Crippled Black Phoenix - 200 Tons of Bad Luck

01. Burnt Reynolds
02. Rise Up and Fight
03. Time of Ye Life / Born for Nothing / Paranoid Arm of Narcoleptic Empire
04. Wendigo
05. Littlestep
06. Crossing the Bar
07. Whissendine
08. A Real Box of Cheer
09. 444
10. A Hymn for a Lost Soul
11. A Lack of Common Sense
12. I am Free, Today I Perished

For what they do, Crippled Black Phoenix achieve a fair amount on 200 Tons of Bad Luck. The only problem is, sometimes it just seems like they’re doing a bit too much. The disc is compiled from tracks off of two different releases with two very different sounds, and upon listening to the final product, this is more readily apparent than anything else. Clocking in at over 70 minutes, the album runs the stylistic gamut from languid post-rock to the sounds of Pink Floyd circa 1977. Like Forrest Gump’s analogy of life, you really do never know what you’re going to get next.

This eclecticism is a mixed blessing, as the variety keeps you guessing, but the stark juxtaposition of styles prevents 200 Tons from attaining any sort of thematic unity from front to back. For a perfect example of this, one must look no further than the first three tracks: dirge-like opener “Burnt Reynolds” is followed up by the plodding alt-rock of “Rise Up and Fight”, which closes with the pulse of a beating heart – a not so subtle nod to Floyd – before transitioning into “Time of Ye Life/Born for Nothing/Paranoid Arm of Narcoleptic Empire”, an eighteen-minute monster of a suite. If this all sounds a bit jarring on paper, that’s because it is to a certain degree. In a weird way, though, it kind of fits. Hell, this album kind of rocks.

Kind of.

Some moments do feel out of place, like the lo-fi carnival samples which make up the entirety of “A Real Box of Cheer”, as well as providing the coda for “Burnt Reynolds”. The same can be said of “A Hymn for a Lost Soul”, a piano/choral duet which serves no real purpose. Luckily, these blemishes are overshadowed by a handful of songs which are among the best released by any band this year, regardless of genre. “Littlestep” could easily be a b-side from Animals, and the polyrhythmic introduction of “Crossing the Bar” engages and captivates in a very unique manner.

All of these things come together to make an album that’s pretty damn good – the question, then, is one of making it “great.” And while it would be tempting to suggest Crippled Black Phoenix make up their mind as to the direction they want to pursue, perhaps this is not the case. Perhaps the bipolar nature of the music is what makes it enjoyable. Perhaps what the bands need is not a singular purpose, but simply a few more years to iron out the kinks and tighten things up. Perhaps a classic album is in their reach...www.thesilentballet.com