(Translated from my original Italian text by ChatGPT and Piero Scaruffi)
The Alter Natives (from Richmond) performed, between 1984 and 1989, an instrumental punk-rock driven by the saxophone (the often jovial and sometimes atonal one of Eric Ungar) and almost entirely improvised.
On Hold Your Tongue (SST, 1986), stealing the spotlight are Sunset and 701, House Of Tofu and Living On Starch, in which Ungar’s fanfare rises over rhythm and somewhat clownish hardcore guitar strumming. Ungar also tries the flute on Over The Counter Culture and Out Of My Brain. Guitarist Greg Ottinger, instead, propels the spectacular acrobatics of Blood On The Highway, Circular Motion and Firewater, under the banner of a feverish country-punk, like a small-town Joe Satriani.
On Group Therapy (1988) the quartet takes itself more seriously. Bozo Bimbo Baby and Poindexter explode with maximum energy their fusion of hardcore, jazz and psychedelia. Ripe advances with tank-like cadences à la Melvins. Neurotic Envoy instead presents the quartet as new lounge flautists in a Jethro Tull style. The music rears up when, in Mayo Bridge To Cuba, Ungar turns to the Lizards, by now completely outside the punk racket. The very dimensions of the tracks speak for themselves: instead of sixteen brief lashings, the album contains eight long tracks. Improvisation, not rhythm, dominates the harmonies. It is the group’s masterpiece, and one of the milestones of post-punk instrumental rock.
The final album, Buzz, without Ungar, moved closer to the incendiary atmospheres of Blind Idiot God.
These are difficult records, but fundamental to the instrumental renewal of hardcore, worthy complements to Universal Congress and Gone.
(Original English text by Piero Scaruffi)
Hotel X is the "jazzcore" instrumental combo
(guitar, percussion, double bass and saxophone)
formed by Eric Ungar of Alter Natives
and Tim Harding of Always August.
Their music is inspired by 1970s jazz and funk, and by fusion rock bands like
Lounge Lizards and Material.
A Random History Of The Avant-Groove
(SST, 1993) and Residential Suite (SST, 1993)
show the quintet rapidly maturing via unorthodox interpretations of jazz
standards.
Originals like Funky Broad Street are innovative and full of life.
Drummer Jim Thompson also comes from Alter Natives.
Third album
Engendered Species (SST, 1994) is mainly jazz, but the best tracks are
blues (Casa Noir) and funk (Fulani Hymn).
The band reduces the number of covers (only Ornette Coleman and Wayne Shorter),
and writes funky grooves like Sophisticuffs and 2 Street.
The elements are better mixed on Ladders (SST, 1995), and the
arrangements show more dexterity
(Snack Time, Tin Can House, Morning Song).
Uncommon Grounds (SST, 1996) features Greg Ginn on guitar in
Uncommon Grounds.
Routes Music (SST, 1997) features Murray's Mambo,
Blue Flame and
Jamaal, examples of party music for convoluted intellectuals.
