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Anteater · 12-29-2009, 08:17 PM

Pavlov's Dog – Pampered Menial (1974)

"Ever Wondered What Geddy Lee from Rush would sound like on helium while fronting Roxy Music?"

1. Julia (3:10)
2. Late November (3:12)
3. Song Dance (4:59)
4. Fast Gun (3:04)
5. Natchez Trace (3:42)
6. Theme from Subway Sue (4:25)
7. Episode (4:04)
8. Preludin (1:39)
9. Of Once and Future Kings (5:27)

Of the many strange bands who emerged from the American musical woodwork of the swingin' 70's, you would be hard pressed to find a more polarizing band than Pavlov's Dog. Fronted by the mysterious but freakishly voiced David Surkamp and featuring more diverse-than-usual instrumentation than your average glam group, the group toured a bit through various clubs before catching the attention of the executives of ABC Dunhill Records, who in a curious move gave the band nearly $650,000 so that they could get into studio and record an album. The result of the ensuing studio work was 1974's Pampered Menial, the subject of this review, and in all the time that's passed since that year there has never been another album quite like it.

The first thing one might notice when listening to the opening piece 'Julia', which was also this record's big single, is that there is A. The piano and guitar are both quite dynamic, along with some nice flute and B. Surkamp's voice is possibly the coolest thing ever, regardless of whether you like the sound of it or not. Seriously, this guy could crack windows with that falsetto, and the very sound of it empowers and fleshes out the music in a way that a typically nice sounding or okay sounding vocalist would not be capable of doing. For better or for worse, you can't deny the uniqueness here.

'Late November', in something of a contrast to where we started at, is where the glam aspects begins to rear up. Featuring a strangely catchy chorus led by Surkamp's curious delivery and some wonderfully searing guitar clawing out from the depths of mellotron atmospherics, this is a nicely memorable track that could have been 5 or even 6 minutes long and still not worn out its welcome.

After this you may begin to see this album's main dynamic at work; fun slices of rock driven by vitar (a combination between the guitar and violin) laden with symphonic arrangements you'd expect more from Queen or prog. bands, and in this respect Pavlov's Dog excels fantastically. It's nothing too technical, but is great melancholic stuff fronted by a man who makes Robert Plant sound almost gruff in comparison. My favorite track, however, is the closer 'Of Once and Future Kings', which features a nice spurt in the energy department and two solos from both the piano and violin, bringing to mind Gentle Giant at their saner moments. It's basically five minutes of random, pure progressive fun, and the medieval lyrics fit these proceedings like a glove.

Where groups like Queen and Roxy Music were sublime to see in the mid 70's and David Bowie masterful, Pavlov's Dog may just seem weird and amateurish in comparison, but I for one find their earnestness endearing. The fact that an American band could stand out so starkly amidst their more successful British peers and still sound fresh thirty years later is remarkable in and of itself, and Pampered Menial can surely be appreciated by anyone who want to hear cool 70's American pomp. rock done odd, but with style and vigor to boot.