‘Spree’ by Plasticland
‘Spree’ by Plasticland
Unique among the neo-psychedelic bands of the ‘80s, Milwaukee’s Plasticland drew from a deeper mine of influence than their generational peers, with a more profound grasp of psychedelia’s possibilities and a lyrical sensibility unlike anyone else’s. Vocalist-keyboardist Glen Rehse was the presiding genius, sharing music writing with bassist John Frankovic but stamping his unusual vision of absurdity and paranoia on the words he sang.
The first new Plasticland album in many years, Spree, was recorded in 2006 and 2013, with the earlier session featuring Frankovic and original drummer Victor Demichei and the latter with Andy Kaiser on bass and Mike Koch on drums. The music departs from Plasticland’s ground-setting ‘80s recordings, following the direction they likely would have pursued—had they not gone dormant in the ‘90s—toward the Detroit proto-metal of the MC5 and the Stooges. Spree remains psychedelic, via Rehse’s dreamy vocal melody lines and lyrics, but musically, the flower garden has receded in favor of thorny hard rock. The assault is relentless on most tracks, with Rehse sharing guitar with Leroy Buth in fluid, dynamic interchanges. Buth led one of Milwaukee’s original punk rock bands, The Lubricants, and retains the punk energy but harnessed to Robin Trower proficiency.
Rehse also shares music-writing with Buth. In some cases, Buth’s music came first, including “Raw & Chafed,” whose pile-driving intensity became the vehicle for a lyric on the agonies of shaving, deploying Rehse’s bent for putting the everyday under a lysergic magnifying glass. A respite from the high energy, “Out of the Question,” was composed around a recording of a freight train slowly rumbling over a trestle.
Unlike the pop concision of early Plasticland, Spree allows the band to spread out on tracks that go on and on but never too long—just long enough that you hope they’d go on forever.
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