K SALVATORE - The Counterfeiter, LP,2002,USA

If you're a fan of the Siwa family of noise makers you've probably been getting a bit anxious waiting for some new avant-skronk to help get you through your day. That Egypt is the Magick Number disc has just been out for too long, and the wait seems like an eternity between proposed No Neck Blues Band records (although their long-planned release on Revenant is ready to split some skulls come September). Well, it's time to feed the monkey. K/Salvatore return with some material that pushes beyond territories that they have previous explored. It only takes one minute to set the mood. The dueling flutes of "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast" quickly place you into the area of sound that is integral to the Siwa experience. Don't get settled into a groove for the track is quickly gone, and the listener is pointed headfirst into the heady jam of "The Dolphin". Like the best NNCK tracks, it is long and ridiculously engrossing. The cast is all here--percussion, guitars, flutes, gong-ing sounds, as well as instruments that are completely unidentifiable. A cacophony swirls into a pulsing rhythm, then back outwards again towards chaos. Just when you think the swirl is too much, the din settles down to a ringing bell that allows you to catch your breath before you are churning away once again. All this and you haven't even turned the album over yet.
The second side is equally powerful. This time, the central piece, "Solid", is sandwiched in-between two much shorter pieces. "Bohemian Liberated Bloomsbury" is a light and airy track featuring two acoustic guitars that just as easily could have been overheard in the parking lot (or maybe even on stage) at a Grateful Dead show. When the second "Solid" begins, you know that the tone is completely headed in a different direction. A squealing saxophone and ominous, droney bass help escort you for the track's first five or so minutes. Round that point the seemingly obligatory tribal drumming kicks in you're left to ride the rest of the way. "With Humans and With God" closes out the album on a low-key and, once again, acoustic note.
It would be foolish to go through this entire review without mentioning the amazing packaging. SIWA has once again produced another phenomenal bit of record presentation. I might have to say that this might be the most attractive, intricate, and tactilely-pleasing record I have ever purchased. Yes, I said it. Ever. The amazing detail of the silk-screening, overlaying paper, the metallic accents--it's all simply too amazing to believe until you have a copy in your grasp. Hand-numbered to a ridiculously limited quantity of 330 copies, it bears repeating that if you have any interest in this record that you should search it out immediately.
In my opinion, The Counterfeiter has to rank as perhaps the strongest entry in the K/Salvatore discography to date. Harkening back to the 3 consecutive Siwa cassettes, the sound is raw and tribal while retaining a complete sense of purpose and direction. A must for the Siwa enthusiast.
An artists edition in a painted and printed wooden sleeve was also released in an edition of 28.

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