Let's Spin

Album Review

One year after the release of Darn Floor Big Bite, Daniel Amos decided to secretly reinvent themselves as the Swirling Eddies, complete with pseudonyms and an air of novelty and farce. All this in support of a stunning record that hearkens back to the 1980 DA classic Horrendous Disc in both sound and attitude. Mature writing and rootsy guitars separate this release from the more experimental records DA had been releasing up to that point, along with more conspicuous Southern accents on the part of the vocalists. The analogue with Horrendous Disc is pronounced: The title track easily calls to mind "I Love You #19" and the "Ed Takes a Vacation" suite is reminiscent of "(Near-Sighted Girl With Approaching) Tidal Wave." All in all, however, this is significantly more mature than the earlier works to which this release refers. It offers less oblique references to a Christian doctrine and more poetic lyrics, along with higher standards of musicianship and better arrangements. Whereas Darn Floor Big Bite relied less on synthesizers than previous releases, Let's Spin! goes back even further to more traditional instrumentation. It contains very little echo and a lot of acoustic guitar, and guitars are primarily strummed rather than finessed (à la Darn Floor). Quite a left turn from works up to that point, but an excellent record overall. ~ Mark W.B. Allender, Rovi