Strangefire- Zipper Confetti

Artist: Strangefire
CD Title: Zipper Confetti
Label: Self-released
Reviewer: Matthew Johnson
Date: 4/30/06

The relatively new "freak folk" scene, led by such artists as Devendra Barnhardt and Akron/Family and championed by none other than Swans founder Michael Gira and his Young Gods Records label, is bringing the low-fi psychedelia of the '60s back into the hipster underground again, but Strangefire is far more low-fi, far more psychedelic, and far more underground than any of the current critical darlings. That isn't necessarily a good thing. While the understated melodies of "Pictures From A Nudist Beach/Farming For Carrots (Mr. Weezil Says Hi)" and "In The Shadows" are nicely dreamy and laid back, too much of this CD is just weird for the sake of weird. "Merlin Sez," for example, is just a bunch of background noises thrown over some stony guitars, all randomness and no wit or subtlety, and the fact that "Guilty Of A Lounge Act" is clearly intended to be annoying doesn't make it any more pleasant to listen to. Strangefire have yet to learn the lesson that just because something sounds neat when you're high and playing in the garage doesn't mean it deserves to be inflicted upon the rest of the world. If they can tone down the self-indulgent bits and apply the LSD aesthetic with a bit more discretion, however, they'll really have something worth listening to.

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