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The Tells of Parallels EP

by Mutts

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1.
Terranaut 04:53
Terranaut (c) 2010 Bob Buckstaff/Mike Maimone Sober now on realizing most "one day"'s don't leave horizons You can't drink from what you can't spill Die with dreams you've left unfulfilled Backlit booze future lusting 'round our necks the saints hang rusting businessman turned barstool prophet homeless soul with swollen pockets Man eat pig Man chop tree through Man gon' die Man now food, too Trees they fall Pigs they gon' shit We're all part of it
2.
Symmetry 02:21
Symmetry (c) 2010 Mike Maimone/Mutts I met another version of the man I've come to be a startling perversion of the mirror that I see The symmetry is scaring me. The speaker in my head speakin' on reverse delay The world becomes an echo of what I was going to say Overwhelmed by input; my thoughts beyond control Angels, demons, businesses competing for our souls The symmetry is scaring me. I can't stop it, I try to stop it; The Tells of Parallels. 'Cause it's equal and opposite once you get on top of it who'd you put in hell? Keys don't exist but to open locks Time still persists even without our clocks And I can't ignore that I've done this before - it's happening more and more and what's in store is starting to impair me The symmetry is scaring me. I can't stop it, I try to stop it; The Tells of Parallels. 'Cause it's equal and opposite once you get on top of it who'd you put in hell? The symmetry is scaring me. Yeahow. Y-ow. Keeyhow. Yeahow.
3.
Gone (free) 03:46
Gone © 2010 Mike Maimone/Mutts I said don't mess with a broken heart One jagged edge can tear a man apart Might feel familiar; no, it won't feel wrong... but once it's broke that heart is gone. Your love won't make it better. Better just forget her. Bloodshot eyes... sees sunshine, sighs, and wonders why.
4.
Masquerade 03:12
Masquerade (c) 2010 Mike Maimone/Mutts Snake Bites & Starry Nights full of cellophane coated dreams I can't get you off my mind I'm too choked up to scream You live in a room full of mirrors it's all you ever wanted to do You say the world looks much clearer when everybody there looks like you What a funny little masquerade... My eyes ain't good enough anymore and my ears are playin' tricks on me too. I can't stand your fake little world so I'm giving up on you. How do you chew with a tongue like a whisk broom? Say you could never be so cavalier. Switching sides like electric slide well baby, don't apologize if you feel like dancing. At your funny little masquerade... My eyes ain't good enough anymore and my ears are playin' tricks on me too. I can't stand your fake little world so I'm giving up on you. Well, can I dance at your masquerade?
5.
Junior 03:15
Junior © 2010 Mike Maimone/Mutts You been walkin' in the footsteps of your father Ain't no door you wouldn't close to make a dime You always wanted to be rich like your father now you're just like him - you'll only end up doing time While you're walkin' in the footsteps of your father, it's toward the penitentiary you fly your kite And when there's no more wind we'll find you been gamblin' with everybody's cash - kid your ass is doin' time. Junior, you've got big shoes to fill. I been thinkin' about Ohio in December the smoke stacks dormant as the bramble and the pine with vacant parking lots, and vacant present hiding spots when all move from assembly to unemployment lines So I've been thinkin' about the footsteps of my father how he did all he could to keep a workin' line so I'd be proud to walk the footsteps of my father. and just like him I gotta make a set of mine. Junior, you've got big shoes to fill. Whoa yeah... Conglomerates designed to penetrate and just take, take, take. It's what they got Junior learning in class now... but he won't know it 'til he's on his way back down.

about

"Maimone’s low, guttural, forbidding voice sets the speed, while heavy, distorto bass and pound-pound-pounding drums channel Blue Cheer, Cream, and Hendrix’s Experience while Maimone introduces his central weapon: forsaking all guitar, his organ is so piercing, loud, harsh, and mean, you don’t notice. Shifting from New Orleans funky rock like “Masquerade” to a Dr. John-goes-Funkadelic hangover like “Junior”, or throwing needles in the red on The Doors’ “L.A. Woman”-on-angel-dust (or steroids!) “Terranaut,” The Mutts will gleefully wreck a bad party—or save it."
- Jack Rabid, The Big Takeover Magazine

"Chicago’s Mutts aren’t playing around. The first aspect of their new EP, The Tells of Parallels, that truly jumps out from the speakers is its pure heaviness. Heaviness in the static-y production value and heaviness in general attitude. Every instrument on the record is mic’ed up to 11: the drums, the bass, the keys, the guitar. Actually, scratch that last one. The trio actually forgoes the guitar and instead relies on a dirty, mud-soaked key tone to drive the melodies. It’s saying something that a band can reach the big rock n’ roll moments of current major acts like Queens Of The Stone Age or the Dead Weather without an axe, but Mutts do and quite effortlessly at that.

The Tells of Parallels is one of those albums that if played at a high volume, the paint on the walls of your one bedroom rental might peel right off. Mutts seem to embrace the low end of the melodic spectrum. Even lead singer Mike Maimone’s vocals are nearly baritone, but his control and ability to hit the notes really flesh out their sound. Then you also have Bob Buckstaff’s fuzz-all-up-in-your-face bass and Chris Faller’s jackhammer drumming that can still sustain a nice groove when the song calls for it.

The EP begins with its most epic moment in “Terranaut”, which opens with some eerie spoken word over the sound of rainfall. Maimone’s vocals creep in with his keyboard ultimately exploding into a roller-coaster harmony with all the power of a 18-wheeler careening out of control on a dark highway. “Symmetry” ups the ante with a bit of a more brash, punk approach that’s fast and frantic. It’s hard to tell if Buckstaff’s bass is acutally playing along with the song or if it’s just a free for all solo, but whatever it is, it works. The song races to a big climax during which Maimone sings “Symmetry scares me!” followed by some fun “Whoo-Whoo-Whoos”. Another big rocker, “Gone” features a bouncy keyboard line that will surely get the listener’s head-a-noddin’ with Faller following behind with some killer snare antics.

“Masquerade” is a bit of a tease as it starts out with that punk aggression heard on “Symmetry”, but suddenly gives way to the album’s most pop-filled moment in a nearly reggae verse section. The record closes with “Junior”, a bluesy throwback that might be the most melodic song on the EP. Maimone really showcases his vocal talent on the track where his range transitions from a deep-throated, Texas-sized drawl to nearly metallic shrieks during the chorus.

In five songs, Mutts pretty much let it all hang out. The Tells of Parallels is not only well produced, a few songs are really fleshed out with some quirky overdubs and in-studio chatter, but it works because of it’s simplicity. Mutts never drag. They give it their all in five-minutes or less, and it really works. The band are poised to become one of Chicago’s top acts if they keep pumping out material that’s as good as what The Tells of Parallels has to offer. One word of warning: this record is made for Saturday night party shenanigans, not for the hangover of the morning after, unless you want your swollen head to get even more pounded." - Richard Giraldi, LoudLoopPress.com


"Taking a prompt from the EP cover, it's a bit like standing next to the railway line as a crazy express train hurtles past. If you like good old rock'n'roll with some attitude and energy and a hint of insanity you will like Mutts. " - BeehiveCandy.com

"The Chicago-based trio plays frenetic, rambunctious rock music with Mike Maimone’s keys and vox at the forefront. Like a modern jam band with some heavy blues and noise rock nuances, the music moves. It’s non-repetitive or stagnant; unpredictable and yet familiar." - TheMixtressOnline.com

credits

released October 1, 2010

* Bob Buckstaff - Bass
* Chris Faller - Drums
* Mike Maimone - Electric Piano, Organ, Vocals
* Jon Alvin - Recording & Mixing
* All on production
* Mastered by Jason Ward at Chicago Mastering
* (c)/(p) 2010 Mike Maimone/Mutts Music
* Recorded at I.V. Lab, Chicago, May 29 - 31, 2010
* Mixed at I.V. Lab, June 2010

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