This NZ band has been on my radar virtually ever since John Butler changed his trio setup. I've been following the carreer of drummer Michael Barker, and Swamp Thing is a garage blues rock duet he's a part of. I'd never managed to find their records though, and only stumbled upon this one by chance in Slow Boat Records in Wellington last week. I was a little concerned it would sound too primal, but it's just a perfect balance of raw and virtuoso. Barker is an astounding drummer, on par with Stewart Copeland in my book. His ability to weave multilayered polyrhythms is astounding, making the sparse instrumentation sound much richer. But Grant Haua is a much more subtle guitarist than I gave him credit for, and his rough voice suits the genre perfectly well. I know I'll be listening to this one many times over, highly recommended (if you can find it).
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