AIDS Wolf vs Athletic Automaton
Clash of the Life-Force Warriors
I have to admit, since I just got done listening to a straightforward thrash record, I’m pretty into this shit. I’d not listened to these bands before, but from what I can gather from the songs here, Athletic Automaton are a thick, mostly instrumental noise-rock group, while AIDS Wolf bring the Arab On Radar-style bad vibes. Naturally, they reference U.S. Maple (“Letter to Al Johnson”) and are into fantasy (“Elvish Power”). Seven of the 11 songs on this split are collaborative efforts, and sound about like what you’d expect when combining the weirdness of the A.W. songs with the rock power of the A.A. tunes.
Honestly, I think I like the bands a bit better when they separate – I’m down with AA’s “Pantstathlon” and “Olympic Pawns” in particular, while the collaborative “Soul Cannibals” can’t be characterized as anything but a sloppy mess. Thankfully, it’s only 38 seconds long, and followed by the very Radar “Oh, the Lessening.”
Ultimately, this pow-wow between like-minded noise weirdos will be just what fans of either group should dig. For anyone else, the first few notes should be enough for them to know better than to get involved with this sort of unpleasantness. Pretty good stuff.
1. Athletic Automaton – Pantstathlon2. AIDS Wolf – Letter to Al Johnson3. Both – Collecting Past Debts4. Both – Tears and Blowjob5. Both – Elvish Power6. Athletic Automaton – Olympic Pawns7. Both – Soul Cannibals8. AIDS Wolf – Oh, The Lessening9. Both – Dew Covered Plummage10. Both – Ending of an Old Regime11. Both - Crystalline
