Trans Am walks the same line between substance and style that its namesake car model did in its heyday. Often considered the leading light of the ’90s post-rock scene, the Maryland-based trio switches between big, loud rawk riffing and spacey, experimental ambience, sometimes within the same song. Trans Am gleans imagery and sounds from the synth- and vocoder-heavy music of decades past, but also informs its songs with a detached, millennial indie attitude. The group shifts gears from album to album, and this intellectual restlessness continues with the atmospheric, trippy Thing (Thrill Jockey). The LP should appeal both to new-school stoner-metal fans and the hippie oldheads at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, where Trans Am will be playing a free show on August 18. Nathan Means will also be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our Q&A with the band.
Means: Cut to 1985. Southern California funk metallers Red Hot Chili Peppers employ the production services of Funkadelic founder George Clinton on their album Freaky Styley. This would mark the beginning of the definitive era of funk metal. This musical movement would include such bands as Urban Dance Squad, 24-7 Spyz, Living Colour, Primus, Fishbone, Faith No More, Mind Funk, Scatterbrain, Ugly Kid Joe, Green Jello, Infectious Grooves and Jane’s Addiction, to name a few. Cut to 1991 and the release of Nirvana’s Nevermind LP. Suddenly, the wave of funk metal had crashed and slipped back into the sea. But funk metal wouldn’t disappear completely. The ripples of funk metal could be heard loud and funkily throughout the ’90s and into the ’00s in bands like Slipknot, Korn and Limp Bizkit. Even bands like Fugazi and Helmet—normally associated with the post hardcore scene—draw on funk-metal roots. Will funk metal have a modern-day revival like ’60s psych rock or ’80s electro have? Who’s to say? If so, Trans Am will be on the vanguard of this revival.
Video after the jump.
