Maverick genius of this parish, Mike Knott has been making records for a good few years now, and courting controversy for nearly as long. I've lost track of how many rumours about him I've run across over the years; it seems that a lot of people can never quite appreciate his unusual take on life and art. As Knott begins work on a new mainstream project, it seems an apt time to focus on this retrospective collection.
Tracks have been selected from recordings spanning the past decade or so, including a mixture of Lifesavers/LSU/what-you-will recordings and Knott's solo works. There's quite a range of styles represented within the material offered, from the sax driven "See Me Fall" to the moody solo version of "Rocket and a Bomb" to the abrasive guitars of "This Is the Healing." Occasional tracks, such as "Waking up the Dead," are slightly reminiscent of Tribe of Dan, but the album parades such a range of influences that it would be fruitless to list them all.
Unfortunately in this case, Mike Knott's albums have a habit of working as complete work. His lyrics are often so cleverly intertwined that the themes only make themselves evident as you listen to the songs in the context they were originally placed in, and that makes compilations like this very difficult to put together. Each song does have some standing in its own right, but they do suffer from the lack of context.
For those already taken by Mike Knott's music but wanting an overview of his recent recordings before exploring further, this album will be a great addition. Those who already have all the albums represented may well be disappointed, and if it's an introduction to Knott's music that's required, this probably wouldn't be the best place to start. An interesting selection, but possibly one without a niche.
James Stewart (5/12/99)