Man Or Astro-Man? - Experiment Zero Man Or Astro-Man?

There's some undeniable connection between the South and occurrences of extra-terrestrial origin. From eclectic jazz guru Sun Ra to German Rocket Scientist Wernher von Braun, Alabama has always had more than an ample share of connection to outer space and matters with extra-terrestrial origin. Such is the case with Man or Astro-Man? arriving/crash landing in a small college town in Alabama some years ago.

Rediscovering record collections long stashed away in forgotten attics or hidden behind racks of magazine back issues at numerous dilapidated thrift stores in Alabama, the entities of Man or Astro-Man? became enamored with the scratched up sounds of Link Wray, The Ventures, Dick Dale, The Shadows and Duane Eddy - namely instrumental guitar and surf music of the late fifties and early sixties. At the same time, bizarre stage designs and performances by Kraftwerk, Sun Ra, Devo, Frank Zappa, The Sputniks and of course the Residents had great impact on the rapidly developing troupe. None-the less, it was a forced existence in a hopelessly conservative small town environment that led Man or Astro-Man? to leave behind the overt and become much more affected by what they hated, than by what actually appealed to them. In essence, you could say that Man or Astro-Man? was far more influenced by college football and muscle-bound fraternity loons than science fiction. The band impelled itself, especially in the live setting, to be as ridiculous as possible, mocking serious "alternative" acts and, along with them, the music industry itself.

Experiment Zero (1996) was their debut Touch and Go album. Recorded in three days at Man or Astro-man?'s own studio Zero Return in Alabama with Steve Albini, it stands as one of the great modern surf-influenced guitar instrumental records. Wanting Experiment Zero to stand as their masterpiece of the long evolution of surf music, Man or Astro-Man? began to evolve at a greater velocity than ever before. They further morphed their sound, extending the use of their samples, computer programming, keyboards, electronic gadgetry and experimental analog tape cutting and pasting. While widely critically acclaimed, long-time fans had a lot of adjusting to do. Where most bands would have grown tired or simply treadmilled the same album over and over Man or Astro-man? continuously reinvented themselves and their live performances.