Review Roulette: Stone Deep, Teen Idols, Thee Phantom 5ive, Terminal Mycosis (1990, 1996)

Stone Deep photo by Heather Lose

STONE DEEP
“Gangs and The Govt.” b/w “Mr. Sunray”
(Secession Records)
    Nashville’s Hard Corps were local heroes in their day, an ultra-popular band that played a hell of a live set and built a large and loyal Southeastern following by doing so. That their single major label album didn’t reflect the extent of their talent and energy was a true shame, and an indictment of the way that even minor league labels try to force bands into a preconceived mold. Out of the ashes of Hard Corps came Stone Deep. With the worthy addition of former Scatterbrain guitarist Glen Cummings, Stone Deep have developed an identity and following of their own that rivals that of their musical predecessor. Their first effort is another 7-incher that has been lost in our vaults, but it’s well worth looking into.
    Side one offers “Gangs and The Govt.,” which takes a unique lyrical stand by comparing villianized street gangs to the government that battles them via police S.W.A.T. teams and Federal task forces. In light of events like Waco, it’s a bold and insightful statement, a true view from streetside. The music is pure metallic funk, a hybrid of rap styling and hard rock riffs that drill the vocals home. “Mr. Sunray,” on the flip side, is a lighter, soulful bit of musical whimsy with a funky beat and some interesting vocal play. Since the release of this single, the band has only increased their popularity in the region and recorded a number of other songs. (1996)

TEEN IDOLS
Nightmares EP
(House O’ Pain Records)
    Nashville’s Teen Idols are my favorite live band on the local scene – few of the Music City’s rock pretenders and poseurs can match the energy and sincerity shown by Teen Idols on any given night. The band’s latest HO’P vinyl release, the Nightmares EP, offers solid evidence as to why. The band kicks ass through five short and sweet, hit-a-lick and hit the door punk rock tunes. There’s just enough pop mixed into the screaming guitars and frantic rhythms of songs like “I Regret It,” “Anybody Else,” or the title cut, “Nightmares,” to make it easily accessible, just enough fervor and attitude to keep it punkish. You won’t find a bad cut on the EP, no matter how hard you may try, filled as it is with infectious rock ‘n’ roll with a real edge. I expect big things from Teen Idols, who have been building a loyal regional following and solid musical reputation for over a year and across several vinyl releases now. (1996)

Thee Phantom 5ive

THEE PHANTOM 5IVE
...Lift Off To Kicksville EP
(self-produced)
    Another 7-incher that’s been sitting on the shelves since last summer waiting for its moment in print, Nashville’s Thee Phantom 5ive are rapidly becoming Nashville’s resident gods of instrumental surf music (Los Straitjackets, who are increasingly going “Hollywood,” notwithstanding). As advertised by its title, ...Lift Off To Kicksville delivers plenty of kicks, with lively surf guitar punctuating the EP’s four scorching cuts. “Pressure” and “Our Favorite Martian” grace the first side of the disc, offering cheap thrills a plenty with ringing six strings and a steady beat. Side the second starts off with the roaring “Surf Softly,” an energetic instrumental that bravely explores musical turf that others fear to tread. The lone vocal cut of ...Lift Off To Kicksville, “(We Built A) 501 (Caddy)” sets off in search of cheesy sixties-styled thrills with vicious dueling guitars and hilarious trash talk about the “biggest road car ever!” If surf rock instrumentals are your passion, then you owe it to yourself to check out Thee Phantom 5ive, the new kids on the beach. (1996)

TERMINAL MYCOSIS
Nine of Cups
(Potters Wheel Records)
    I crossed paths with this mysterious and pseudonymous recording several months ago, awestruck by its simplicity and disturbed by its dark, brooding ferocity. A cassette-only recording of eight songs, Nine of Cups explores an experimental side of music where even angels fear to tread, an industrial-styled psychotic portrait of pain containing scraps and snippets of found vocals (was that Adolph Hitler…or Ronnie Reagan?), odd instrumentation, distorted guitarwork and demented percussion. At once both fascinating and repulsive, Nine of Cups is a cacophonic cry into the abyss. The question raised by such an artistic statement, however, is whether its creator…the anonymous “Terminal Mycosis”…is mad, or is society? (The Metro, 1990)

TERMINAL MYCOSIS
None To Share
(Potters Wheel Records)
    Nashville’s Terminal Mycosis has returned with he/she/its second effort, a thick, complex and multi-layered grouping of five compositions. None To Share rests somewhere in the musical netherworld between industrial music and cyberpunk theory, blending magick and ritual with found vocals, technological sound, synthesizer-produced rhythms and odd, unidentified random instrumentation to create a dark and disturbing hybrid too heady for many folk. Fans or followers of Psychick TV, Arcane Device, or the Hafler Trio would enjoy this; many others would simply dismiss it without knowing exactly what it is: the abyss of the soul glaring back at the listener. (The Metro, 1990)