Fiasco: Native Canadians

No one likes to be reminded of just how unremarkable one of his alleged “talents” is, but it’d be grossly unfair to begrudge these Brooklyn teens their obvious virtuosity. Yes, this is one of the most blistering albums you’re likely to hear all year, and yes, these darkly fascinating instrumentals never once lapse into the category of boring B+ sludge. To my ears, the dynamic, if sophomorically titled, “I Wanna Be Your Cat” is the record’s finest three and a half minutes, a gnarled metamorphic suite that reminds me of Slint divided by God Speed! You Black Emperor plus the charm of bonafide adolescence (remember that?). I’m calling it now: these guys are gonna do some interesting shit.