Royal Trux are finally getting the (nearly) career-spanning compilation they've always deserved. Sure, the band has been the subject of a singles collection in the past, but now, thanks to the duo's new label Fat Possum, we're getting a rockin' single-disc set from the group. Quantum Entanglement, out this Friday, is as superb a collection as one could expect. How to corral the fire of this group onto a single disc? I mean, really, how? Well, this is a pretty good way to go about it.
"I'm Ready", from 1998's Accelerator, kicks things off, while the scuzzy "Waterpark", from 1999's Veterans of Disorder, reminds again just how wonderfully-suited Jennifer Herrema and Neil Hagerty were to this sort of thing. From aping the best and worst excesses of Mick and the Stones, to pursuing the same sort of disheveled rock that Thunders perfected, the duo made this brand of American proto-grunge rock seem downright revolutionary, even on down-tempo numbers like "The Spectre", from 1993's seminal Cats and Dogs. If this material is derivative in terms of the hoary rock tropes being trotted out, at least Herrema and Hagerty are fully committed to the stuff, de-constructing blues riffs and dismantling rock styles in pursuit of something that's both ironically Rock-and-Roll as well as genuinely underground and faintly dangerous. In that sense, the word "grungy", when used in a pre-Sub Pop sense, describes lots of what's on Quantum Entanglement perfectly.
"Platinum Tips" and "Sunshine and Grease", from Pound For Pound (2000), remain indications of the band's attempt to broaden their style a bit, a course of action that continued all the way up to the reunion album from this year. That one, White Stuff, is represented by the title cut, a bit of slimy genius, but precious little else. That's not too surprising considering that White Stuff is still relatively new and Quantum Entanglement is more concerned with chronicling the band's rise to infamy. As an introduction, or refresher course to the power of the Trux, Quantum Entanglement works spectacularly well. This is chaos, rock 'n' roll hijinks, and bad news in the best possible way. Dig it kiddos!
Quantum Entanglement is out on Friday via Fat Possum.
More details on Royal Trux via the band's official Facebook page.
[Photo: Fat Possum]