MORE SKIN WITH MILK-MOUTH

More Skin With Milk Mouth is, IMO, one of the best math rock albums released. It takes all of the complex time signatures and tempo changes of the genre, along with two brilliant musicians, and a whole lot of funk, and creates sort of a new sub-sub-genre for math rock. This is Joseph Andreoli and Kenneth Topham's second studio album, and third album (including their first live album, Live on KZSC), so the band has some experience. Their sound is way more polished and tight than on its predecessor, Superbass!!!.

Milk-Mouth opens with Giraffes? Giraffes!' most famous song, When The Catholic Girls Go Camping, The Nicotine Vampires Rule Supreme, once again proving how completely math rock Giraffes? are. The song opens with an open tuning riff Joe plays with his Digitech Whammy and after a short break, Ken joins him in an ultimate bashathon on his tiny drum kit. They alter 9/8 and 7/8 like never before before going into a groovy chorus on a paradiddle between 8/8 and 7/8. After a few of these, they go into a 4/4 break, in which Joe records a loop of himself playing a chord sequence, and then plays a smashing guitar solo on top. What occurs then is that the most awesome math-rock song is created!

The song then moves onto the song with probably the longest title in music history, which I will just shorten up to Shimer. Shimer is again, as are all Giraffes?' songs, a time signature pandemonium, made groovy with Ken's complicated yet simple drum beats. Joseph is a mean machine tapping riffs on his guitar that no human can ever play. This reminds me of early Tera Melos and even a bit of Battles. After a few minutes of bashing away on their instruments, the song moves into a quiet section, and when you think it's all over, it's back, and even greater! Joe, again, records himself on his looper and then plays an insane solo over. The song then again moves into a very beautiful quiet section, reminiscent of Godspeed You! Black Emperor (which are on the other side of this PA subcategory), and then back into the first riff. Then an amazing speech is played, back to the start, and finish.

Ghost of EPEPEPEPOOPEOEP (something)'s Ghost is the weakest track on the album. Joe records a quiet melody on his looper and then bashes on his synth while Ken plays some garbage in the background. This is also reminscent of early Tera Melos, although the wackier side. The guitar has a bit of Explosions in the Sky in it, but not as beautiful. Although, the song is short, and is mainly an interlude, so it's not that bad.

When the final chord is played, Giraffes? segue into Emilie Sagee's Secret, the heaviest track on the album. Metallic clinks and clangs play as Ken and Joe bash their mathy paradise unto our ears. After two minutes of awesomeness, they segue into a quiet riffy party, also reminiscent of GY!BE, and also a bit of Mogwai. The darkness and mysteriousness of it somehow, barely, reminds me of Sigur Ros, although it is much heavier. As Joe, once more, samples himself, he takes out a glockenspiel (?!) and rocks out a sweet riff, just before the band head back into the main riff, and race out.

A Quick One While She's Away is in my opinion the most accesible song on the album, It is light, it is catchy, and it is somehow poppy. Despite being 9 minutes in length and using various complex time signatures, it is very lightweight and fun. It reminds me of This Town Needs Guns meets Explosions in the Sky. Very upbeat, very cheerful.

Overall, this album is one of the greatest math rock albums, ever, and so, I give it 5/5 stars.