DFA have re-issued this classic post-punk/punk disco album from 1983!
To describe Pylon as ahead of their time is somewhat misleading, because it implies that there was ever a moment when music finally caught up with them. The architects of a sound unlike any of their Athens, Georgia, contemporaries and the inspiration for numerous post-punk imitators, Pylon still sounds unlike anything before or since.
This is DFA's second Pylon reissue (following the 2007 release of the Gyrate) and offers inarguable justification for their seminal status. This is an expolsive record jammed pack jagged guitar lines, wiry bass, propulsive drumming, and Vanessa Briscoe's startling vocals. 'Crazy', which R.E.M. would later famously cover, sees guitarist Randy Bewley avoiding his usual sharp angles and instead taking a jangly respite, while Briscoe veers from a moody monotone to arresting snarls and piercing yelps. 'Yo-Yo' strips down to herky jerky staccato guitar and a few perfectly placed lyrical melodies; 'Gyrate' buzzes with antsy, danceable energy; 'Altitude' is a gorgeous and dreamy study in loud-quiet-loud dynamics.
In addition to remastered versions of the LP's twelve original tracks, Chomp More includes the 7-inch version of 'Crazy', a 'male version' of 'Yo-Yo' on which Briscoe merely guest stars, Pylon's own frenzied, frenetic remix of 'Gyrate', and the rarely heard single 'Four Minutes' an ineffably beautiful pastiche of homemade and seemingly found noise. These innovative songs speak to the timeless vision of four young people who unwittingly created a sound that is still innovative, fresh, and distinct. More than three decades on, Pylon continues to lead while music, as always, lags safely behind.