Von Frickle may wear eerie, faceless and color-free costumes on stage, but the all-instrumental Illinois quartet's influences are obvious. Blending a bold arsenal of odd time signatures, ambient space jams, experimental rock and atonal noise, Von Frickle conjures aural images of King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Frank Zappa and Seventies-era Miles Davis.
As the title of "Kablam!" – which opens Mission 4.9 – indicates, the band tosses a little of everything into the mix, prepping listeners for a rhythmically aggressive and melodically surprising sonic experience. The other eight songs on the album emerge with a stronger focus than "Kablam!" The groovy "Cranium Controller," for example, gets in your face with anxious riffs and a screaming guitar, while "Shapeshifter" adheres itself to off-kilter circus-theme music. "Petri Dish Incident" is a minimalist composition featuring lots of drum pads and ambient sounds that naturally segue into a Farfisa organ solo. "The two-part "Attack of the Giant Eyeball" emerges as Mission 4.9's most bizarre track, with sound effects that could have been sampled from creatures in bad horror films and a riff that (at least for a few seconds) recalls the intro to "Eye of the Tiger" before going off on an atonal noise tangent. "Terra Firma Exodus" takes excursions into Pink Floyd territory, and "Protoplasmic Squid Eater" chews on majestic Malmsteen-style arpeggios.
Throughout the album, the four freaks in Von Frickle use a variety of intriguing instruments, including that Farfisa, Moogs, an e-bow, guitar synths and what are referred to in the liner notes simply as "vintage keys." Although challenging, Mission 4.9 is also a rewarding and fun listen that lives up to its record label's name: Originality Is Everything.
Track Listing:
1) Kablam!
2) Cranium Controller
3) Shapeshifter
4) Petri Dish Incident
5) Attack of the Giant Eyeball
I. Evil Eye
II. Retinoblastoma
6) Terra Firma Exodus
7) Protoplasmic Squid Eater
8) Zombie Stomp
9) Pod
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