Training for Utopia -- Throwing a Wrench into the American Music Machine

8/10

Training for Utopia's second album, Throwing a Wrench into the American Music Machine, is leagues ahead of their first. It reveals a band coming into their own unique, idiosyncratic, yet highly enjoyable sound. Naturally, the band broke up almost immediately after it was released.

Throwing a Wrench into the American Music Machine is weird. It's heavy music, with often heavy guitars and screaming, but strangely outside of any known genre. The sixth track is a beautiful, spacey ballad, featuring no screaming, and only singing. There's a heavy hip-hop influence on the sound of much of this music, yet nothing ever approaching rapping. This album makes no sense. It's a strange thrill-ride, filled with unapologetic attitude, seemingly out of place electronics and movie samples, but somehow, it all works. Throwing a Wrench into the American Music Machine is a total original, and I have an incredible amount of fun every time I listen to it. I mean, just listen to this song:

How could you not like this?

1999 Solid State Records
1. 50,000 Screaming TFU Fans Can't Be Wrong 5:40
2. White Boy's Burden 2:54
3. The State Of Wyoming Is Worthless 0:45
4. Burt Reynolds Vs. Godzilla 5:09
5. Tennessee Midget 4:07
6. Everything, Including The Stars, Is Falling (Baby) 4:13
7. New York City Is Overrated 5:29
8. Dead Signal 2000 4:35
9. The Art Of Killing A Copy Machine 2:57
10. Seeing-Eye Fruit Bat 4:33