BLACK CAT IN HEAT

Mezzanine Swimmers is the solo project of Mike Green, born off the banks of the Mississippi near St. Louis-- and Midwestern dweller in Ohio and Chicago-- before settling in NYC. He has cycled through every instrument in numerous bands. First, he tackled the drums, then moved on to guitar, next electronics, and finally ended up with an amalgam of everything. His approach to music is completely individualistic; it can barely be taught, let alone imitated. The rhythms and repetitions are prominent-- a labyrinth of winding beats, from vaguely familiar samples to distorted sound bites, but never hesitant. Each song has a wildly catchy hook, and is dressed in woozy, garbled, and psychedelic textures. Like Container, he takes a tactile approach; the sound is sculpted from the mad combination of overdriven electronics and loose improvisation. You'll never see a laptop on stage, but a pile of wires connecting synths, samplers, pedals, and a microphone. The result is a wonderful album of deranged pop songs which would be quite comfortable in a playlist with Black Dice or Michael Jackson.