What does it mean when garage bands pose for record cover photos amidst live vegetation? It seems to indicate the end of some unspecified manner of cycle; if not the end of said cycle, then, at bare minimum, the start of its third act (assuming standard Aristotelian three-act structure is in play here, and why wouldn’t it?). Somehow, I get the feeling that the band is trying to tell me something. I have no idea what it is. Yes, I get it, men in black amidst leaves and tree branches! But what does it all MEAN, man??? I cannot put my finger on the pulse of their aesthetic throb for the life of me. These Sardinians (High five! Knuckle bump!) aren’t really singing about blowing their minds or getting Brian Jones haircuts and partying with the ghost of Greg Shaw or attempting to paint hallucinogenic portraits of lascivious young women, they’re singing about... something. Something of potential depth and value, perhaps. Maybe the flavor gets wrung out of the thoughts in the translation to English, I dunno. Musically, they’ve got a thin, swift sound, somewhat plain though spiked with brief squalls of masterful harp-honk. It’s nice, but seems like kind of a dry tongue with which to communicate these wet thoughts that I keep accusing them of having. The one song where I felt their tendrils briefly pierce thru the psychic miasma and connect with my mind was “Stop to Drive Me Mad.” For all I know, these fuckers are trying to summon Cthulhu on my dime. I’ll get to the bottom of this yet. BEST SONG AND SONG TITLE: “Stop To Drive Me Mad.” FANTASTIC AMAZING TRIVIA FACT: Band members include Ripper I, Ripper II, Ripper III, and Ripper IV. –Rev. Nørb (Slovenly, slovenly.com)