Arab On Radar - Soak The Saddle

Soak The Saddle was Arab On Radar's first release on Skin Graft Records. The album was recorded between February 21-26 of 1999 and was recorded by the infamous Weasel Walter. One might ask oneself "Why is this young man reviewing an album that is over ten years old?" And that's a valid question, but I believe that Arab On Radar's music is more relevant today than ever. The music scene is flooded with carbon copy cut out bands and AOR bring something fresh, albeit weird, to the table. This album has had two pressings on vinyl, (mine being one of the second pressings) the first pressing was back in 2000 and then the second, entitled the "Back In The Saddle Edition", was released in 2010.The second pressing came colored (green and black splatter) with hand silk screened covers making the entire vinyl package a cool keepsake piece of art. The album is confusing, not in a sense of chaos necessarily, although there is plenty of that, it's more about how the band can take take all your dreams, hopes, fears and frustrations and make you feel them simultaneously. To add insult to injury the tracks are titled #1, #2,#3 etc. but they aren't in numerical order. This only adds to the derangement of your mind. The record has a unique charm in that it is totally inaccessible which gives it a raw "standing naked under a magnifying glass" feel. A couple highlights on the record are #1 and #3. #1 employs a cool stop start technique along side the singers disorderly squeals and yaks. #3 is the standout track, though. It sounds like what I would feel if a plane was going down while I was in it. The drums are almost dance influenced in this song and the guitar has this hypnotic repetition that entrances you and almost comforts you as you get lobotomized by the singers ferocious chatter. One downside to the album is that on several of the songs the vocals are not that easy to hear. Although, that is pretty typical among bands of this genre it is a bit irritating at times because the vocals really make AOR standout from other noise bands. Although this album is often hidden in shadow of their masterpiece, "Yahweh Or The Highway", it is definitely worth a listen. 

Soak The Saddle:
http://www.mediafire.com/?7mjjafw2im2

Arab On Radar Website:
http://arabonradar.info/

 Buy the vinyl at Insound!:
http://www.insound.com/Soak-the-Saddle-Reissue-Vinyl-LP-Arab-on-Radar/P/INS80398/