REVIEW: Adrian Belew, Coming Attractions (Thirsty Ear)
- Joann D. Ball
Adrian Belew has been an extremely busy man in the months since his last release, Salad Days. Among the varied projects Belew is currently constructing are a new studio record, a collection of unreleased tracks, and the second volume of an experimental guitar series. And, and all of this is in addition to his contributions to a new King Crimson CD. Rather than keep all of this musical productivity to himself, Belew has chosen to give the listening public a sneak preview of the songs and sounds that flow from his brilliantly overactive mind.
On Coming Attractions, Belew reveals the energy, enthusiasm, and the range of instrumental innovations that drive his creative process. Coming Attractions opens with "Inner Man" and "Predator Feast," two tracks from his soon to be released studio effort. On "Inner Man," guitar wizard Belew leads his aggressive power trio on a sonic assault that expresses the anger and rage within that is usually hidden from the world. And the song is propelled by drum samples taken from his most commercial solo record to date, Mr. Music Head. "Predator Feast" is another industrial strength aggro number, but here Belew transforms his guitar into a flame thrower over machine sounds-turned-drum loops by Ken Latchney. Both of these killer cuts suggest that Belew's year 2000 offering is bound to expand Belew's fan base and should reap great commercial rewards.
For those who are intoxicated by Belew's brand of classic power pop, though, Belew offers "117 Valley Drive" which features his sometime band mates the Bears. Switching gears yet again, this Beatlesque number is followed by "Inner Revolution" and "Time Waits" which were recorded in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1997. These two live cuts will appear on the upcoming live record This Is A Pencil.
Also included on Coming Attractions, are several tracks from an upcoming box set of rarities called Dust. An overview of songs Belew has written or co-written in the past twenty years, it includes a demo version of King Crimson's "People" and a reconstructed version of an alternate version of "Bird in a Box" from Mr. Music Head. And rounding out this 12-track sneak preview is "Animal Kingdom," an experimental track of African percussion preformed on guitar to the accompaniment of an acoustic drum kit. Unlike other projects, however, there is no projected completion or release date for the second volume of the experimental guitar series of which "Animal Kingdom" is a central part.
Yet again, Adrian Belew is generating some of the most intriguing and interesting popular music available today. Always blurring categories and genres by freely experimenting and developing new approaches to song and sound, Adrian Belew is a prolific musical genius whose work is always fresh and progressive. So enjoy the sneak previews on Coming Attractions and be sure not to miss any of the full length feature releases!
