Rob Taxpayer’s enlisted a handful buddies once again—many of them people who’ve recorded with the guy for, what, ten or fifteen years or more?—and hits us with Storm Transmissions, a layered, challenging, atmospheric, (and still ridiculously catchy) response to pandemic America. The first song, “The State of Now,” is a surprisingly powerful torch number, due in large part to Kevin Lurkins’s outstanding trumpet work. Occasional forays into soundscapes and audial dirt are layered over the swinging Mule Variations-esque “Traffic Jamboree!” The percussion is weird and unusual and totally effective. Rob and his fellow musicians started out as members of a particularly fun and moving folk punk band, but at this point in their musical journeys, Storm Transmissions has strong and significant Tom Waits vibes to me. If that’s your bag, you’ll love this. Apparently this CD has some visual accompaniments/videos by Shannon Muhl, and it’s meant to be taken as a whole piece, the songs and the videos, so my apologies to Shannon, but I just don’t have that capability right now. –Keith Rosson (Tummy Rock)