Singles Breaking Up (Vol. 1)

Singles Breaking Up, as its title indicates, collects 13 early single recordings, all of which do a good job of establishing this Pittsburgh band’s dynamic, angular, and hard-driving instrumental rock. As one would expect, the recordings don’t have quite the sense of variety or experimentation found on some of the band’s later work, but this certainly isn’t a flaw — like the early releases of most bands, the singles work toward fine-tuning a signature sound, and the sonic purity of Singles Breaking Up may even appeal to some listeners more than the band’s other releases. Regardless, their instrumentals have a sense of dynamics, composition, and overall change that puts similar acts to shame, and their volatile, angular rock practically defines the sort of guitar work around which many indie projects are built. As an excellent and fairly comprehensive release, Singles Breaking Up should not only appeal to Don Caballero fans seeking the band’s singles work, but should also be as good an introduction to the group as any. – Nitsuh Abebe