(IT (IS) IT)

A school friend introduced me last year to 90 Day Men, he said they had great sound and interesting compositions, so I accepted that recommendation and looked for some music. They are a band from the USA (Chicago, more specific) which started playing together in the mid nineties, and in 1998 they released their first album. Their second one was entitled "(It (is) it)" and released in 2000, including 8 songs and a total time of 45 minutes.

My first impression with this band was actually that they are not really a prog rock one, but a psychedelic/alternative one with some prog hints. They are also considered as a math rock band in some places, I agree just in a couple of songs. I actually was surprised when I saw this band were in ProgArchives database.

The first song is "Dialed in", an interesting raw and kind of psychedelic guitar, making an acid sound in some ways and an aggressive one in others. The vocals are not the best here; they remind me a bit to Thom Yorke but of course not at the same level. The sound is very interesting, those guitars and the constant drumming gives a fresh sound.

With "Missouri Kids Cuss" you will listen to a pretty similar song than the previous one, actually you may think it is still the first song, but no, it is a new one. The guitars produce an acid but interesting sound, sometimes heavier and sometimes softer, but always creating a moment of expectation, which ends when the song explodes before minute 3.

"From One Primadonna to Another" starts very psychedelic due to the guitars and drums sound, then make a short stop and vocals appear, those vocals are pretty werid ala Yorke but in moments with a more intense sound. This is a short song which seems to be simple but the guitar work is excellent.

"Summer Illuminary" is their ten-minute epic, a trip which starts slowly with soft drums and a delicate guitar over there, the mood is kind of nervous and doubtful the different figures and little elements help the song being more interesting, despite the rhythm is practically the same all the time, but every second a new element adds its grain of sound, I have to say that I would have preferred this as a complete instrumental song because when vocals appear I think they mess up this trip.

"Hans Lucas" is the shortest track, I would describe this as an introduction of 90 Day Men's music, weird sounds and some strange vocals, I believe bands like Pixies or Sonic Youth were an influence for them.

Next one is more interesting "Exploration vs Solution, baby" which actually follows the same psychedelic path with those drums and guitars; here the bass sound is also very interesting. It is repetitive but addictive in general, the sound is not that gentle, not easy to listen and dig but if you can do it then you will enjoy it, if not, you will feel annoyed.

"Sort of a Country in Love" continues the previous song, though it changes and slows down a little bit later, creating a dark mood in moments. There are some spoken words, and some gentle sounds later because I believe there is a piano which adds a new atmosphere and background to this song, after minute 3 it changes a little bit and takes a new direction, it reminds me sometimes to Bark Psychosis or Do May Say Think, so that math/post rock reference can be listened here.

"Jupiter and Io" the last song of this record, and returns to that raw and aggressive sound, the guitars are what gives an own style to this band, at least in this album. This is not the best song to finish this album in my opinion, but it shows another face of the band.

Nice album, not memorable but the music can be really interesting in moments, enjoyable and intriguing, but far from being wonderful. My final grade will be 3 stars.

Enjoy it!

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