VESTIGIAL LIMB "Headless Supplicant" (Husk Records)
It's like "My First Harsh Noise Tape" spelled all wrong in cute backward letters. This may sound totally arrogant and condescending, but this guy's real young right? Or he just started making noise? 'Cause it sounds like it-- but that's not a bad thing. Everybody started out sounding just like this. I'm serious. But there's promise here, no question. About twenty five percent of the choices Vestigial Limb makes on this tape kick ass. Another half are fine, totally acceptable. And the last twenty five percent are things an artist learns to avoid as he matures and masters his instrument. If I'm wrong and this guy's been at it for years, then I guess I'm an asshole. (I'm probably an asshole either way...) But youthful enthusiasm comes through in these recordings, even if technical virtuosity does not. And that's the stuff you can't learn, right? Everything else just takes practice, but without the passion, your music will end up sounding as soulless as Yngwie Malmsteen's. Total support.