I have to thank Alex Zander for introducing me to Tycoon Machete. We recently had frontman J.P. Whipple on the MKULTRASOUND PodCast and he was a GREAT interview! Aside from being very intelligent and funny, he and his bandmates have made some amazing music as an art-collective, currently based in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Their latest concept album, “Xenoblaster”, explores the “Border Blaster” legend John R. Brinkley, who was a grifting, unlicensed medical “doctor”, peddling an expensive treatment that involved transplanting goat testicles into both men and women, during the early part of the 20th century. The man ran afoul of the law multiple times, as he traveled all over the country, eventually ending up in Texas / Mexico, where he took to the radio airwaves to promote his phony cures and some early country musicians in the 1950’s. Each song on the album explores the many themes related to Brinkley’s infamous adventures.
The songs are well-written, poetic elegies to the good “doctor”. As J.P. explained, many of the themes still resonate in our current societal and political climate and the parallels are often uncanny. The music ranges from a vintage old western style on “Bundle of Joy”, to a more rock feel on “Border Blaster”, “Patent Medicine” and “Electro Medicine”, to more funk-based, heavy guitar and bass style on “Partners In Crime”. The album isn’t just referencing the tragically interesting journey of John R. Brinkley, but it also takes the listener on a multi-layered musical journey through the wide range of styles this band clearly excels at.
The videos for each song are also visually engaging and very artistic. “Electo Medicine”, “Patent Medicine” and “Partners In Crime”, with their creative animations and claymation sequences totally reminded me of the kind of thing you’d see on MTV’s “120 Minutes” and “Liquid Television”, back in the day. J.P. said he was very influenced by both of those shows, as well as old cartoons from the 70’s that he grew up watching. As a fellow Gen-Xer, I could absolutely see those influences at work in his videos.
After listening to “Xenoblaster” and some of their earlier work, I can now say that I am a total fan of Tycoon Machete. I’ve always been drawn to artistic, alternative bands and these guys hit the bullseye. In many ways they remind me of Talking Heads or Living Colour, thanks to their unique vision, astute lyrics and incredible depth of style, which I feel is sorely lacking with a lot of today’s music. Take some edibles or a few puffs of a blunt (or not), give this album a listen and let it take you on a truly fantastic journey.
– Ellen ‘the Felon’ Marshall
BANDCAMP
www.tycoonmachete.bandcamp.com/album/xenoblaster
YouTube