Capillary action, or capillarity, is the ability of one substance to draw another substance into it. Considering that definition, Capillary Action is one of the most aptly named bands in history. So Embarrassing, in its entirety, is an exercise in musical capillarity: the ability of one style (free-form jazz) to draw other styles (mathcore, punk, noise, metal, prog-rock) into it. Sound chaotic? It is. But it isn’t.
At first listen, So Embarrassing has the potential to sound like a cluster-fuck of ideas, jarring from one to the next with no discernible pattern, explanation, or warning. I, myself, felt as though some part of me had just been raped by “Pocket Protection is Essential” the first go around. It wasn’t until abandoning all notions of conformity that I was able to appreciate So Embarrassing and all of its eccentricities, however left of center. To give some iota of context to the sounds to expect, say, The Mothers of Invention meets Dillinger Escape Plan meets Deerhoof, whatever that means to you. Regardless, these truly are brilliant songs that are worthy of admiration, but I fear they may be a little too brilliant for most (myself included).
I reserve little doubt that Capillary Action aren’t likely to be a band whose songs you’d hear blasting out of car windows while stuck in rush hour traffic. To be honest, I’d be shocked if I encountered any of them outside of my own headphones. But for those seasoned enough to withstand the musical ass-kicking that Jonathan Pfeffer and the rest of Capillary Action lay down, the rewards are numerous and notable. So Embarrassing is an album that will continue to reveal secrets long after the rest of your record collection has blown its load.
Genre: Error 415 – Unsupported Media Type
RIYL: Mr. Bungle, Mike Patton, Deerhoof
Label: Pangaea Recordings/Natural Selection Records
Elevator Fuck
Bloody Nose
