Alter Natives

  • Alter Natives
  • Hold Your Tongue (SST) 1986 
  • Group Therapy (SST) 1988 
  • Buzz (SST) 1989 

The Alter Natives are a frantic, improv-minded combo from Richmond, Virginia’s hop-crazed art community. During SST’s expansionist days of ’86, their all-instrumental, sax-led spazz attack was among the most promising noise the label released. The band’s first two LPs, recorded as a quartet, feature sax and flute-playing (Eric Ungar) of a remarkably non-fusionoid stripe; by the time of the third LP, however, the configuration was rock-basic (guitar/bass/drums), and Buzz is an excellent album of aggressive space Hunch.

[Byron Coley]