[This review was originally published in Badaboom Gramophone #3 and appears here by permission.]
Chapel Hill never quite became the next Seattle like all them smarty-pants tastemakers at Spin had decided. Sure, you had your Superchunks and Polvos and Archers of Loafs, but none of them other slack motherfuckers ever amounted to much more than a hill (ahem) of beans. However, it didn’t take long for the brain trust cognoscenti to form a new rock collective after the scene’s initial retreat into its usual surroundings of Bar-B-Q’s and beer bongs. Friction Media began around 1994 to bring the skills of the Research Triangle’s lesser-known artists to the limelight. With their earth-shattering Cognitive Mapping II compilation in 1995, one particular trio began to make small waves in the East Coast indie community.
Tractor Hips kicked off that compilation with a strikingly inventive brand of off-beat instrumental math rock, sparked with decidedly un-math rock rhythmic and tonal preoccupations. Guillermo Selva led the fray with treacherous bass guitarisms straight off of Trout Mask Replica, only played at 78 rpm. Drummer Brian Fraser may be the only man in the history of rock music possessed of the ability to use cowbells in a respectable manner. Guitarist John Merryman threw twisted shards of standard chord progressions in fiery balls of granite at the crowd. Phew!
After a 7-inch single of “The Sovereign and the Dogs,” the trio released its first and only album in 1996. While the full-length lacked some of the fever heard in their live performances, shuddering pieces like “The Universe Seen Through the Eye of a Needle” and “When In Doubt, Use Chinese Handcuffs” were home runs. The group disbanded later that year.