By opening Three Hundred with 31 seconds of nothingness, The Conformists plead immediate guilt to deceptive advertising. In fact, everything on this Illinois quartet's second CD (recorded by no less an indie-rock hero than Steve Albini) defies its name. Like practically all CDs released on the acquired-taste 54º40' or Fight! label, this is wacky stuff — unstructured and then desconstructed rock, that sounds barely produced. "Black People," for example, begins at the end and seems to work backwards, while "You're Welcome" closes the album with an eight-minute cacophony of awkward time sginatures, muted instrumentation, fuzzy vocals and overall tripworthiness. Experimental? I'll give The Conformists that. But listenable? That's in the ear of the beholder. Some vocal passages resembling lyrics work their way into a handful of tracks, but the music alone will be enough to keep listeners' heads spinning way beyond Three Hundred's 31-minute running time — if they don't push "stop" first.
Track Listing:
1)
2) Laundry Hepburn
3) Stairway Heaven
4) Meredith Knezvitch
5) Tax Deduction
6) Black People
7) A.S.M.M.C.
8) Are These Flowers?
9) You're Welcome
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