Lo Flux Tube

James Plotkin, the Frank Zappa of death metal, was in the process of turning his joke grindcore project Old Lady Drivers into a psychedelic guitar experience when this album came out in 1992. It was sadly lost in the shuffle while labelmates Carcass and Entombed got most of the mainstream media's attention that year, but the noise being made here is much more original and crazy than anything the two other bands were making at the time. Taking a cue from industrial music, Plotkin (here credited as Jimmy Old) loads the music with precise drum beats and the occasional electronic noises. His guitar work is truly stunning, slashing around the tracks like Dave Mustaine one minute and Kevin Shields the next. Former Nirvana guitarist Jason Everman contributes detuned bass, and even jazz madman John Zorn makes an appearance for a noisy saxophone solo. Only Alan Dubin's Cookie Monster vocals keep this from really being amazing. His voice detracts from the album quite a lot, taking away from the creativity shown in the music. But anyone looking past his obvious weaknesses as a vocalist can enjoy the album for what it is, an original experiment in taking death metal past its narrow boundaries and into new territory.