eMusic Review 0
Blank Dogs is the nom de plume of Mike Sniper, a Brooklynite with a penchant for guitar noise, analog synths and a mutant-pop sensibility. While Collected By Itself is an omnibus of Sniper's extensive output of singles and EPs, the compendium makes a lot of statements on various levels. First, the majority of the disc's 27 tracks were recorded at home on hiss-heavy tape machines, thereby celebrating a decidedly DIY ambiance, the likes of which have been eradicated like sonic smallpox by today's myriad digital recording applications.
Then, there's Sniper's aesthetic, best defined as both time-machine developer and trafficker of the arcane. His pop blueprints take cues from the early electronic primitivism of Cabaret Voltaire and the Residents ("She's Violent Tonight") and the mysterious minimalism conjured by a number of footnote acts from the stables of Rough Trade and Crepuscule labels ("Before the Hours"). To Sniper's credit, he's been able to take these elements and fashion them into a vibe that has received praise from garage rockers and twee indie-popsters alike. Far more than mere of-the-minute hipster fodder, Collected rams one big point home: Great songs are a treasure, but a true believer knows the seemingly random synthesizer intro… read more »
