Neon Meate Dream Of A Octafish: A Tribute To Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band CD

Mike Watt/Weasel Walter/Brian Mcmahon/Don Fleming/Old Time R

Personnel: Mark Dwinell (vocals, guitar, clarinet, saxophone); Mister VH (vocals, guitar); Miss Murgatroid (vocals, accordion); Byron Coley (vocals, keyboards); Joincey (vocals, percussion); Carlos Giffoni (vocals, Theremin); Don Fleming, Kurt Stein, Jad Fair (vocals); Michael Labrecque (guitar, violin); Fred Moore, Matt Pitterle, Bernd Wihlfahrt, Mike Corey, Nels Cline (guitar); Black Alaska (electric guitar); Chris Hoffman (cello, clarinet, electronics); Mikarla Jarvis (cello, percussion); Philip Todd (harmonica, percussion); Thurston Moore (horns, marimba); Bob Lawton (keyboards); Dredd Foole (synthesizer); Dylan Nyoukins (vibraphone); Michael Preussner, Chris Corsano (drums); Bill Hoffman, Daniel Moore (percussion); Matt Brinkman, Emil Hagstrom, Matt Bacon (electronics); Manuela Sieber, Juila Henkel (background vocals).
Audio Mixer: Azalia Snail.
Liner Note Author: Brian McMahon.
Recording information: 00, Northampton, MA, Hamburg, Lincoln, NB Muzafer Asqer (07/2001-??/1999); 12 (07/2001-??/1999); Lyon Den (07/2001-??/1999); Presto Recording Studios (07/2001-??/1999); S'n'P Studios (07/2001-??/1999); Think Tank (07/2001-??/1999).
Unknown Contributor Roles: Mike Watt ; Ian Hoffman.
Tribute albums are always tricky business; the dilemma is usually summed up by artists either being overly reverential, or in reinterpreting the song they manage to destroy it. When the tribute is to an artist as singular and idiosyncratic as Captain Beefheart, the stakes go up because the nature of the work doesn't generally lend itself to reinterpretation. Don Fleming and Dacaer Pinga & Black Alaska avoid this by performing tributes that weren't written by Don VanVliet, although both songs are more a tribute to Beefheart's experimental spirit than anything resembling his music. As a general rule, the more faithful renditions here are the ones that work the best (Mike Watt, Jad Fair), although there are exceptions, like Miss Murgatroid's version of "Neon Meate Dream of an Octafish." The ones that really stumble simply take some lyrics and graft them to excessive skronk, as in the case of Vig ESP and Dapper. Neon Meate Dream of a Octafish is quite a mixed bag, with tracks that range from excellent to awful. This one is for Beefheart completists and fans of the performing bands only. ~ Sean Westergaard