Friends of Dean Martinez
Retrograde
[Sub Pop]
Rating: 7.7
Cruising the open road, the top of the 1957 Chevy Convertible peeled
back, the desert landscape unfolding before you. And that's when
the drugs begin to take hold.
Roaring down the interstate and the meter's buried, but it's just
you. Haven't seen another person in what seems like years -- though
it's probably only been a few hours. Alone in the desert with a near
empty tank and no one to talk to. The only sound other than the
rumbling of the Chevy's massive engine and occasional roadkill
thump is whatever it is the radio's been playing since you crossed
the Nevada border. What the hell is that, anyway?
You've never heard it before, but it sure sounds good pushing its
way through those old speakers. A little bit country, a little bit
rock and roll, but mostly, unbearably cool. A tumbleweed twang and
rockabilly sandwich whose flavor consists entirely of comfortable
loneliness.
Oops. You're not alone on the open road. You're in your shoddy-ass,
run-down, rat-infested apartment, but things aren't so bad with
Friends of Dean Martinez on the stereo 'cause while Retrograde
is moodier than your manic depressive roommate, it's about a billion
times less irritating. Let's just savor the moment.
-Ryan Schreiber