BRAIN: 10th Anniversary? or another first?

[Jason]

The Brain Surgeons have released a retrospective of their recorded career.

This statement might be true, but it is not quite accurate.  Why?

Few groups can has the boasting rights to sounding "as good, if not better"
than they their initial formation with consistency. Look at the Yardbirds,
'fer instance - their arc across audio heaven was small and all over the
place, crashing with finality when Mr. Page joined the group.  In the Brain
Surgeon's case there have been expansions and contractions which would have
crippled others faced with similar circumstances.

There's no 'death knell' for a functioning recording unit in this digital
showcase.  Indeed, and quite shrewdly planned, the initial three song salvo
of tunes recorded with Ross the Boss   revisits and kicks the past's
ass.   Of particular note is how well his approach fits into   now hallowed
Oyster Cult songs, and how drastically it changes them. "Vera Gemini" feels
like a song that needs to be played live, while it used to "not quite" get
there.  This sense of transformation, if not moreso, can be felt for "Lady
of the Harbor," a dame who now enters a third and more fully 'self aware'
incarnation of NYC streetitude.

Bookending the project is the tune from the band's infancy, so to speak.
David Roter's superbly heavy, witty, and wise contribution about lookin'
like John Denver is much like a blueprint for the founding of this group as
it exists now.   But more than that its flurry of styles finds settled,
more concise explorations of its musical and lyrical themes in the rest of
the 'best of', too. Selection wise, I admit I'm suprised -- Victory
Boulevard,for example,  would not have struck me as a choice. However,
given that this album is not a 'best of' in a strict sense, but more a
State of the Union, the tune does slide nicely into the cumulative groove.

And groove it does.  I would not label this band "traditional"; like the
spirit of rock and roll that blew apart dance floors and inhibitions in the
days of yore, this assemblage of musicianship, personalities and
committment does not sit still long enough for any dust to settle.   So, if
you want to experience a thunderstorm for the first time, play this album.
If you want to remember what it was like the first time, play this album.
Hear and you shall receive.

Jason