Gift Of Sacrifice

Album review

Six years after the last man anyone ever expected to make an acoustic album went and made an acoustic album, King Buzzo (aka Buzz Osborne of the Melvins) has gone and done it again. You can't say Buzzo hasn't learned from experience; while 2014's This Machine Kills Artists was a bit too spare for its own good, 2020's Gift of Sacrifice sees him bring in bassist Trevor Dunn, a co-founder of Mr. Bungle who previously worked with Osborne in Mike Patton's alternative metal project Fantômas, to fill out the arrangements. Like This Machine Kills Artists, most of the time Gift of Sacrifice bears a strong resemblance to the melodic and structural template of Osborne's work in the Melvins, sounding suitably doomstruck and downtuned, and the thick strum of his acoustic guitar plays bigger than expected, though it still lacks the authoritative muscle he brings with his electric. Dunn's upright bass, however, gives the music a sturdy foundation that restores some of the heft the acoustic guitar lacks. Sometimes using a bow, he can add effects resembling an angry cello, as well as plucking out patterns that recall vintage metal while possessing the rubbery flexibility and range of jazz. (The latter is not surprising, given Dunn's rich experience in free jazz and experimental music.) Buzzo and Dunn also throw in some electronic flourishes that add to the creative dissonance, as "Bird Animal" concludes with a volley of bleeps and static, and drone-like patterns swim through the finale of "Science in Modern America." This Machine Kills Artists felt as much like a tongue-in-cheek prank as an actual album; Gift of Sacrifice, in comparison, is noticeably more accomplished and better thought out, and Dunn's presence as a collaborator certainly helps Osborne make this into something memorable, though if he's smart he won't get rid of his amplifiers just yet.

© Mark Deming /TiVo