Origin:	USA
Genres:

Last update/review:	September 29, 2011

Fantômas

It's been no surprise that Mike Patton has kept himself busy following the breakup of Faith No More. He was active for some time in Mr. Bungle (who have now broken up), fronts another band by the name of Tomahawk, and has recorded and toured with The Dillinger Escape Plan, but one of his main projects these days is Fantômas. A supergroup of sorts, bringing together four class musicians from disparate backgrounds (Buzz Osbourne and Dave Lombardo are well known from their main bands, Melvins and Slayer, while Trevor Dunn played with Patton in Mr. Bungle), Fantômas is an intriguing group to say the least. Their first self-titled album (not reviewed here) received wildly varying reviews, some hailing it as a masterpiece and others proclaiming it a disjointed mess. For the followup, The Director's Cut, Patton and crew have decided to pay tribute to various horror films by covering various horror theme songs. The result is, predictably given Patton's involvement, unpredictable. There's very little in the way of Melvins sludge or Slayer thrash, yet Buzz's and Lombardo's contributions are not insignificant. Still, Patton is the clear leader here, with his eccentric vocal style and offbeat song writing/arranging in full force. The Director's Cut isn't a terribly metallic album (though there are several areas where metal is at the forefront), but it is dark, foreboding, and very interesting listening. Since then the band has continued its off-the-wall experimentalism, with 2003's Delirium Cordia consisting of one 74-minute song, and their new effort, Suspended Animation, apparently dealing with cartoon theme songs.