Major out of nowhere archival blat: I fess straight up that prior to this record’s release I knew exactly nada about the activities of the late Dan Russell and the Flint, MI underground rock scene 1971-2010. Indeed, it was a nod from Tom Lax at Siltbreeze that set us on the trail after he received this amazing LP as an unsolicited submission. Basically, it gathers a bunch of material that Dan cut with a slew of bands that he fronted, with a focus on his activities in the 1980s/90s with The Rub, Sissy Fit, Uncle Daddy, The Need, Fer Cryin’ Out Loud and The Bumps. However Russell’s vision remains consistently clear no matter who he’s jamming with. The closest comparison is obviously Jim Shepard and Vertical Slit. Russell clearly had the same set of influences: Reed, Cale, Fripp, Eno, Cooper, Ayers, Be Bop Deluxe, prog, proto-metal... and he has a similar commitment to raw, home-burned documentation. Alla the recordings here are cut straight to a Fostex 4 track with the exception of a wild jam recorded live at The Backroom. Like Shepard, Russell’s vision of rock was so stupe and so excessive that he took all that the worship of his heroes implied and then exploded the whole deal, combining off-the-cuff proto-punk fidelity with amazing songs complete with cranky fuzz guitar and epic basement atmospherics. Some of the music has the kinda metal feel that Lester Bangs was always trying to articulate, a form of particularly weighty avant garage that refused the sissification of mainstream rock while staying true to its original promise. If you’re at all attuned to the under-the-counter-culture sound of the Columbus, Ohio scene and if you believe that the true inheritance of the revolutionary trajectory of late 60s/early 70s rock lies in the underground complete w/a commitment to breaking out and freaking with it then this set is nothing short of a revelation. Comes with an insert with liners and snaps that demonstrate a fondness for jamming in nothing but a pair of Speedos that only adds to the legend. Highly recommended.