Giant Claw: “Empire of Summer”

Synthmeister and visual artist Keith Rankin (Giant Claw) plays synth as if… with a giant hyperactive claw. He must, we I personally haven’t heard synth music this furiously paced since we sped our ABBA LPs up to 45 rpm and concocted a dance party that lasted into the wee small hours. We were able to wring sweat out of our headbands with the lightest of wrist motions. It was fun. Giant Claw’s new LP Mutant Glamour is the exact aural equivalent to the title’s implied, twisted meaning and a simple blast to indulge in. This is glamourous music that has been mutated, pure and easy. There’s even a piece titled “Glamour Mutant,” so  it goes both ways. We can’t quite catch up with the flurry of notes flying at us. The music is danceable, at times almost western classical, and downright whacky. “Empire of Summer” is a great example of the mish-mash hemorrhaging of styles. Bleating, atonal sax squawks balance with sprinting beats and spazz-synth womps. There’s really not a bad moment for fanatics of this music’s ilk. If you’re disinclined toward the majesty of synthetic keyboard buzz, we would still recommend just a taste, or at least enough to give the dancer who lives inside all of us a tiny thrill.

Mutant Glamour is available from Orange Milk Records and on Bandcamp

Written by Jeff Daily