[This review was originally published in Badaboom Gramophone #3 and appears here by permission.]
Stuck somewhere inside a triangle bounded by the Mountain Goats, Syd Barrett and Saturday morning television lies Unbunny. With at least a dozen cassettes to its credit (but few public performances), Unbunny may be the most-often-alluded-to and least-often-seen act north of Boston. Essentially Jarid del Deo on guitar and vocals, Unbunny (as in “not bunny”) also included, from time to time, bassist Chris Hall (formerly of Minds of Minolta and Fly Spinach Fly), drummer Greg Porter (Milkweed, Blackout Fighter Pilot) and other New Hampshire locals on such instruments as violin, congas, bassoon and rattle.
Analog, initially issued on cassette in 1995, was re-released on CD two years later, with several extra tracks added. The lack of mastering is noticeable, as is a lack of continuity. There are highlights (“Wonder Woman,” “Song for Bunny,” “Jesus Was a Carpenter,” “Goiter Boy”) and low points (“I Hate Rainbows,” “Bran Muffin”), but, overall, the combination of too much pitch adjustment on the vocals and a large number of throwaway tracks is too taxing.
The Willis Files presents a dozen new tunes that sound better and show much more songwriting depth. The 1998 CD replaces two songs (“Sci-Fi Nervous Breakdown” and “Sea Monkey Died”) with a pair of newer ones and was remastered to cut down the hiss. It also has different artwork.
Unbunny is a wonderful 7-inch of “Sci-Fi Nervous Breakdown,” “EZ 2B Me,” “Judy Blume” (also on Analog), “Officer Friendly” and the enigmatic “…Over Lunch.” The EP emphasizes the cartoony, more accessible side of Unbunny.
Many of the songs (“Texas,” “Oregon”) on Fission, Romance, The West relate to del Deo’s travels through the western United States, and all of them are purported to deal with one of the three title subjects. With less emphasis on cartoons and spaceships, this appears to be something of a new, more serious direction for Unbunny, although a good listen will indicate that the penchant for humorous songwriting is as strong as ever.