No Safety were not what you are expecting if you came to them from the
Curlew connection.
Spill, their second and last studio effort, is a rock record. Call it alternative, progressive, or avant if you will: it draws from several genres. But, fans of the New York downtown scene aside, people most likely to favor this album would be fans of the '80s and '90s
King Crimson. The pounding riffs and the interplay between the guitars of
Chris Cochrane and Doug Seidel put a lot of the songs somewhere between the
Crimson of the '80s and the direction(s) the band would take later down the line.
Cochrane's vocal stylings are especially reminiscent of
Adrian Belew ("Sad," co-written by
Cochrane and
Tom Cora, could be the missing link between Three of a Perfect Pair and THRAK). That being said,
No Safety were no copycats and
Spill is more experimental and deconstructionist than any
KC record. In addition to the guitarists, this album features
Zeena Parkins playing keyboards, electric harp, and accordion; Ann Rupel on bass; Tim Spelios on drums (replacing
Pippin Barnett); and guest
David Shea at the turntables and samplers.
Cochrane,
Parkins, and Rupel share lead vocal duties. Despite its leanings toward complex writing and experimental quirks, the group remains faithful to the song format, and all 16 tracks are kept under five minutes. Ideas are developed efficiently; melodies are not over-repeated, which helps maintain a fast pace throughout the album. Highlights abound, but "Sad," "Pavlov's Heaven," and "Saturday Morning" stand out because of their catchy melodies and tight arrangements. This is one of the best albums of N.Y.C. avant rock before
Sonic Youth imposed their noise aesthetics on the genre. It is also worth noting that there are no repeats between the repertoire of this studio album and the songs performed on Live at the Knitting Factory. ~ François Couture