Matter and Memory

According to the liner notes, Trychotic Id is an attempt by multi-instrumentalist Chris Cannon and friends to "portray the internal disarray of an unnamed lost soul." Mission accomplished. This exercise in free-form skronk invokes a place none of us want to go (unless, of course, we've downed a goofball or three).

Trychotic is a good listen, but it doesn't scream for repeat spins. It hits a groove early: "Efficacy of the Persona by the Psyche," a generic indie-rock jangle, gives way to the Fugazi-like bass workout of "Ego Defense Mechanisms." The rest of the album continues in much the same way.

Recorded live to tape in Montreal, the disc evokes a chilly winter's day in cuts like "Suppression," a brief chunk of disorienting guitar wrapped in warm strings. Psychedelic guitar washes from one track to the next, and the quiet moments are the disc's best.