by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Brooklyn’s Curtis Godino is the type of musical polymath that will surprise you with every new release. He’s built a reputation for visual art as one half of Drippy Eye Projections and established himself as an immersive musician with his bands Worthless and Nothing On Semble. Both projects have rather expansive world-building qualities, blending together psych and prog in a way that feels both sucked out of another time and unmistakably modern. Godino is set to release his next odyssey, Curtis Godino’s Alien Nation, his first record under his own name. Due out April 2nd via Feeding Tube Records (Wren Kitz, Big Blood, Blanche Blanche Blanche), the album is not one you will soon forget, steeping in a cartoonish insanity that feels like a head full of acid at the most sugar-spun of carnival sideshows. It’s colorful and full of whimsical prog and maximalist psych, all bent and warped in a sonic delight.
Lead single and album opener “The Warm Welcome” is every bit as the title suggests, this is your introduction. Welcome and be glad you’ve arrived. There’s a reminiscence to the zaniest moments of the Cloud Becomes Your Hand catalog, but aside from that Curtis Godino’s latest feels unique, taking influence from Frank Zappa and flipping the already flipped on it’s head. Played primarily on synths (and potentially mellotron), “The Warm Welcome” feels warm and well-orchestrated, like the opening musical number of a wacky 70’s cartoon or what that might sound like developed deep in outer space. It’s tight and reflexive, winding itself around a central theme and fizzling out in every direction. The video captures the vibe with a trio of Godino’s in performance together with a guest cartoon egg that really makes its presence felt.