up on her disinterest. The morose opening track on Chomp More reinforces the standard notion that the R.E.M. contemporaries were Athens, Georgia's version of Gang of Four. But this reissue, another DFA-sanctioned dip into the band's brief back catalog, highlights the unhinged spin the band put on post-punk, a joyous take on mechanized funk.Recorded in 1982 after Pylon had already taken a U.S. road trip with Leeds' most famous Marxist rock collective, Chomp sounds more assured and more open. Packaged in a record sleeve with a die-cut "bite" on the edge and filled with stripped-down dance rhythms and proto-indie guitar riffs, it telegraphs bigger ambitions than 1980's Gyrate. Hay's attitude and vocals, the flipside of the bright camp coming from her contemporaries in the B-52's, swings from dry observations to passionate fury, further broadcasting the group's desire to evolve. She's slick yet airy on "Yo-Yo", a taut take on a relationship's heavy emotional swings, while she growls on the bright New Wave of "No Clocks", a passionate song about the honeymoon period. "Crazy" finds her slowly becoming unhinged, escalating into possessed, shriek-laden crescendo. R.E.M.'s jangly cover, which appeared on Dead Letter Office, wisely dials back, since Stipe's vocals lack Hay's fury and sharp edge. The creative guitar playing of the late Randy Bewley, who passed away earlier this year, highlights the stylistic crossroads the group never steered away from. Bewley pivoted a bit towards college rock riffs on Chomp, with the wry, surf-like playing on instrumental "Italian Movie Theme" and the crisp, cold runs on "Crazy" and "Gyrate". But his wiry, pointillistic style, like the flinty tones that open "Beep", dominate and helped drive Pylon's dance floor rhythms. His scratched, staccato notes on "Yo-Yo" were a perfect counterpoint to the oozing bass of Michael Lachowski....full text |
| Theomegaorder |
| PYLON - Chomp More To describe Pylon as ahead of their time is somewhat misleading, because it implies that there was ever a moment when music finally caught up with them. The architects of a sound unlike any of their Athens, Georgia, contemporaries and the inspiration for numerous post-punk imitators, Pylon still sounds unlike anything before or since. The B-52s and R.E.M. have both gone on record as stating that Pylon are one of the country's best bands. That's a remarkable legacy for a group that formed more than thirty years ago with the sole intention of playing one show, getting a review in the now defunct New York Rocker, and self-imploding. This CD, which features the band's 1983 sophomore album Chomp, is DFA's second Pylon reissue (following the 2007 release of the Gyrate+ collection) and offers inarguable justification for their seminal status. "K," an unlikely ode to Scrabble that opens the record, begins with drummer Curtis Crow using his snare to tick off a beat akin to a time bomb; seconds later the song builds to a clash of jagged guitar lines, wiry bass, propulsive drumming, and Vanessa Briscoe's startling vocals. "Crazy," which R.E.M. would later famously cover, sees guitarist Randy Bewley avoiding his usual sharp angles and instead taking a jangly respite, while Briscoe veers from a moody monotone to arresting snarls and piercing yelps. "Yo-Yo" strips down to herky-jerky staccato guitar and a few perfectly placed lyrical melodies; "Gyrate" buzzes with antsy, danceable energy; "Altitude" is a gorgeous and dreamy study in loud-quiet-loud dynamics. In addition to remastered versions of the LP's twelve original tracks, Chomp More includes the 7-inch version of "Crazy," a "male version" of "Yo-Yo" on which Briscoe merely guest stars, Pylon's own frenzied, frenetic remix of "Gyrate," and the rarely heard single "Four Minutes"--an ineffably beautiful pastiche of homemade and seemingly found noise. These innovative songs speak to the timeless vision of four young people who unwittingly created a sound that is still innovative, fresh, and distinct. More than three decades on, Pylon continues to lead--while music, as always, lags safely behind....full text |
| Popmatters |
| Chomp More (DFA) Releasing: Out now Legendary ‘80s post-punk outfit Pylon is set to re-release their sophomore effort Chomp, digitally re-mastered and expanded as Chomp More via DFA. The new record also includes a 7” version of “Crazy”, a “male version” of “Yo-Yo”, a remix of “Gyrate”, and the rare single, “Four Minutes”. You can download “ Beep” and watch a couple live performances below. SONG LIST 01 K 02 Yo-Yo 03 Beep 04 Italian Movie Theme 05 Crazy (Album Version) 06 M-Train 07 Buzz 08 No Clocks 09 Reptiles 10 Spider 11 Gyrate 12 Altitude 13 Crazy (Single Version) 14 Yo-Yo (Male Version) 15 Gyrate (Pylon Mix) 16 Four Minutes...full text |
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