Genre: Alternative Rock / Noise-Rock / Trash-Rock / Sound Collage
01 Baby Shit / Paper Ship
02 Tapeworm Delivery
03 Annus Confusionis
04 She Cums Orchids on a Bizarre Sofa
05 Gas Vs. Dnepro-Ass
06 Disintegration of a Unit
07 Terror Terabytes of Lucy
08 Warning: 19 17 17 19 14 20!
09 Freewheeling Forever
10 Dick-Decorating Knife
11 Svengali Collapse
12 Lieutenant P. & Lolly
13 Liquid Enemies Are Inside the Hangar Already
14 The Giant Rotten Head Returns and Shrinks into a Golf Ball
15 Muller House Bimbo
16 Magyar Griffons Prevent Lagoon Mermaid Gangbangs
17 The Theleme Quartet
18 Paleolithic Seascape
19 The Morass of Gluttony and Transparent Lady Underwear
20 Endless Ends
“The Hollow Grail” is the third release by Russian act Won James Won. Unlike their previous two studio albums, “The Hollow Grail” is comprised entirely of songs from live performances from the years 2005-2007. The majority of songs on this album were supposedly “spontaneously improvised on stage”. Won James Won’s style could simply be called experimental to give a more concise description than the genres that I listed “The Hollow Grail” under (which are what the label assigned the CD).
Spontaneity does not always lead to valuable or productive music, and Won James Won is either the type of band that you are going to appreciate or not. Musically, this is really all over the map: rock, metal, jazzy, screams, singing, electronics, feedback, and pretty much anything else you can think of find their way into one of the 20 tracks on “The Hollow Grail” at some point. I always question how musical something is where there is no structure and artists just play whatever comes out. This style of writing music has its own charm I suppose, but I find that it largely leads to a lot of wasted music. Usually the listener will inevitably be forced to listen to large chunks of “music” that do very little while the artists mess around.
That being said, “The Hollow Grail” isn’t all bad; there are moments where the music is quite descent, and there are other moments where I found myself wanting to hit the fast forward button. But overall, I found for every step forward this album took a couple of steps back. While I think some sections are interesting, I cannot say that they were something I am eager to listen to again. There is a fair amount of depth to the music, and for individuals who like to explore their music in detail and be challenged, “The Hollow Grail” might have a lot to offer. It is never clear exactly where the album will take you, which depending on your point of view, could be a good or bad thing. One thing is for sure, the sheer length, number of tracks, and diversity on “The Hollow Grail” make it an album that a second listen to or more will reward.
While not my style of music, Won James Won is a decent act if you like the whole improve / experimental rock / noise scene. I don’t think there is really too much in between and you will either find “The Hollow Grail” a rewarding experience or you won’t. Personally I would pass on this, but for enthusiasts of this genre there is enough interesting material and musicianship here to make it a worthwhile listen.
