Review: Wooden Indian Burial Ground - How's Your Favorite Dreamer?

One of the joys of writing a blog like this is when an album comes along that rises above mediocrity and smashes all preconceptions out of the water; 'How's Your Favorite Dreamer' is one such album. Wooden Indian Burial Ground hail from Portland, Oregon and play a heady brew of garage punk that also takes in dark surf, freaked out psychedelia, electronic noodlings and even some creepy hauntology...however, as fucked-up as that sounds, just take a listen to the album and prepare to pick your jaw up from the floor.

From the dark and dank surf stylings of opening track 'Styrofoam Factory', with it's crazy analogue beeps and fuzzy guitar, 'How's Your Favorite Dreamer' takes the listener on a nightmarish journey that would have even Hunter T Thompson taking a deep breadth. Tracks of frenetic garage punk ('Grizzly Peacock', 'Zanesville Massacre') are interspersed with one minute musical interludes that take in mutated lounge ('The pretty Good OK Days'), electronica based, creepy hauntology ('The Discoverer') and evil nursery rhyme tunes ('Moist Dynasty'). There are many standout tracks; 'Burnout Beach' sounds like Man or Astroman? if they were birthed on a drag strip instead of in outer space, 'Dope Mann' is a mean and moody garage track with stabs of guitar and verges on Deadbolt-like gothabilly and 'Sad Mutations' with its farfisa organ, vocals straight from a Devo album and some awesome feedback-driven guitar.

Title track 'How's Your Favorite Dreamer?' is a prime example of WIBG's willingness to mix'n'match styles. The ever-present twang guitar acts as a backdrop to electronic glissandos, snippets of jazz and snatches of operatic singing....it may sound a mess but it works. 'Why Am I? Who Are You?' and its spoken word base brings to mind The Cribs Lee Ranaldo collaboration 'Be Safe' (from the 'Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever' album).

If there's any justice in this world 'How's Your Favorite Dreamer?' will be seen by posterity as a classic. After many, many listens it still retains the jaw-dropping impact as the first, a testament to the energy, imagination and sheer cojones. This may ostensibly be tagged a garage punk album, but it is so much more than that. Most importantly it is a record that makes you fall in love with music all over again. This is an album that I, for one, will treasure for years to come....awesome work! It is released on February 17th and is available on preorder on EXAG Records webstore.