DISClosure: The Crystal Method

DISClosure
CD Reviews Of A National Scale

by Benjy Eisen

The Crystal Method
Tweekend

The future comes at a frightening pace in the electronic music world and the landscape is vastly different than four years ago when a pair of West Coast computer geeks calling themselves Crystal Method released Vegas. That album placed them on top of the big beat, side-by-side with acts like The Chemical Brothers. But big beat no longer reins supreme — rather it has gone mainstream and popped up in pop music, such as in the watered down new “dirty pop” of *NSYNC.

Cutting edge or not, Crystal Method’s new disc, Tweekend offers more of the same dancehall artillery that Vegas did, expanding little on the formula, for better or worse. One new addition: Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine who adds guitar to several cuts as well as co-producing select tracks. Scott Weiland also offers his vocal chords to “Murder” — a song that will do well on the club floor. You would never guess he was that Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots.

The Crystal Method also make attempts at slowing down the tempo and opening up some space at various points midway through the disc, and there’s even an stab at hip-hop infusion (“Name Of The Game”). But the disc sounds best when The Crystal Method are being themselves, such as on the warehouse-and-laser-beam ready “Pho” which comes with distorted funk guitars in the midst of a complete aural assault.

Four years ago when Vegas came out, this was earth-shattering music. Now, at points, it can be a bit much to listen to in one sitting — it’s more suited to the dancehall than the car stereo. All told though, the boombastic sonic pounding and thundering beats, mixed with constant keyboard tweeking and hard-rolling bass is still heady … it’s just not anything new, that’s all. (Geffen Records)