Run On, On/Off (12" EP)

I like pretty much everything that Rick Brown & Sue Garner make, and On/Off still sounds as fresh and inspiring as in 1995 when it was released. For a new band's first release, Run On definitely did not try to constrain the scope of their vision or make it easy for a newcomer to their work. There's a bit of everything here, from a really catchy pop song ("Into the Attic") to a couple of textural workouts, to less melodic tracks with foreground vocals. It's all a bit raw-sounding without resembling the nominal lo-fi of its era, and all of the different types of tracks work. Adding as strong a personality as Alan Licht did not lead to a diminished band chemistry—everything really holds together. The blurry front cover image of a levitating body, which seems to have been appropriated, fits the music perfectly, but the font and colors don't mesh quite as well for me.