D. Rider

Mother of Curses

Tizona Records

Rocks like: a suicidal In… D. Rider

Mother of Curses

Tizona Records

Rocks like: a suicidal In Rainbows

Grade: C+

D. Rider, a band fronted by U.S. Maple guitarist Todd Rittmann, has invented a sound to be avoided at all costs by the depressed — dreary, clanging guitar with bizarre, nightmarish lyrics and sinister ambient noise.To craft the opaque gloom of Mother of Curses, Rittmann enlisted a musical cast that includes keyboardist Andrea Faught and saxophonist Noah Tabakin. Much of the time, though, it sounds like only two people, as the music dwells in lugubrious guitar and splatters of drum.While the album seems content to wallow in its own murk, it isn’t without its interesting moments, like the chipmunk squeals on “Touchy,” the electronic putters on “The Marksman” and the horns on “Welcome Out.” Even the ever-present guitar veers into screeches reminiscent of the White Stripes’ “Icky Thump.”The lyrics are hit or miss (“Is the West treating you all right?” Rittmann growls at one point), much like the entire album. Some manage to piece together a coherent narrative, as in “Body to Body (To Body),” and some are as inaccessible as the sounds.No one can fault D. Rider for taking risks, and at a few choice moments during the album, those risks pay off. You’ll just have to sift through a lot of noise.

D. Rider’s “Touchy”