Noise-funk pioneers and no wave outliers the
Bush Tetras were always a band with more talent and vision than luck, and just as they began receiving some well-deserved public reappraisal after the release of the excellent 2021 career overview
Rhythm & Paranoia: The Best of the Bush Tetras, longtime drummer
Dee Pop died, just days before the band was scheduled to play a show celebrating the collection's release. However, if you want to believe that fate often opens a window as it closes a door, it's worth noting that
Steve Shelley of
Sonic Youth, one of many bands that were influenced by the
Bush Tetras, soon stepped forward to fill their empty drum stool. With
Shelley also serving as producer, they cut an album, 2023's
They Live in My Head, which shows they're still as vital, exciting, and singular as ever. Just as it's been since they formed in 1979, the
Bush Tetras are guided by the angular skronk of guitarist
Pat Place and the deadpan rage and joy of vocalist
Cynthia Sley, and in 2023 they still haven't run out of interesting things to say about living in a corrupt world full of injustices large and small (especially if you're a woman with a mind of your own). "Ghosts of People," "I Am Not a Member," and "Things I Put Together" are all cracking exercises in the struggle to maintain dignity and sanity in a time of chaos, and in "2020 Vision" they wonder just how they managed to get through that tumultuous year, and whether things are truly getting better. If the themes of
They Live in My Head are not exactly new to the
Bush Tetras, for good or ill the rest of the world has caught up to the crises of pre-gentrification New York City, and their attack and their message is as ferociously compelling as ever. The
Bush Tetras have always worked best when they had a rhythm section who could deliver the mix of rubbery funk and punk-inspired stomp that matches the report of
Place's guitar, and on
They Live in My Head, bassist
R.B. Korbet and drummer
Shelley hit that sweet spot throughout.
Korbet adds a propulsive groove that pairs nicely with the group's jagged tone, while
Shelley reminds us he's been delivering the expert timing of a great rock drummer and the instincts of what to do with musicians exploring the space for a few decades now, and he hasn't lost a bit of his touch. It's a shame
Dee Pop wasn't around to help record
They Live in My Head (he was part of the online songwriting sessions prior to his passing), but if he wanted his bandmates to continue on without him, they've done so with style and fury -- this is as strong as anything they've recorded in their 40-plus-year history. ~ Mark Deming
