Pet Genius

Not what one would expect from members of Cave In, Octave Museum and Doomriders, Pet Genius finds the likes of Steve Brodsky, Johnny Northrup and J.R. Conners exploring their softer side, or their most schizophrenic. This self-titled 11-songer shifts from a fuzzy groove that displays an appreciation for Priestess and Wolfmother to Beatles-esque lilting melodies/borderline-acoustic guitars and back into tinny indie rock before the third song is out. Each track is held together by the instantly recognisable technical personalities of each musician (you can’t take the plodding groove out of a stoner rocker) but when hearing the hippie-ish roll of "Man Of The Mountain” or Brodsky’s best George Harrison impression on "The Waiting Dynamiter,” shock is probably the subtlest of expressions. Despite its ’60s-ish looseness and overall giddy nature though, Pet Genius are a formidable venture for such a collection of heavy music, er, heavyweights.