Mr. Bungle: Disco Volante (1995) 02/18/2009

We begin this endeavor with a genuine classic. Mr. Bungle’s second album was perhaps the strangest recording released by a major label during the 1990s. Open-minded listeners got a treat, while anyone hoping for another funk/ska/jazz/metal/carnival music lark in the vein of the group’s self-titled 1991 debut received a serious mindfuck. Disco Volante incorporated flavors of sludge, techno, cartoon and soap opera soundtracks, surf rock, sunshine pop and death metal into the band’s already formidable arsenal. Having already showcased their warped sense of humor, this is the record that established both vocalist Mike Patton and guitarist Trey Spruance as eclectic geniuses. It’s also the record that launched hundreds of lesser bands aching to replicate Mr. Bungle’s uneasy style of genre fusion, but without the vision or talent to carry through. Their third and (to date) final album, 1999’s California, is comparably normal; though it is sonically ambitious and intricate, it’s far more linear and accessible. On indefinite “hiatus” since Y2K, Mr. Bungle is one of the defunct bands I miss most. In retrospect, it’s probably for the best that they didn’t try to milk it into something forced or, worse, weird for weird’s sake.

“Desert Search for Techno Allah” (live in San Francisco, 12/18/95)

SCRAMBLE YOUR FACE