The Crack Pipes
Snakes in My Veins
Emperor Jones
I usually have my CD player set to count down the life of songs. I like knowing how many minutes and seconds I have left to enjoy or suffer through a particular piece of music. Because of this, I already knew something about Snakes in My Veins before I heard a single note: it’s too long. Sixty minutes of clammy raunch & roll later, I can commend myself on my powers of deduction.
This is ’60s garage rock; the same ubiquitous kind you’ve been exposed to for the past three years. It’s testifying white boy soul with A-string riffs and an almost funky rhythm section. Occasionally, the band steps into other ’60s-centric roles such as the worse-than-_Self Portrait_ Dylan impression of “Super Motel 8,” the superior tremolo soaked “Jawbone Blues” and the epic roadhouse blues of Aretha’s “Save Me.” In the end though, this album is what I always thought a Guess Who album would sound like. Unfortunately, I never owned any of that band’s records, so why would I want this?
Emperor Jones: http://www.emperorjones.com/
