Canaille's choice 12/12/2012

From Arizona Amp and Alternator lp (2005, Thrill Jockey).

"When something ain't broke around here, we don't fix it," Howe Gelb sings on "AAAA (1)", giving the unofficial slogan for the fictitious Arizona Amp and Alternator, his new, possibly one-off moniker and the concept behind this self-titled album. The prolific Gelb has been doing similar and similarly tossed-off records like this for years, both as a solo artist and with the band Giant Sand. This new project is more conceptual than his usual m.o. and occasionally the mechanic's garage motif seems intrusive, especially on the four "AAAA" songs, which may have something to do with being blue in a red state. Regardless, Arizona Amp and Alternator on the whole captures the pace of a hot afternoon spent lounging in the shade, spouting lawn-chair philosophy over arid desert folk and waiting for the next stranded driver with a stalled automobile". Pitchfork