Matmos - ‘The Rose Has Teeth In The Mouth Of The Beast’ (Matador) Released 08/05/06

It begins with a sleazy, shuffling, rag tune…music for Burroughs the opium decadent; the elder prince of the Beats…then down in Mexico he places a shot glass on his wife’s head, takes aim…snap of a gunshot…and puts one through her forehead…torment and inspiration…then the typewriter begins to tap away…it soon finds its “Arabic ragtime” psychedelic rhythm…narcotic and hypnotic…an aural Naked Lunch; music for wandering around a sinister, nocturnal bazaar. This is track nine, ‘Rag For William Burroughs’, and clocks in at just under fourteen minutes. It is a strange, compelling ride to get here.

On ‘The Rose Has Teeth In The Mouth Of The Beast’, the San Francisco duo Matmos have a created a series of “sound portraits”: brief musical biographies of people they admire. Some of the tracks are loose and abstract; others are literal and chronological - drawing on some essence or characteristic of each ‘hero’/’heroine’. It is a diverse, strange collection. At times claustrophobic and ominous, at other times playful and hedonistic. Yes, it is a concept record, but don’t let that put you off.

Opener, ‘Roses And Teeth For Ludwig Wittgenstein’ sets the bizarre, esoteric, eclectic tone, with its murky, industrial electronica, interspersed with quotes from the LW’s ‘Philosophical Investigations’. “A new born child has no teeth, a goose has no teeth, a rose has no teeth” goes the lyric, over the minimalist, mechanical rhythm. Crazy, inspired stuff. Indeed, it comes as no surprise when Bjork turns up half-way through. Imagine an insomniac, philosophy undergraduate, staring at the moon, mildly hallucinating from too much study, coffee, tobacco and Pro-Plus. The contents of their head would sound something like this.

The next track ‘Steam And Sequins For Larry Levan’ plays it fairly straight. It was inspired by the legendary DJ, but its smooth disco would sound fine if removed from the context. Then things get dark again. Yep, this one is inspired by Valerie Solanas, the feminist who made her name by writing the SCUM manifesto and shooting Andy Warhol. Over a mid-tempo reptilian beat we get more spoken words – all pills, prostitution and the mundane life – and a sense of dark recklessness.

But the mood soon shifts again. The carnal, ambient ‘Semen Song For James Bidgood’, which features Anthony, is a delicious light-dimmer and the electro noir of ‘Snails And Lasers For Patricia Highsmith’ would sound at home on the soundtrack to Sin City. Then ‘Solo Buttons For Joe Meek’ comes on like a shot in the arm. It’s a three and a half minute, surf and beat gem, covering the ascendancy and comedown of the 60’s British music producer. It’s all pretty unique, avant-garde stuff.

Described as “Wagnerian slapstick”, the ‘Banquet For King Ludwig II of Bavaria’ closes the record. Based on an incident in which the king had dinner served to his favourite horse. It is a bizarre hybrid of lunatic opera, skewed horns and smashed dinner plates and a fitting way to close an original, rewarding record. There are a few flaws, but the overall ambition carries it through the lulls. Cool, smart and uncompromising.