GOOD NIGHT TO THE BUCKET

The now-defunct Vedda Tribe followed up their excellent debut album with the rather disappointing 'Good Night To The Bucket' (2004), an album that witnessed a shift towards an increased use of electronics and a further urbanisation of the band's sound. They're like RPI exiles on this album with an industrial and mechanical sound from the extreme frontier edge of the genre. This isn't too surprising as the band came from the Industrial Triangle in the north of Italy, and the claustrophobic expression and intensity are perhaps in keeping with the dark heart of Italy.

Compared to the band's debut release, this album's terrain is dominated by shorter, more numerous tracks resulting in something a disjointed feel and there's a greater reliance on vocals; combined with the newfound fixation with electronics this all results in less guitar- driven psych. The ancient cults and traditional cafe ice-cream have been expunged in favour of a bang-up-to-date mutant fusion of modern music, beat culture (the gimlet-eyed reader will note the reference to Allen Ginsberg's 'Holy Soul Jelly Roll') and what might be described as electronic gamelan.

Not by any means a bad album, but probably of minor interest to most RPI fans who should check out the band's first album instead.