Guitarist Jason Everman, a onetime member of both Nirvana and Soundgarden (not that his role in either amounted to anything), is one historical calling card of this misleadingly named big-rocking quintet from New Jersey. Actually, he didn’t join until the second album; other genealogical associations for trainspotters include singer Patrick Dubar, who’d been in a hardcore band called Uniform Choice, guitarist Louis Svitek and first-album guitarist Jason Coppola (both ex-Chemical Waste and M.O.D.) and original drummer Reed St. Mark, who was in Celtic Frost.
The band was originally known as Mind Fuck, but cleaned it up for the major-label debut, a Spinal Tapped lunk-o-metal platter. The band got dropped by Epic before the release of its follow-up, which was picked up and issued as Dropped by Megaforce. Produced in generic Northwest style by Terry Date, it’s competent and tasteful but undistinguished. Making good use of spacious dynamic variety and respecting the songs rather than attempting to cover them over, Everman and Svitek whip up smartly modulated guitar noise bolstered by a strong, slightly stiff rhythm section and functional tunes. The weak link (besides the lyrics) is Dubar — he’s adequate but not powerful or distinctive enough to drive it all home. Willing to settle for trying popular sounds rather than seek a compelling personality, Mindfunk — whose third album, People Who Fell From the Sky (made by a new post-Everman four-piece lineup), did not get an American release — never succeeded in surpassing its history.