Pitchfork

Tussle know the point of a good groove is you stay in it. The San Francisco-based instrumentalists further the simple, dubby rhythmic exporations of prior full-lengths Telescope Mind and Kling Klang on this A-side from the band's entry in Tomlab's Alphabet 7" series. The bass locks into a one-note motorik drone, the percussion percolates with Studio-worthy polyrhythm, and electronic complements vary from burbly, detuned hums to distant tinnitus rings. If this song appears on Tussle's next album, as the band states on its website, then don't look for the Can and Neu! comparisons to stop-- nor understandable complaints like, "Hey, where's the rest of it?" Auspiciously, the sound quality remains pristine, with production here from Thom Monahan and Andy Cabic, the latter of whom quit playing bass for Tussle after the debut album to spend more time heading up quite good folk outfit Vetiver. So, Cabic's got his groove back?

[from the Tomlab Alphabet Series - R 7"; out now on Tomlab]