It makes me very happy when something new sails in from the pride of Kiribati. Especially when it’s something like this top-notch new album and, let me tell you brothers and sisters, it’s an awesome adventure. It is also, however, difficult to summarize what you’re going to hear because it does not fit neatly into one box. But that’s OK, it’s all part of the enjoyment.
If you spend any time with the music of Anatomy of the Heads, or in their internet presence, you’ll quickly discover (1) they are somewhat enigmatic and (2) the have a good sense of humor. So, in keeping with what we know about the band, maybe the best description of “A Banishment of Bloodshed and Superstition!” is to say it is both mysterious and fun.
One example might be their song “Frightful Green Panic,” which has a real 1970’s vibe to it. What does that mean? Well, at times you’ll hear soft rock (but, really, it’s probably a little too weird to call it something that straightforward), funk, or progressive rock from that era. But (as with all the tracks here) those pieces come and go as the track evolves, and get blended with snippets of distorted voice samples and noise.
In fact, there are many more musical elements present, like the late-night jazzy guitar in “Turning Cattle into Dust” or the exotica rhythm in “Bat Pig Medicine.” But these are only moments in those two songs. Listen closely and you might hear snake charmer pipe, surf guitar, march rhythms, sampled voices, Sun Ra influenced keyboard noodling, and/or harsh noise. The music is layered and constantly shapeshifting; rather than worrying about the details, it’s best to just cool in the pool and waft along for the joyride of this heady ragout of sounds.