CEVIN KEY - Music For Cats

Songs: 13  Time:  73:09

Cevin Key’s Music For Cats hasn’t really drawn that much attention and it’s easy to see why.  It just isn’t that great.  Music For Cats is an audio gathering of solo work that Key has done between 1994 and 1997.  None of the tracks really align themselves with anything else Key has done.  For the most part, their soundtrack in nature and they don’t possess any of those abstract audio sounds that Key is known for.  While this is considered a solo album, Key had quite a lot of help on many of the tracks, including d.R. Goettel who assisted him with 5 of them.  The first of these, Wind on Small Paws, is very slow, minimalistic piece that drags on with very little change.  I suppose that if you jacked-up on the drug of your choice this might be an interesting track, but listening to it straight makes for quite a boring trip.  Meteorite does have its moments, especially when you notice the eraticly paced, bubbly synths and staticy bassline, but after a few listens, this track grows sold.  Blotter, with Spybey providing the ambience, is equally as uninspiring and monotonous.  Although I have liked some of the work Spybey had done with Download, I was never a huge fan of Dead Voices On Air and that is the musical style that Blotter follows.  Herbalist Rule, also with Goettel, is one of the better pieces on this CD.  With a flat, distorted beat and catchy sequences, Herbalist Rule has somewhat of a more upbeat feel to it, which plays against the rest of the album.  Go Go Boots contains similarly effected beats, but the backing synths aren’t that spectacular.  With Ashok Sarkar and John West supplying some vocals and with the music wrapping itself around into a chorus / refrain structure, Full Circle is as close to a true song that you’ll find on Music For Cats.  Grah Statikcat (Electrode) finishes off the album on a seriously downer.  With limited beats and airy synth patterns, this piece sounds more like bad trance than anything else.  I believe that with the aide of drugs this album is intended to be listened to from beginning to end and possibly provide some bizarre effects on one’s mind.  Cey’s other project, Plateau - which was based on a similar idea, can be enjoyed both with and without narcotics, something that Music For Cats just can’t pull off.
   
METROPOLIS RECORDS
P.O. Box 54307
Philadelphia, PA 19105
e-mail: metropol@voicenet.com
METROPOLIS homepage:
 http://www.metropolis-records.com
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Cevin Key is assisted by:
D.R. Goettel / Genesis P Orridge / Ashok Sarkar / John West / Philth / Mark Spybey