Prince Rama
Top Ten hits of the End of the World
Paw Tracks
Producer: Various
Score: 8 out of 10
By Daniel Siwek
The trouble with a concept album is the expectation to deliver a theme, even if it’s a half-baked kitschy joke. Taraka & Nimai Larson grew up on a Hare Krishna commune in Florida and brought their trippy-hippy ways to the indie-hipster capital of the world, Brooklyn, and signed to Animal Collective’s Paw Tracks label. This release is a compilation celebrating the hits of 10 bands (played by Prince Rama) that perished in the apocalypse. Each group “have their own stylistic identity” from tribal goth to Arabic pop to motorcycle rock. But, all have the same take on vocals, melodies and production—it all sounds like one band who forgot to stay in character(s). And yet, these dead bands are haunting.
