Back when I profiled Brian Miller’s now defunct solo project Back To The Future The Ride, I made the point that Miller is a veteran of the LA scene who has seen tides of hype come and go. His numerous bands, solo projects, and side projects now number in the double digits, while his continued stewardship of Deathbomb Arc Records has provided a crucial outlet for the fringes of the Southern California underground scene. For the past six years, Foot Village has occupied the center of Miller’s musical universe. A four-piece, Foot Village plays live sans amplification with four drum kits facing each other, megaphones upping the vocal volume, and members rotating among instruments placed in and around the audience. After three full-lengths and numerous singles, splits, and one-offs, the group is about to drop their most cohesive single-track statement yet. “Let Bebongs Be Bebongs, Idiot” is an epic in miniature that covers all of the major Foot Village touchstones in its 16-minute run time.
Beginning with a lengthy, dissonant introductory section, “Let Bebeongs” builds in tension as wall-to-wall cymbal crashes mingle with insistent, militaristic beats. It’s proof that an all-percussion band need not be a one trick pony, and that the constraints of Foot Village’s instrumentation are in fact a springboard for variety when spread out over an entire side of wax. The shouted refrain, “We just want to party,” builds in intensity as the track stretches into bedlam during its climactic third act, only to retreat into a clanging symphony of precise beats. Miller’s obsession with themes of teen culture and rebellion, present since his earliest releases with Rose for Bodhan, is on full display, and there is nothing like the moment when the snotty vocals of longtime creative partner Grace Lee dissolve into a droning, chant-like chorus where every member of Foot Village has their say all at once. I won’t spoil the final, understated payoff but, like the old cliché, it’s the journey, not the destination, that counts.
Foot Village, “Let Bebongs Be Bebongs, Idiot”
Words: Max Burke
Photo: Renata Raksha
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