No More Faith No More

At first listen, Tomahawk’s Mit Gas sounds as if Mike Patton and friends are trying to make the perfect Faith No More album. But with multiple listens, it’s apparent that Tomahawk is aiming for the perfect rock album. Mit Gas takes cues from Patton’s work with Faith No More and Mr. Bungle and guitarist Duane Denison’s band The Jesus Lizard, then injecting an encyclopedia of rock and even hints of drum and bass.

In the song “Harlem Clown” a sample names many suspected influences, from Blondie to Lennon to Pink Floyd. This homage to the rock of yesteryear is heard throughout the album starting with the first Floydish buildup, complete with ambient samples and drone. Not another straightforward album like their debut, Mit Gas builds textured rock’n’roll collages with more tempo changes and mood shifts than you’re probably used to in under four minutes.

As usual, Patton flexes the full range of his voice, using screams, grunts, whispers and human beat box along with the powerful vocals that made Faith No More popular. This album works, much better than all the other rock rehash happening now, and even dare I say better than Faith No More in their prime.