(Translated from my original Italian text by ChatGPT and Piero Scaruffi)
Among the alternative bands of the Chapel Hill (North Carolina) boom in the 90s, Metal Flake Mother were among the shyest, yet no less among the most creative. Formed in 1990 by singer Ben Clarke and guitarist Randy Ward, later joined by second guitarist and singer Jimbo Mathus, they recorded only the single Deem On and the album Beyond The Java Sea (Moist, 1991 Scrimshaw, 1997).
The album is a surreal parade of oblique instrumental tracks and power-pop ditties in a Pixies vein. The a cappella Tongue Long leads to the surf theme of The Inquisition, while the classic melodies of Mr Flavor and Ballroom give way to the rhythm-and-blues abominations of Mean To Me and Wingtip Lizards. After the MFM disbanded, Jimbo Mathus joined singer and multi-instrumentalist Tom Maxwell to form the Squirrel Nut Zippers, a small orchestra specializing in recreating early-20th-century music, particularly the cakewalk-style blues-jazz popular in the 1920s.
The style of Inevitable (Mammoth, 1995) is still somewhat cumbersome, caught between an old-fashioned tribute to their idols and a rock sensibility. Nevertheless, Wash Jones and La Grippe manage to capture some punk hearts.
Hot (Mammoth, 1996), riding the swing revival and infused with a New Orleans-inspired sound, was a tremendous success thanks to Hell, a comic and catchy calypso. The lively ragtime numbers Got My Own Thing Now and Bad Business Man, the swing of Memphis Exorcism, and the instrumental escapes of Flight Of The Passing Fancy and Interlocution also secured their place in revival history. Katharine Whalen imitates Billie Holiday and other great blues singers of the era in the bouncy Put A Lid On It and in a handful of slow songs, including the standout Blue Angel. Trumpeter Duke Heitger is the true hero of many of these tracks.
Perennial Favorites (Mammoth, 1998) fully exploits the calypso idea, especially on Trou Macacq, but only rarely (Suits Are Picking Up The Bill, Pallin With Al, Low Down Man, My Drag, Evening At Lafittes) does it touch the magic of its predecessor. The lyrics revisit the myths of that eras music in an ironic, if not transgressive, way.
(Click here for the Italian version)
Bedlam Ballroom (Mammoth, 2000) is a mixed bag. Without Tom Maxwell, the Zippers lose some of their catchiness but gain in energy and spirit. The Latin-soul Bedbugs, the jazzy Baby Wants A Diamond Ring, and the funky Do What rank among their most entertaining numbers ever.
