Surplus 1980 Kremlin Gremlin (A Dull Fiddler) / Some Few Facts (And One False One) About Birds (Birds Are Real Dub Mix) 7″
New single from Moe Staiano’s SURPLUS 1980 project. Staunchly in support of Ukraine, the album cover is simply Putin’s face crossed out by Ukrainian colors, and all sales of the single go to the Vet Crew, taking care of animals displaced by the war. This is my first dabble into anything Moe Staiano-related, and apparently, I’ve got some homework to do. SURPLUS 1980 was originally started as a studio-only band, with Staiano playing many different instruments on the 2011 debut Relapse in Response, and transformed over the years into a collective of different musicians with some live shows. The music is a little unnerving and off-kilter, but in a playful way. Lots of odd percussion, single synth notes walking up obscure scales, asymmetrical guitar riffs, and fun backing vocals coming from all directions. “Kremlin Gremlin (A Dull Fiddler)” provides the political context, and has a little more typical song structure, while “Some Few Facts (And One False One) About Birds (Birds Are Real Dub Mix)” on the B-side is a full dub-groove experiment with a cyclical melody that is a little maddening, sounding like some DEVO hidden track. Show some support for Ukraine and get weird with SURPLUS 1980!