THE THEATRUM OF SUPRASENSORY UNIVERSES VOL. 1

Tucked in between their albums "Second Grand Constitution and Bylaws: Hurqalya" and "Book M," the SECRET CHIEFS 3 released this bizarre out of character short EP that not only contained no surf rock, no Middle Eastern music and no heavy metal but actually contains no music at all. Well, not music in the melodic sense anyways. This short little EP titled THE THEATRUM OF SUPRASENSORY UNIVERSES VOL. 1 is an extreme mix of mystique concrète, sound collage and electronic free flow with occasional meaningless vocal utterances. There is a brief excursion into heavy guitar riffing.

Despite having 11 tracks listed, the whole thing only lasts a mere 11 minutes and 25 seconds long but there are a lot of ideas stuffed into this short and weird romp through a strange sonic universe detached from the SECRET CHIEFS 3 regularly scheduled program. As with their regular albums, this too is an ambitious assortment of ideas that parade down the timeline in a dreamlike state and if i had to compare it to anything, the closest i could come up with is Mike Patton's "Adult Themes For Voice." Not because of the actual sounds employed but rather the utter uniqueness and strange collage of weirdness.

Although i've been a huge SECRET CHIEFS 3 fan forever, i have never checked out this tiny little curiosity until recently. While totally existing outside of their "normal" parameters, there's nothing this band does that isn't from the heart. While this sort of stuff isn't my main staple for a sonic experience, i have to say that it's quite well done and will appeal to the noise and experimental lovers. Think the bleak soundscapes of Nurse With Wound only more decked out in hyperdrive. While an hour of this may have been too long, 11 minutes seems way too short. Worth hearing if you like it as avant-garde as it gets.

3.5 rounded down