News Hit

Label: Impedance Records

Try as hard as he might, the unfortunate truth is that Nick Oliveri is unlikely to ever outgrow the time he spent in Queens Of The Stone Age.  Providing bass and occasional lead vocals on both Rated R and Songs For The Deaf, Oliveri has spent the best part of six years trying to find a place for himself outside of his former group.  During this time he has played with punk legends The Dwarves, released an acoustic album and even recorded as a guest vocalist on Slash’s debut solo album.  The majority of his effort however has been put into his new band, Mondo Generator, who are set to release their fourth album later this year.  The group has just released the first single from this upcoming full length, a cover of the classic Iggy Pop track “Dog Food”.  It is available now from Impedance records in both CD-EP and limited edition 7” single format.

While for the most part “Dog Food” remains fairly true to the original, the heavier guitar tones and Oliveri’s trademark snarl somehow manage to make the song even more visceral.  Perhaps what music buffs will find most intriguing about the track however is the line up which recorded it, with The Fresh Prince Of Darkness (from The Dwarves), Happy Tom (from Turbonegro) and Dave Grohl (from everything) all making appearances.  Overall, “Dog Food” is a satisfactory offering from Mondo Generator, although hopefully we will be able to see some new original material sometime soon as well.

The prospect of the limited edition 7” will probably be causing many collectors out there to lick their lips in anticipation, but for everyone else I would really recommend grabbing a copy of the CD-EP version instead; it might not carry the same mystique as vinyl, but the extra b-sides are all gold.  These remaining tracks are all comprised of acoustic tracks performed solely by Oliveri, two originals and five covers covering a very eclectic range of influences.  “Smashed Apart” (which is the sole b-side included on the vinyl version) and “This Isn’t Love” pretty much pick up where Oliveri’s Death Acoustic solo album left off, with the grizzled frontman belting out two furious yet emotionally charged numbers on a nylon stringed guitar.  Some additional flourishes have also been added to these two tracks, with backing vocals and some tasteful electric guitar helping to embellish the pieces.

As good as these two tracks are however, it is the covers which conclude the EP which really make it something special.  In particular, “Endless Vacation” (by The Ramones), “Bloody Hammer” (by Rocky Erickson) and “Green Machine” (by Kyuss) see Oliveri putting his own stamp upon some already impressive songs.  Not content to merely churn out a handful of lacklustre b-sides, Oliveri’s intensity is obvious throughout, and his reckless enthusiasm really makes these tracks the highlights of the EP.

While Mondo Generator might have not yet managed to achieve the same level of popularity as Queens of the Stone Age, that doesn’t mean that they aren’t putting out some really good music.  In a way, the bizarre mix of covers and originals which make up Dog Food show that Oliveri is capable of being so much more than just “that bearded guy who played bass for Josh Homme”.  Now let’s just hope that he doesn’t fall into the same trap that has befallen Dave Mustaine and Megadeth for the past thirty years.

By Matthew Woodward