Artist Street Drum Corps
Album Self-Titled
Released 2006
Label Warcon
Street Drum Corps is a punk rock version of Stomp, a mix of street drumming and pop-punk tunes. Consisting of brothers Bobby and Adam Alt, and Frank Zummo, the band began in 2004 in Los Angeles and use improvised instruments, like garbage cans, as well as traditional musical instruments.
This collective of minimalist percussionists utilizes pots, pans, trash cans, and pretty much anything else than can be banged on to shape their unique sound. Imagine Stomp with samples, and you’ll get the picture.
The Corps run the gambit from hip-hop (“Police Beat Introduction”) to depressed but dancy Chemical Brothers workouts (“Wrecks”), and they even sound a bit like Bobby McFerrin during parts of “Body Sounds 101″.
Unfortunately, since there is a generous amount of modern technology added atop the primitive backbeats, the compositions start to sound less like a bunch of dudes jamming around on hardware, and more like a nifty collection of sounds being run through software. There are some fine elements amidst the soundscapes here, but in the Protools era, those elements aren’t quite as impressive as they would be in a live setting. With very little going on besides the beats, and the occasional turntable entry, there’s little to get invested in emotionally, and the rhythms themselves are far too stark to warrant studious instrumental listening.
The Corps literally end things with a “Bang!”, which alternates between heavy garbage pail thumping and clanging off-time gallops, and nearly sounds like an actual song. But, while the mechanics behind the compositions are often fascinating, the collected sounds themselves often are not.
Undeniably, this would be a rad spectacle to witness in person. But, with too much (or not enough) production intruding into these compositions, Street Drum Corps doesn’t add up to a cohesive, compelling record. It’s definitely interesting, but not essential.
- By TAYLOR KINGSBURY
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