Lost Controls

"Entirely Wired for Sound"

by John Vettese

Wisely, Matador Records timed the release of its Austin scene-pillaging compilation Casual Victim Pile so it happens right before the hoopla surrounding the annual South by Southwest music conference gets insufferable. Podcast listeners, you know what I'm talking about — the more we hear insiderist blaggers yapping about "South by" in the coming weeks, the more we'll want to throttle 'em. Thankfully, the comp gives us plenty of cathartic defensive ammo, like this killer Screamers-esque jam by synth/garage punks Lost Controls, which closes the set. You hear two keyboards (a short, sharp synthesizer up front; the other warmer, fuzzier, a thick backdrop of organ) both pulsing and pushing like they're going to eventually break to the accelerated tempo. Singer Cody Leitholt wails nihilistically, his voice a bit Mark Mothersbaugh, a bit Jello Biafra, about a world where there's simply not enough auditory stimuli, which could be read as a sarcastic jab at the million-billion aspiring rockstars who descend on his city annually.