Ash Barrett
Uncaged
Feral Crone Recordings
Arizona trio Tassel’s brief moment in the spotlight was a singular one. Before it was even released, 2024’s A Sacrifice: Unto Idols was introduced not just as their first, but also their last LP: the band had planned a dissolution shortly after a string of EPs and followed through on that plan after some brief support of Sacrifice. That record’s mix of synthpunk, goth, and industrial (but not “goth-industrial”, if you catch our drift) was engrossing but decidedly mean, and those of us just cottoning on to the band were left wondering where they might have gone next. Another Tassel record might never come to pass, but the new record from co-founder and guitarist Ash Barrett, now based out of Texas, is an indication of what sort of shadow the project might continue to cast.
While Barrett had released a sizeable number of records ranging from dreamy new wave and shoe gaze to angular no wave previous to Tassel’s formation, the style of Uncaged‘s noise rock feels embellished by the industrial grime found in Tassel’s squalling sound. On rusting, mechanical opener “Lust Unlust”, the low, stabbing bass and frapped to hell drum machine which make up the bulk of the track constantly sound like they’re about to shudder their way out of frame. Later, the smeared grind of “Gluttony” sounds like Thrill Kill Kult at rock bottom, with a lo-fi Wax Trax peeler bar riff banging about ad nauseum while Barrett’s vocals preen in a tarnished mirror.
Uncaged isn’t entirely machine-driven misanthrophy; something of the twang of Barrett’s pre-Tassel work can be heard in the heavy pluck and feedback of “Lick”, though its dada-blues riffing feels more Gun Club or Birthday Party through its oppressive mix and distortion. Similarly, you could link the overheated swagger of “No Pornography” to Barrett’s 2020 release Faux Head Image, but even there a certain sense of pressure and entrapment gives the tune a decidedly boxy shape.
It’s tempting to tag tracks like “Basement”, with its slurping industrial bass, or closer “Punishment”, which ricochets guitar bends off steam valve percussion, as ‘experimental’ in terms of their approach to sound design and combining of industrial and noise rock motifs, but frankly that’s a cheap cop out. As evidenced by the contrasts with his previous solo material, Barrett knows precisely what they’re doing on this record. Aimless experimentation be damned, this is direct, intentional, and focused stuff.
