ButterQueen – S/T
Godless America Records
★★★ (out of 5 stars)
Orlando is used to seeing the upper crust of the local music scene rotate members in and out of various bands, and the latest of this breed is ButterQueen, comprised of Phil Longo (Basements of Florida), Susana Chaplin (Wet Nurse) and Jordan Duttinger (Tam Tam the Sandwich Man). Their self-titled debut, released on limited, hand-numbered cassettes, unites this quirky trio over mostly locally spun lyrics, as on "U.F.Pho88," about the transient quality of our town's population. Channeling Pavement both musically and vocally on opening track "What Are Friends For," the release begins refreshingly and charges creatively, especially on standout track "Old Butter Dick," with its smile-inducing skits, and on "Speaking Of," which has creepy punk guitar riffs that change rapidly around the two-and-a-half-minute mark and ends unexpectedly on a sludgy note. From the lollipop kids humor of "Butter Run" to the serious range Chaplin shows on "P.B.S.," this butter-colored cassette is worth greasing up your old tape deck.
ButterQueen's cassette release show is 10 p.m. Monday, Nov. 25 at Uncle Lou's Entertainment Hall, free.
