AMN Reviews: Location Location Location – Damaged Goods (2023; Cuneiform Records)

With bassist Michael Formanek and drummer / percussionist Mike Pride in the lineup, one would think that this debut from Location Location Location would focus on weird composed and/or improvised creative jazz. Maybe. But whether from the addition of guitarist Anthony Pirog, or the intrinsic proclivities of Formanek and Pride, Damaged Goods exhibits more of an improvised rock leaning. Sure, there are fractured rhythms and a walking bass line or two, but Pirog’s soaring guitar takes things down a different path.

Recorded 100% remotely during the pandemic, the album sounds as if it resulted from a day or two of jam sessions. Instead, Pirog, Formanek, and Pride transferred files between one another, each adding their own tracks until they declared it complete. This approach allowed them to add overdubs, with Pirog’s synth, Formanek’s second guitar, and Pride’s percussive implements taking on that role.

Case in point, Verdigris is anthemic rock that harkens back to the 1970s thanks to Pirog’s spacious central theme over synth chords and a varying set of rhythmic structures. These rhythms are more sophisticated than the majority of your “typical” rock music but lack a jazz character. There are a few studio manipulations that give the track a subtlely odd nature.

In other words, Location Location Location manages to mimic the sound of a rock band while employing complex and unusual structures. Comparisons? King Crimson, some of the classic German Kosmiche groups, or maybe even the jam-oriented fusion of the Moonjune label.

Nonetheless, the group’s more experimental side creeps through on 79 Beatdowns, featuring odd tempos and timings, bowed bass, and cosmic guitar sounds. The main melodies are knotty and comparable to prime-grade avant-rock.

Also of note is that the album begins with a song titled after the late Jaimie Branch. It was written while she was still alive but effectively serves as a tribute.