On Arrows Are All You Know, the bandâs debut longplayer now available on Exit Stencil Recordings, this conflagrant trio presents an unholy fusion of the Talking Heads and fIREHOSE, of Television (the band) and psychedelia (the sound).

10 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Punk, ROCK: Industrial Rock



Details:
Though the members of Mystery of Two would never admit it, theirs is more a mission than a band - and maybe thatâs a hint to their name, which confounds so many people: How do you relate?

Start here: Mystery of Two is a forward-thinking, rockinâ trio from Cleveland, Ohio, and as such, have already endured the comparisons to Pere Ubu, Clevelandâs famous avant-gardists. (Okay, it may not help that Mystery guitarist/vocalist Ryan Weitzel and bassist Lonn Schubert also happen to play with Home and Garden, the band begun by original Ubu members Scott Krauss, Tony Maimone, and Jim Jones, but thatâs mostly incidental. ) The comparison is fine with them, by the way; the members of Mystery of Two all recognize their motivation in playing in this band: Make what you need to hear out of what you have.

Or maybe itâs âmaking what you have to hear out of what you need,â though ... after all, Weitzel and drummer Nick Riley both help run performing arts spaces of their own, in addition to attending to their day jobs and this band. But must they also deal with the stigma of âhailing from the Rust Beltâ that dogs so many groups from a handful of Midwestern cities?

Well, donât believe the half of it ... On Arrows Are All You Know, the bandâs debut longplayer now available on Exit Stencil Recordings, this conflagrant trio presents an unholy fusion of the Talking Heads and fIREHOSE, of Television (the band) and psychedelia (the sound), anchored by Nick and Lonnâs nimble rhythm section and painted over with the howl of barely expressive anguish projected by one Mr. Weitzel ... Donât get it wrong, however: despite the touchstones, the hipper-than-thou buzzwords weâre throwing around, this music is more feeling than treatise, more expression than meaning. It is unapologetically itself, unbounded by pretense or arch intent. Itâs a hippie-cum-art ideal, spun out precisely by gifted players.

It is free, though their influences are clear. (Hell, weâve mentioned âem!) But letâs face it, hereâs what weâre confronted with in this era of the âaughtsâ: regurgitations, restylings, repetitions. Right? Wrong! The Mystery of Two is a synthesis. It is synergy. It is Now. And it might be looking askance at you as you sit there. Because maybe itâs just the integrity behind the invention that drives good new rock music. And maybe itâs up to you to decipher it.

- Matt Kuchna