The infamous Fuzztones are back with the most blistering, raw, punked-and-psyched-out album i`ve heard in a long time, "Salt For Zombies" is their first studio release in 13(!) years. Rudi and Batlord spent about 9 months mixing the new opus. The end result is a skilfully constructed, fuzz-drenched sonic excess that continues the best traditions of the amazing Lysergic Emanations LP. Every track is full of maniac guitar riffing, raunchy monster fuzz, tribal drums, swirling combo organ and mind- blowing lead vocal.

This record has all the wonderful qualities that make an album outstanding in my book: an immense emotional depth, frenzied power of playing, untaimed attitude and that rawness `tones are famous for. The album serves up a fantastic mix of mostly obscure `60-s covers and original tunes. Every cover, however, sounds like originally written: that special treatment Fuzztones give a song when covering it produces a geniune blend of punky "evil" energy, sinister voodoo trippiness and stunningly authentic `60-s feel.

All arrangements are tight and energetic, there is no dead weight on this cd. Every song rocks, yet every song has its psychedelic moments. The album is fuzzed out and furious, it is bad, mad, sexy, dark, weird... Rudi Protrudi - one of the most charismatic voices (and personalities) of the whole garage revival scene is tremendous on lead vocal, from seductive whispering to the primal scream - this guy has it ALL. The album starts off with the rocking Prunes cover My Brother The Man. This fast, raving piece is guaranteed to rip bursts of adrenalin out of a listener with its razor fuzz, maniac lead vocal and tasty, stylish organ solo.

The second track Get Naked is a way slower, with Sky Saxon on guest vocals. An invitation to undress your psyche and get ready for the madness which begins to reveal itself now in the third tune Face Of Time. This raunchy fuzz monster will put you into the right mood for one of the highlights of this album: Be Forwarned. This fantastic cover (originaly performed by Macabre) deals with a sinister love obsession and the Fuzztones version matches the subject matter perfectly. Rudi`s haunting voice emphasized by the ghostly backing vocals, loads of scary echoey effects excellently merged with the awesome fuzz, relentless lead guitar solos, vibrating organ chords - all that dark splendor creates a foreboding, despairing but yet rebellious feeling that goes straight to the bone.....Overwhelming!!

But there is no room for revelling in sorrow on this powerful album! Here, ladies and gentelmen, comes Jonson In A Headlock - a delicious original highly rated by many fans. It`s an up-tempo rocker, a track you can`t help thinking to yourself: "these guys & gals know how to rock`n`roll" while listening to it. It sounds fresh and vital and has a lot of that special edge and rawness which make rock`n`roll so daring, so untaimed, so...plainly wyld. The track starts out with a sharp, cheeky organ solo followed by fuzz- crunching guitar. A short but brilliant break in the middle with its fat drum section, wickedly-sweet background vocals and smart harmonica solo gives this song some sexy-teasing touch...Feel it - till the dark madness starts to creep in again.

This Sinister Urge is coming now, a heavy track, anxious and angst ridden, dealing with nightmarish serial killer fantasies. This (surprisingly) melodic tune takes a listener aback with unexpected pace changes in refrain where evocative lead vocal mutates suddenly into a sort of prehistoric scream while guitars explode with raw, "primitive" fuzz. This song shows you some dark corners of the psyche, corners we`d rather not to think about...where the Black Lightning Light is born. It is an another astonishing cover (original by the Shy Guys). This song displays the psychedelic side of the `tones. Although it begins as a fast, up-tempo adrenalin pumper with heavy driving lead fuzz and swirling organ, at 3.15 the track turns to psychedelia. An instrumental break that comes now has everything: Relentless, menacing blistering guitar work, acid fuzz, trippy electronic gimmicks combined with trancey beats and echoey backing vocals - a wierd mixture that produce dark sonic masses laden with a tormenting sense of foreboding and delivered with an unspeakable power.......Mind- blowing!!!.

Next track is entitled Idol Chatter. It`s a wonderful original tune written by the Fuzztones drummer Andrea Kusten. This wickedly-mellow, chilling song has a strong voodoo flavour with its shamanic drums and amazing, at times sitar-like soundig guitar. After this piece of voodoo trippiness welcome to the dark side of fuzz! Hallucination Generation - a heavy acid song by maestro himself, revealing his psyched-out depths under the grungy surface. A brain-melting track with sraight, strong fuzz guitar, vibrating organ solo and hypnotic lead vocal.... Dangerous!

Then there comes a Wristwatch Band - a psychedelic ballad originally written by the Boss Tweed. It`s a very melodic tune that has some sad mood about it, wonderfully expressed through the beautiful, warm and strong Jim Morrison-like lead vocal. This track is kind of multidimensional, revealing itself in waves, getting deeper and deeper with every listenig. Just few moments later the listener is blown away by the fast, loud hair-shaker Group Grop. OK, juridical it`s a cover (orig. by the Fugs on their 2-nd album), but the `tones version sounds so much better, that in this case i might have to admit they made a really good...songwritng. This crazy piece is an explosion of wild punky energy, overflowing with killer beat, mad, tight organ attacks and frenzied guitar riffing..... Seductive!

And how can i forget the Little Steven`s fave Don`t Blow Your Mind? I love this fabulous mixture of furious, hard, sweating rock`n`roll and psychedelic weirdness. This song has a truly "black", rebellious attitude! You can feel the frantic energy wildly pulsating through this tune. The pace changes and the great "live" effect of a mad crowd raving in the background are my personal highlights on this adrenalin pumper.....Over-groovy!

The last track on this cd, named What Ever Happened To Baby Jesus? is probably the most haunting song of this first-class album. It`s a slow burner, but it displays emotional depths close to insanity. It starts off kind of unearthly with foreboding church-like organ chords. Then droney, menacing, dripping bass comes in, hypnotizing a listener into a deep, dark trance. Furious, sinister effects laden fuzz and brilliant blistering lead guitar spiral maniacally upwards to the upmost limits of perception, making their way through the dark, shimmering walls of mighty rhythm section and other-wordly digital wizardery. All that scary-but-overwhelming abundance is crowned by the mesmerizing lead vocal: Howling, moaning, screaming and whispering, Rudi exposes his inner self to the world with an intensity of a madman, ripping your chest apart and burning your heart off........Breathtaking!!

This fuzzed-out black pearl of an album is absolutely essential for every fuzz-devotee!

Anmaro6 - January 2004 www.pooterland.com