When David Mamet considered the fact that many of his screenwriting brethren were known to put in ten or twelve hours a day in front of the typewriter, he had to ask: haven't they ever heard of The Nap? We might ask a similar question when confronted with the endless sea of releases by the Chicago instrumindie community. These guys don't seem to understand that one of the joys of making your living in the music business is that you get to sit around, get high and watch bad television at least as much as your average Arthur Treacher's fry cook. That's the way it should be. But who has time for goofing around when you have seven records a month to record?

Such is the life of uber- drummer Doug Scharin. In addition to his work with June of 44 and Rex, Scharin's percussive work is the primary feature of Out in Worship. On top of all that, he has an ongoing solo project under the moniker Him. Sworn Eyes, the man's latest release, is a restless collection of fractured rhythm and sonic texture.

The obvious touchstone for this kind of music is early '70s jazz fusion where tunes needn't be resolved and raw emotional sound is enough to carry the musical day. The fact that Rob Mazurek plays cornet on four of these five tracks adds even more to the Silent Way- era Miles Davis feel. But while Bill Laswell had to comb through 978 hours of jam tapes to find breaks the kids could understand for the Miles Davis remix album Panthalassa, every tune here (save the moody title track) is anchored by Scharin's flawless sense of groove. Like the Out in Worship record, these tracks feature the drums as lead instrument, a true bounty of cerebral funk.

In addition to featuring some well- known players (Bundy K. Brown, Mazurek, Jeff Parker, Julie Liu), some of the textures here will be familiar to followers of the scene. Him's interest in dub is pronounced, particularly in the echo- laden keyboard and tape loop textures. Some of the repeating vibraphone patterns on "A Verdict of Science" will definitely remind you of Tortoise, but Him tones down the abstraction and puts the beat in the foreground. "Trace Elements" sounds uncannily like a DJ Shadow track, with a deep, probing bass, dripping sound effects, and a rock- solid percussion line. Occasionally, things get a little shapeless, particularly during some of the longer pieces (they average about 11 minutes per). But as a whole, Sworn Eyes is a record that rewards repeated, careful listening.

-Mark Richard-San