Attica! Attica!: Dead Skin/Dried Blood

The Indie Review
By Sean Duregger
February 7, 2008

Artist: Attica! Attica!
Album: Dead Skin/Dried Blood
Rating:

Aaron Scott took a unusual approach to writing his first solo album since parting ways with his bands Marathon and De La Hoya. He spent time traveling the country alone, writing songs on buses, bicycles or wherever he could. He then took his experiences and ideas and recorded everything with the help of close friend and producer Chris Antal. The recording was done carefully over the course of a year in Ithaca, New York.

The result is Dead Skin/Dried Blood, released under the moniker Attica! Attica!. A thought-provoking, yet entertaining collection of stories and ideas, Dead Skin/Dried Blood is an album that gets better with every listen. Each song is so rich in ideas and stories that, like a good book or movie, you discover new things with each visit.

Musically, it’s hard to pin down a certain style or comparison. Attica! Attica! takes bits and pieces of folk, punk, rock and even a smidgen of country to create a truly original album. I haven’t heard anything I can directly compare this project to. The music is such a rich collection of sounds, Dead Skin/Dried Blood is almost timeless.

I say “almost timeless”, because one can’t help but notice some of the political undercurrents of a couple songs, Way Down in Gitmo and The Party Party. Many people have their opinions about politically charged songs, but in this case, Aaron delivers an impeccable level of humor to these songs. The subjects are current: The War on Terror, the Bush Administration, even Washington politics itself. The rest of the album’s themes are a little more universal and timeless.

Attica! Attica! has released on of my favorite albums of 2007. Dead Skin/Dried Blood is Aaron Scott’s blood, sweat,and tears rolled into a collection of songs that will be around and relevant for a very long time.

Stand Out Tracks:

“The Play’s the Thing”
“The Party Party”
“Frostbite”