Caustic Casanova are a bit of a many headed beast. Definitely not a band to slot themselves into any particular genre, theirs is a mash up of sludge, doom, psyche rock with a smattering of prog. Hailing from Washington DC, they’ve garnered a local following in their 17-year career that has seen a steady stream of album releases. “Glass Enclosed Nerve Center” is long player number five and finds them adding an extra guitarist in the form of Jake Kimberley and continuing to explore multiple musical dimensions.

Opening track “Anubis Rex” has a super slinky, fun riff that’s straight out of the early Seventies. Big chords in the style of Monster Truck are thrown in while combining a Thin Lizzy slant at times. A melange of hard rock, proto metal with a whiff of glam along with studio woo-hoos at the end show off a band clearly having fun. Then their really quirky side shows up with what feels like Josh Homme worship. “Lodestar” has an odd, off kilter vibe that’s like a mix of Them Crooked Vultures, Queens Of The Stone Age with a dusting of the Eagles Of Death Metal complete with the garage rock feel. Blend all of that in with Frank Zappa infused explorations on “A Bailar Con Cuarentena” – sonically and lyrically, and you have a real stop start party groove happening.

“Shrouded Coconut” expands the palette further. A psychedelic wig-out with a heavily prog-jazz slant, it manages moments of cool groove but it’s perhaps a little too “out there” for these simple ears. They have a greasiness akin to Satan’s Satyrs and Francis Berlinger’s vocals even sound similar while getting some heavy riffage going. Thus far we have a band that is pushing in all sorts of directions and seem a little unhinged at times before gathering themselves together.

Coming in at 22 minutes in length and taking all of side B, “Bull Moose Against The Sky” is the monumental, nostalgia tinged epic. A Native American sounding tribal beat follows the stand alone folk tinged vocals and introduces the track before the heady journey begins. The guitars have a slanted tone that feels very loose as they move into nice proto doom darkness. This track has been worth the price of admission alone. Seamlessly changing shape and maintaining a nice, raw feel it snakes its way through a myriad of styles and time changes. A brief electronic exploration is unexpected but strangely fits well.

“Glass Enclosed Nerve Center” is an interesting listen that will certainly keep you of your feet from an appreciation point of view. Obviously, a band that isn’t afraid to explore different styles and avenues, it sometime feels as if a little too much is going on. Side B is the winner but it’s worth giving a spin when you can’t quite decide what direction you feel like heading in.

(6/10 Johnny Zed)

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063556420838

https://causticcasanova.bandcamp.com/album/glass-enclosed-nerve-center