Ruston Mire
Steady Jobs And Flying Cars
Sandwich Records

CD Review by Reef Valmont

When synergy isn't in place injustices can occur. Picture this -"Monday Or Forever" is released as a single by some new critically-acclaimed underground English band. The single goes Top Ten on the hype train of Radio 1 and NME. Think along the lines of White Town, with their solitary hit "Your Woman" from the 'Women In Technology' album The buzz would crackle across the Pacific, the single would get massive exposure on corporate radio across the country and on the back of this, the album would sell a bunch and the band would never be heard from again, ever, although 'Monday or Forever' would turn up on late-night TV ad's in 2008 for a "Hits Of The Nineties" compilation sandwiched between "You Oughtta Know" and "Everything Zen." When synergy isn't in place, sometimes we should be grateful. Ruston Mire remain a genuine prospect and a powerful creative force yet to be smacked about the head with the One-Hit-Wonder stick of doom, plus they have a killer unknown single hidden away in their back-catalog like a veteran hitman with a pistol in his sock. Celebrate. Buy this album.

There's no defining style to "Steady Jobs And Flying Cars" with which to easily slot it away next to influences and compatriots, (CMJ Monthly will have fun doing a "Recommended If You Like" for this one) only the constantly sharp songwriting talents of singer Brian Naubert and his all-encompassing embrace of anything vaguely pop, as long as it's rooted in hardcore relationship-based drama. Examples: "Two-Headed Monster" runs the crazy keyboarded hallways of The Inspiral Carpets, "Skeletons And Mud" is Crowded House getting nasty on their ex's and ignoring the restraining orders, "Livers" is just mystifying, (in a very very good way, like trying to work out why your girlfriend looks so fucking erotic when she's sleeping) and "Seeing Spots" should already be instigated into the Cleveland Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame for it's outro alone.

Oh, then there's "Facedown" which sits in the middle of 'Steady Jobs And Flying Cars" like an emerald in a pile of diamonds. No, piss on that, like a razorblade in a pile of tweezers. Ominous guitars, a repeated deep-fuelled refrain of "Monica's floating in the lake...facedown" and the impression that something really, really bad actually happened (or is going to happen) to inspire this song. Keep Music Evil, part 362.

Keep Music Evil, part 363 would be entitled "Sick Little Drama," another album touchstone that swings from landmine-guitar hate-rock to snapshot Pink Floydian conceptualism in four minutes. Love it.

Naubert, Musberger, Fox, Katell, Hambone - these survivors and witnesses of less-than-great Seattle collectives have combined thier misused misplaced talents to make one of this century's first essential NW albums, and you will be doing yourself and your whole Jet City perspective an injustice if you ignore it.

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