The Mermen "Sunken Treasure" 1999

This CD chronicles one hot night in Seattle in early 1997. All live and loaded with their trademark sound, pristinely recorded by Roz Jones. This band's live performances are very magical, and often far more inspired then their studio work. Part of the reason for Jim's preference for multiple amps and complicated effects matrices is his need for something on the edge of out of control to counterbalance his complete guitar control. The pressure of that immediacy adds an another element to the music that can only be experienced when you can't go back and fix it. This is a stellar live set of music. - Phil DirtTo satiate the appetite of the band's rabidly cultish fan base, the San Francisco trio released a pair of live CDs documenting various 1996 shows. Sunken Treasure (compiled from a series of soundboard recordings) appeared in late 1996; its successor, Only You, was released the following year. Compiled from various performances on the heels of Songs of the Cows' release, Sunken Treasure includes a few oddities throughout its 66 minutes -- most notably the heretofore unreleased "Joni Mitchell's House" (a much smoother take than that found on Only You), a relaxed run-through of the Sentinals' early-'60s hit "Latinia," and the rarely performed "Blue Xoam." Aside from that, it's mostly Mermen-by-numbers here. But that's no slag: "Dancing in Her Sleep" and "With No Definite Future" each lope along lazily like a moon slowly rising over the clear Pacific sky, while "Pulpin' Line" and "Drub" bookend the set with jagged riffing and rhythmic pummel galore. Although it's a cut below other Mermen live recordings, Sunken Treasure is still worth hunting down for obsessive fans of the band. - Charles Hodgkins, All Music Guidetrax:
1. Pulpin' Line 2. With No Definite Future and No Purpose Other Than to Prevail Somehow... 3. Scalp Salad 4. Curve 5. Joni Mitchell's House 6. Varykino Snow 7. Silly Elephant Who Stomped to Tea 8. Blue Xoam 9. Latin'ia 10. Casbah 11. Dancing in Her Sleep 12. The Drub