- With a back catalog plowing through noise-rock, electroclash and even minimal techno, Jim Magas has proven so unpredictable through the years that it's impossible to know what he'll cough up next. No matter where he ends up, however, rest assured the longtime underground denizen will always burst with DIY weirdness. This certainly is the case with his latest offering, Heads Plus. Released on the Chicagoan's newly minted Midwich label, the 12-inch is five tracks of twitching and scuzz-stained electronics.
The beast of the brood is "Machete King," a slab of robo-exotica splattered with crusty riffage, electro handclaps, tinny hi-hats and an ARP Odyssey squealing with ecstatic abandon. The piece would sound right at home on a Sublime Frequencies compilation of obscure dance music from some landlocked country in central Asia. In terms of manic energy, "Checkers" also delivers the goods: amidst smothering layers of distorted grime, it has a maniacally bopping groove that recalls early T. Raumschmiere on Shitkatapult.
In contrast, both "Countess" and "Layers Of Understanding" are slightly more patient in their quirks. The former is a grungy synth-funk nugget that sounds as though it were originally produced for a late-'80s, Bad Dudes-type arcade game. This particular brand of lighthearted nostalgia has been thoroughly explored in recent years, but as with the rest of Heads Plus, Magas injects it with enough personality to make it his own.
TracklistA1 Heads Plus
A2 Checkers
A3 Machete King
B1 Countess
B2 Layers Of Understanding