Album Review: Omar Rodriguez-Lopez - Chocolate Tumor Hormone Parade

Omar Rodriguez-Lopez is skilled in composing albums that blur the distinction between individual songs, creating a seamless whole.

His fourth solo record released this year, ambitious concept record Chocolate Tumor Hormone Parade is a prime example. Heavy grunge distortion infects the output with the thick, sepia-toned atmosphere of the detective noir genre. The sonic character of the record is mature, reflecting a self-aware and strung-out self-deprecation, while leads and solos inject a gripping and unpredictable sense of urgency. An utterly twisted dissonance pervades the LP, flirting with post punk, acid-jazz and spacey psych-rock tripouts.