Instrument Soundtrack

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ALBUM INFORMATION

Total Tracks: 18   Total Length: 45:37

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Joe Gross

eMusic Contributor

Joe Gross hails from Falls Church, VA, one of the Chocolate City's most vanilla suburbs. He has written for Spin, Rolling Stone, the Village Voice, the Washingt...more »

07.26.11
A cool snapshot of the band's working process
Label: Dischord Records

This is the pseudo soundtrack to the documentary of the same name made by the band with long-time ally Jem Cohen, who has made films with R.E.M. and the late Vic Chesnutt. There’s nothing hugely revelatory, but it’s a cool snapshot of the band’s working process. Only “Rend It” appears as a Guy-with-acoustic-guitar demo. Most of the record is the sound of songs coming together link by link and yard by yard, assembled, jammed on, pulled apart and futzed with. It’s fun to hear Guy’s clarinet sub in for his trebly guitar on “Lusty Scripps,” “I’m So Tired” is a genuine piano ballad and the demo for “Guildford Fall” will remind old fans that song started out as (and was perfectly good as) a muscular instrumental. This one should come after a firm digestion of all the others, but see the movie.

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Better than your Fugazi

aikicinema

Warning: I'm not a big Fugazi fan. But I am a fan of sparse instrumental rock. And this is as good as it gets. Moody and deep. There are a few cuts with vocals: Me & Thumbelina; Little Debbie; I'm So Tired; and Rend It. Download the whole thing. But if you are like me, you may skip these.

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take a measurement

amoeba

if you havent seen instrument the film, GET IT!!! netflix has it, or buy it from dischord. if you're a fugazi fan you wont be disappointed. ESPECIALLY if you like this album.

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Softer Edges

Lopside

As a young man, I grew up with 'Kill Taker,' and was therefore somewhat perplexed by this album. Like most everything else Fugazi has done over the years, I grew to love it. It's a much softer and cleaner sound than nearly all their other work, and the instrumental focus leaves lots of room for the band's hard-won technical virtuosity to shine. Fugazi at their most accessible.

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Icon: Fugazi

By Joe Gross

"Beautiful, funny people. Generous to and respectful of the people they work with. Inspirational in a lot of ways. Maybe the best band." — Steve Albini on Fugazi From their first public performances in 1987 to the start of their indefinite hiatus in 2002, Fugazi kept every promise they ever made. The D.C. supergroup — Dischord Records co-founder and Minor Threat frontman Ian MacKaye on guitar and vocals, singer/guitarist Guy Picciotto and drummer Brendan Canty,… more »

They Say All Media Guide

Fugazi finally released a career retrospective after more than a decade together, though in true indie fashion, Instrument is far from your average band’s greatest-hits collection. In truth, it’s the soundtrack to a documentary produced by the band with filmmaker Jem Cohen. While the film contains footage from live dates, studio work, and intimate home-movie tapes, the soundtrack itself focuses on unreleased studio tracks and outtakes with never-before-heard songs, including “I’m So Tired,” “Swingset,” “Slo Crostick,” and “Turkish Disco.” – John Bush

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