A couple of guitar compilations

Every so often, I get burnt out on listening to guitar records. I mean, at this late date, what's left to say on the axe that hasn't been said already? Well, it depends a lot on the limits of your imagination. You could wait for the next Nels Cline record, or you can pick up on one of these two recently-released compilations, both of which I heartily recommend.

I'd been holding onto Axe, a compilation of experimental guitar tracks released by Washington-based Spectropol Recrds, for a couple of months, ever since Kavin Allenson (who's on it) handed me a copy. Then the last package from Clean Feed Records in Portugal included I Never Metaguitar Too, the followup to the label's similarly-titled, also Elliott Sharp-curated compilation from way back in 2010, so I thought it might be worthwhile to side-by-side 'em.

As is my custom when reviewing such releases, I'm going to provide a three-word description of each artist's contribution. Not much for depth, but with things like this, it's impossible to do an adequate job of capturing the total flavor any other way. Plus, it amuses me. And I can.

Axe:

Marco Oppedisano: Cinematic feedback daybreak.
Mark Hamilton & Bruce Hamilton: Echolalic architectonic orchestration.
Jordan Watson: Zappaesque processed dreamscape.
Neil Haverstick: Languid liquid melody.
Kavin Allenson: Fragmented thought gestures.
Tigress and the U-Fraidees: Hendrix machine infestation.
Jukka-Pekka Kervinen: Synthesized musique concrete.
Roger Sundstrom: Deep space sonics.
The Michael Vick Trip: Amorphous subconscious spillage.
Bill Horist: Sleeping monsters stir.
Chris Vaisvil & Bruce Hamilton: Ghostly MC5 echo.
Steve Moyes: Overlapping oscillating overtones.
James Ross: Ringing harmonic decay.

I Never Metaguitar Too:

Ava Mendoza: Frippertronic menace math.
Ben Tyree: Fingerstyle contrapuntal filigree.
On Ka'a Davis: Angular aleatoric funk.
Shouwang Zhang: Electronic pulse hymn.
Joel Harrison: Ethereal slide lament.
Yasuhiro Usui: Seasick space odyssey.
Steve Cardenas: Gentle pastoral miniature.
Marco Cappelli: Amp hum Heldon.
Alan Licht: Wobbly autotuned atonality.
David Grubbs: Minimalist diatonic study.
Hans Tammen: Crackling mechanoid static.
Zach Layton: Iridescent floating chimes.
Thomas Maos: Percussive microtonal harmonics.
Richard Carrick: Shimmering tone clouds.
Zachary Pruitt: Tentative exploratory invention.
Manuel Mota: Shhh, it's quiet.