3 out of 5

Label: Skin Graft Records

Produced by: Terms

Terms was borne during a time of social distancing and isolation due to COVID. While that makes the fact of its existence nominal – that two top-of-their-game players could come together and deliver on an instrumental project that requires such tight synchronization – it also is somewhat clear from the end result, which doesn’t necessarily feel like a band at this point, but rather a pursuit; something the duo was driven to do. So that drive is told in every bass-driven rockout – Asbestos Mouth absolutely fills all the open space with wiggly guitar riffs, but the (assumedly…) multi-tracked bass tends to set the rhythm – with Chris Trull metamorphosing between jazz rushes and rock pummeling – however, the album is also somewhat stitched together on whims, which means tracks sound first and firstmost reminiscent of other instrumental math-rock noodlers (particularly, at least amongst my references, of latter day Don Cab with the unformed undertone of Storm and Stress) and not quite a style I’d identify as Terms’ own. Pauses are excised in favor of improv / loose linking tracks. And there’s just a general sense of, oddly, caution: the songs are one of the two modes mentioned above – rigidly structured or improv – the latter isn’t really emotive enough to be more than the interstitials they are; the former never leads towards any surprises or breakouts, something an equally calculated group like Dysrhythmia knows to allow for. This is underlined by a pretty flat production style, but I can appreciate the cleanliness of it for absorbing the full skill of the players – maybe why masterer Todd Rittman didn’t seem to push that sound any further.

I’m defining by negatives, though: the tracks are fun, and the runtimes – and the fact that Terms doesn’t try to blow our minds – are such that all the “sounds like…” comments are just kind of lingering instead of overwhelming. Asbestos Mouth keeps a bubbling sense of funk running throughout the tunes; my toe rarely stopped tapping. And again, it’s worth considering the COVIDity of when this came to be: that blend of familiarity and caution may have almost been comforting (and an emotional necessity) at the time.