Behind The Barber

They Say...

Review by Ned Raggett, All Music Guide

Continuing in their productive and rewarding vein of home recording, outside collaboration, and inspired artistry, Rollerball followed up their debut on Silber, Real Hair, with Behind the Barber. The connection isn't merely an oblique one of title reference -- the earlier album's "Starling" reappears on Barber as "Starling (Aleph Dub)," which is indeed a classic dub-style reworking, enjoyable if not meant to be groundbreaking (though Mae Starr's singing really stands out wonderfully -- echo and all -- as (unsurprisingly) does Mini Wagonwheel's bass work). Other dubwise efforts crop up, signaled by somewhat punny titles. Thus "Burning Light (Nudge Rub)" (which centers around a shifting series of percussive loops) and "Quiela (Ovo Sub)." As for the album as a whole, the creative standard set by Real Hair continues to bear fruit overall, ranging from the roiling, slow-boil start of the album, "Do the Slim Jim," to the loping, strong funk punch of "King Ben D." The murky guitar clang on "Autotelic," mixed with the low horns, and the brief crackle of "The Guarantee," suggest a kinship to various Bristol U.K. bands of the '90s, notably Movietone, though Rollerball show much more inclination towards variety in their own moody way. S De Leon S and Amanda Mason Wiles' core roles as trumpeter and saxophonist continue to be one of the band's aces in the hole, adding lovely melodic and improvisational flow throughout, while not simply being the dominant instruments. In keeping with the group's bent towards doing exactly what they want, the longest song on the album is one of the first -- "Slits Arandas," a quarter-of-an-hour-plus that covers everything from full group jazz-funk to exploratory brass solos, features guest player Jef Brown from Jackie-O Motherfucker, who fits in perfectly with De Leon S and Wiles.