The Bodies Obtained
From the Top of My Tree
(Finding You Attractive)
release: November 25, 2008
style: bizarre avant-garde rock
similar: Fad Gadget, Black Happy Day
[rating: *1/2] When your band name is from Joy Division lyrics, you better bring it. Bodies Obtained only brings a disconcerting oddness. The music actually has no similarity to Joy Division, though in the band's words in the press info they seem to justify it. So let's just cut to the chase here-- this mysterious artist from Detroit is only going to appeal to a specific and small audience. From the Top is the musical equivalent of a sideshow ala the Residents. The lyrics aren't wierd, but the delivery is wholey unorthodox. Various synth tones bloom all over the place like wild flowers, while the barely-sung, mostly unmelodic vocals embrace the no-wave of the early 1980s. In track three i'm positive there's a sample from Pac-Man circa Atari 2600, don't think i didn't notice. -Kenyon