The Pleasures of Merely Circulating

(Ettabelle)

Marfa is mystical land. It’s in the middle of nowhere, spiced with culture, art, and the Pleasures of Merely Circulating. It’s appropriate, then, that the Pleasures’ visceral art-punk is more philosophy than raunch. Jeanne Sinclair takes cues from Sleater-Kinney as much as L7, but that’s not to say the Pleasures can’t be sweet. Opener “Famous Religions” snaps awake with a classic punk rock beat, courtesy of Robert Halpern and Chris Cessac’s rhythm section, but Sinclair is the raging force. The saccharine comes in dark behind “Funerals, Romance, Etc.,” and the trio pays homage with the whip-smart “Lightnin’, Huddie, D.” There are generic missteps (“You & Me &” and the ska-rific “Song for the Luddites”), but Ramonesian closer “The History of the South” makes up for them, painting a picture of the band’s hometown, just like the tasty artwork gracing the inside cover of the disc.

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This article appears in February 8 • 2008.

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