Though it’s hard to imagine them recording for anybody else, Old Time Relijun can seem a little out of place on the K Records roster: while their twee labelmates mine childhood memories for nostalgia, Arrington de Dionyso and company seem more inspired by all the monsters that must have been hiding under their beds. The band’s lurching Beefheart rhythms, crazed vocals, and wailing horns — all present in full effect on their new album, Catharsis in Crisis — are enough to give a small child nightmares, or to encourage anyone else to really cut loose and hold some kind of pagan animal-sacrifice ritual. Old Time Relijun have always managed to be both tuneful and abrasive, in the pocket and totally off-kilter, and that balancing act shows no signs of growing old on Catharsis. Songs like ‘Indestructible Life!’ and ‘Daemon Meeting’ are executed with irrepressible energy and flair, while ‘Garden of Pomegranates’ and ‘Dark Matter’ could soundtrack some yet-to-be-made Jim Jarmusch film-noir. With all the rhythmic spasms and guttural exhortations, Old Time Relijun sounds like indie rock speaking in tongues, only more fun.
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