Thee Water MoccaSins: From the Rivers of Missouri and the Banks of Fear

There’s an art to slotting an opening track, and all the best ones seem to possess some kind of charismatic momentum that sweeps you up and propels you into the world of the album. “In the City,” from locals Thee Water MoccaSins’ debut, From the Rivers of Missouri and the Banks of Fear, does just that. A whine of feedback bleeds into a gently skittering cymbal. An electric guitar settles on a chord and idly rings out its individual notes. Faint electronics bubble to the surface. Then the drums pick up. Then they pick up some more, and at about 1:18, the MoccaSins drop it into gear, coalescing behind a churning, addictive, overdriven space-rock jam. It’s pretty glorious stuff. On the other seven tracks, the band — Billy Smith, Steve Tulipana, John Bersuch, and Wade Williamson — hits on heavy psych (“Fumbling Toward the Abyss”), bright electronica (“No Control”) and even island tones (“Diablo Diablo” and “In Bed,” the chorus of which calls to mind David Bowie crooning karaoke at some Caribbean resort). Best of all is “On a Wire,” a dark, driving hard-rock burner to please those among us quietly waiting out the Constantines’ hiatus.
(self-released)