Cale Parks – Illuminated Manuscript (Polyvinyl Record Company, 2006)
The young Cale Parks has played in enough bands to convince you that he’s in his late 70s or so. He’s been a part of Aloha, Cex, Joan of Arc and Pit Er Pat. And while, after that list, you may feel as if you have some sort of concept of what his solo album will sound like, you’re probably really bloody wrong. But first, considering the fact that all the noise on here was recorded by one individual, the question arises; why are these tracks given such names? I don’t aim to answer that, but I will say that there needs to be some low end rhythmic activity on some of ‘em. “Tiny Theme” is lily white Kraut rock, yes that’s right, the Midwest has made Kraut rock more white with the lack of low end depth. Not a bad track, just a little bitta something missing. Seeing as this was recorded by one person, the songs do tend to be a bit self indulgent. Not in an ‘80s metal guitar solo kinda way, but in a self pleasuring manner. The inclusion of sporadic female vocals on “Galaxy 8180” adds a bit more depth and width to this release. And after taking in all that there is on these twelve tracks, it’s easy to understand that Parks is well versed and entertained by disparate musics; the inclusion of a few unabashedly electronic numbers is proof of that. While the approach and attempt to get all those genres in there is admirable, a focused attack on electronic music might have yielded a stronger outing.
Tracklisting:
01 – Pretty Boring
02 – Galaxy 8180
03 – Tiny Theme
04 – Halls Of Avalon
05 – I Am The Arm
06 – Late Show
07 – Wet Paint
08 – Me At Home
09 – The Garden Is A Maze
10 – Fearsome Opponent
11 – Moccasin Bend
12 – Beat Masheen
