CMJ ARCHIVE FOR
STRAITJACKET FITS
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STRAITJACKET FITS: Done Nov 10, 2000
By Jon Wiederhorn
There's something distinctly unsettling about Strait-jacket Fits' mildly psychedelic mind music. The songs are pretty, but they flow against an undercurrent of menace; they're not particularly aggressive, yet they're undeniably violent. It's like you've been allowed inside the mind of someone brilliant but certifiably, dangerously insane. Shayne Carter's vocals are sedated but tinged with pain, and his guitars shudder and shimmer threateningly, seeming to create enough tension to make the most content person anxious. These four new songs prove that the band hasn't lost any ground since guitarist Andrew Brough left after last year's tour in support of Melt. "Done" starts with an ominous guitar riff, and features some pretty scary rhythms alongside a nifty, ear-pleasing chorus. "Spacing" is slower, with tribal beats and delicious, spacey harmonies. Hazy and mercurial, "Solid" is held to earth by a solid rock rhythm, and "Whiteout" builds slowly and repetitively before washing away in a flurry of dementia.
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