Major Organ & The Adding Machine

"Your Moonpie Eye!"

Alright, I finally got my hands on some more albums and I'm assuming I'm going to have more coming to me more regularly.  I have a cubby set up for me at the radio station and got two new albums this week.  Woot!  The first album I decided to take a listen to was "Major Organ & The Adding Machine" by Major Organ And The Adding Machine.  While this isn't typically my cup of tea, the people who supposedly have had a hand in it are people whose music I have enjoyed and so I decided to tough it out.  "MO&TAM" is undoubtedly inspired by drugs; I don't care what anyone says, there's no way hallucinogens didn't play a role in the creation of this album.  The first thing the cacophony of noise brought to mind for me was The Beatles' "Revolution 9" off "The White Album."  Several of the songs consist of a tumultuous whirlwind of chanting, clanging, sirens, musical instruments, and buzzing.  Oh, there's some singing in there too.  While I found most of it hard to listen to, (much like I find the nearly eight and a half minutes of "Revolution 9" hard to listen to), it did have its bright spots that were masterfully arranged.  Maybe it was the pleasant change from chaos to peacefulness, but certain tracks sounded like some of the best compositions I had ever heard.

The stand out song for me on the album has to be "Dance On The Telephone Poles" which slows down the pace of the album and manages to create a very harmonic melody, something that is incredibly refreshing; however, being the twenty third track on the album, its appearance seems to come a little late.  While contributors to the album have managed to remain anonymous for the most part, certain artists have been identified, such as Kevin Barnes of Of Montreal whose influence is without question on this track.  Other prominent indie artists such as Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel and Will Cullen Hart of Olivia Tremor Control and Circulatory System also have been identified throughout the album.  Jeff Mangum's standout vocals are noticeable throughout the album on tracks such as "Moonpie Eye Sensation," "Life Form (Transmission Received)," and "Madam Truffle."

The album was originally released on June 19th, 2001, however, Major Organ And The Adding Machine have decided to make an independent, self-titled movie due to release on September 14th, 2010.  "MO&TAM" is to be used as the OST for the movie with seven brand new tracks tacked onto it.  The film's trailer, without question, seems to only further the hallucinogenic influence in the making of the album.  Other influences can also be seen in the trailer such as several British influences ranging from Monty Python, The Beatles films, and old British satires involving a police man and a gorilla chasing one another.  

As a whole, the album is... interesting.  Based on what I've seen from the trailer for the movie, "Major Organ & The Adding Machine" will more than run parallel to the direction the movie will take the viewer.  While some tracks may be hard to listen to, there are also glimmering tracks that all listeners can really value.  However, some of them are incredibly short (such as "Swimming, Laughing, Playing" which creates a dark, calming atmosphere, yet only lasts a mere forty-nine seconds) leaving hardly any time for listeners to appreciate the well thought out composition and melody.  The rapid change of atmosphere and timbre may confuse some listeners, but others may appreciate it.  At some points "Major Organ" can be incredibly relaxing and of the utmost enjoyment; at other times, it can be one nasty trip.  Take a listen here.