By: Mike Madavi
Artist: Tobacco
Title: The Allegheny White Fish Tapes
Label: Rad Cult
Genre: Lo-Fi : Noise
Release Date: 7/7/09
UPC: 643157404750
Territory: World
The Allegheny White Fish Tapes is a collection of Black Moth Super Rainbow front man Tobacco’s (Tom Fec) recordings from high school. All home made and recorded between 1996-1999 on 4-track cassette, this collection assembles many unheard tracks from the pre-BMSR and satanstompingcaterpillars days. While obviously not quite to par with his more contemporary work, Fish Tapes should be considered within its proper context: these are recordings Tobacco made in high school on a 4 track, yet they still showcase his incredible ear for hooks and melodies while providing BMSR fans with a document in the band’s history, helping illustrate the creative process he underwent to achieve the sound they love today.
The foundations of Tobacco’s later sound are lucidly observable in this record. There is a clear element of lo-fi, analog goodness mixed with the infant workings of what would become the banging beats on records like 2008’s critically acclaimed Fucked Up Friends. You can hear the psychedelic saplings of BMSR’s dreamy analog haze on tracks like “Too Weird to be a Tree.” His experimentation is not only interesting but yields cool results such as “Gonnna Git You Brainwashed” which sounds like some horrifying Aphex Twin demo. Some of the most personal and youthful movements come in his softer, acoustic recordings of simple melodies and sweet chord progressions (check out “The Blue Seahorse”). It’s these tender, private recordings that make early demo albums like this so great: the songs sound like youthful experimentation with songwriting when one doesn’t feel any pressure to achieve anything with a track, simply recording it because it’s pleasing to do so. One particularly interesting track is “Eating Butterflies;” Tobacco has stated in interviews the first instrument he learned was the guitar, working primarily off of Smashing Pumpkins’ tablature. Compare his early track with Siamese Dream and you can really hear the influence on pounding, super-distorted guitar riffs and aggressive drumming ala Jimmy Chamberlin.
Overall the album has primitive analog recording a-plenty and fun, simple songs that document the genius on the horizon, The Allegheny White Fish Tapes is a must have for Black Moth fans, Tobacco fans, or anyone seeking out some cool bedroom recordings.
