CD, Negative 3, 2005
www.sgtsawtooth.com
I already had a feeling this album was going to be a strange one for a couple of reasons. One, it’s called “Mescaline”, and the idea behind the album is one big, mind altering trip. Secondly, Sergeant Sawtooth, alias Rob Robinson, was/is part of the mighty Kevorkian Death Cycle, which gave me reason enough to have weird feelings.
“Mescaline” is a very interesting album, and does exactly as it sets out to do. It starts off quite slowly with tracks “Soma” and “DMT” and by the time it reaches its title track, it all gets a bit faster and more trippy, on the last few tracks it starts slowing down again and getting quite dark and in some ways sinister. “Ketamine” has a very strange vibe about it and the last track (prior to the remixes) “Psilocybin II” is very soothing. It is, quite literally, like going on a drugs trip – as non politically, and legally, correct as that might be.
Personally, I think the remixes I think unsettle the balance of the album but they’re not bad. And someone was probably on drugs when they titled the last remix track “Psilocybin II – Cyrusrex and the inevitable iron clam donkey regurgitation mix”!
In all this is a very good album, it’s spooky, energetic, soothing, unsettling and strange… as all good trips should be.
[8/10]
— Kate Turgoose