The Blue Noise Band
Brad Green From Queens (Chocolate/Southern Love)
The second studio effort from Austin’s Blue Noise Band is an eminently able continuation of the local quartet’s jazz-centered cornucopia of noise. Though the mood swings on Brad Green From Queens are a tad more restrained than those of 1999’s Multi Purpose, the prime weapon in BNB’s arsenal remains quick-change artistry. “Austria” starts off like the punchy main refrain of a formulaic, B-movie spy caper from the early Sixties before progressing into a cool, four-sax stroll through blustery Gotham courtesy of the BNB’s David Lobel along with guest players Paul Klemperer, Richard Power, and Thad Scott. Then “V 2.5” kicks in with Tom Benton’s driving, fuzzed-out mullet metal bassline and extended guitar heroics from Adrian Quesada. The suspenseful sax snippet “Crawl Space” brings us back to the aforementioned spy caper, fast-forwarded to the scene just before the skeletal remains get discovered. Guest steel guitarist Ian Eagleson adds a mournful twang to the panoramic Western waltz “For Willard,” while “The Collapsable [sic] Kid” seethes with dizzy, late-night fear due in no small part to guest cellist Valerie Platt. And the ride wouldn’t be complete without “Brad Green’s Freylekh,” a climactic breakneck klezmer gem designed to leave you with an increased heart rate. Whoever Brad Green is, he can rest assured the Blue Noise Band has done him proud.
This article appears in April 13 • 2001.
