Erase Errata were four riot-grrrrls from San Francisco who harked back to the disco-punk of the new wave (Pop Group,
Contortions,
Gang Of Four).
Other Animals (Troubleman, 2001) showcased
hysterical vocals (Jenny Hoyston), petulant dissonant guitar (Sara Jaffe),
stormy rhythms (bassist Ellie Erickson and drummer Bianca Sparta)
and the occasional trumpet or keyboards.
It stages a relentless assault on the ears.
The most visible results are the
visceral grooves of Billy Mummy and Other Animals Are #1,
which lead to
hypnotic witch dances like Marathon and French Canada,
as well as to cow-punk aberrations like C Rex and Walk Don't Fly;
but more revealing are
the guitar pyrotechnics of Fault List,
the disjointed and chaotic High Society,
and the radioactive power-ballad Dexterity Is #2.
Some of the most effervescent numbers (1 Minute)
are confined to brief pieces that endorse the ethos of the "no wave" of DNA.
The amount of verve and energy packed in this brief album made some
punk-rock sound lame.
At Crystal Palace (Troubleman, 2003) is a less original work that
reprises the same (derivative) idea and applies it convincingly only to
the hysterical punk-rock of Harvester and (partially)
Go to Sleep,
The "melodic" opener
Driving Test is rather lame. At the other end of the spectrum,
the atonal minalism of Owls is intriguing but hardly revolutionary.
Erase Errata's singer Jenny Hoyston also released the experimental
mini-album Lines Are Infinitely Fine (Dim Mak, 2003) under the moniker
Paradise Island.
Isle Of (2007) was her first full-length.
Erase Errata's Nightlife (Kill Rock Stars, 2006), the first album
(or, better, mini-album)
without guitarist Sara Jaffe, was still unique in the way it channeled
stereotypes of the musical counterculture (new wave, no wave, punk-rock) into
danceable structures, breeding order out of disorder.
The album reads like a history of unpopular music of the 1970s/80s:
the convoluted ska of Cruisin' has echoes of
Talking Heads' Psycho Killer;
the bolero-like crescendo of Hotel Suicide feels like a gothic version of
Jefferson Airplane's White Rabbit;
the anthemic punk-rock frenzy of Another Genius Idea From Our Government
echoes
the Dead Kennedys' Holiday in Cambodia;
Tax Dollar could have been a lost gem of Romeo Void;
and the feverish cow-punk rock Rider evokes the ghost of the Gun Club.
Underlying the eccentricity of the project is a continuous rhythmic invention,
that stretches from the pounding pow-wow dance Take You to the ubiquitous
syncopation and odd tempos.
The award for best arrangement goes to Wasteland, whose
epileptic jungle drumming is stabbed by chaotic guitar chords before copulating
beastly with free-form noise.
Sara Jaffe debuted solo with the EP Salt And Water (2006), featuring
only Tara Jane O'Neil on other instruments.
San Francisco's
Sic Alps, fronted by Mike Donovan and featuring Bianca Sparta of Erase Errata,
delivered noisy garage-pop on
Pleasures And Treasures (Animal Disguise, 2006) and
the EP
The Soft Tour In Rough Form (Mt St Mtn, 2006).
The U.S. Ez (Siltbreeze, 2008) is no less stereotypical but
tames the verve and opts for a more elegant style, from the T.Rex-ian
glam tempo of Gelly Roll Gum Drop to the bluesy ballad
Everywhere There, that recalls Jimi Hendrix's stately version of Hey Joe.
A Long Way Around To A Shortcut (2008) is a compilation of early singles
like Microcastle (similar to Everywhere There).
Sic Alps further cleaned up their sound on the 22-song Napa Asylum (Drag City, 2010), that added Comets on Fire's guitarist Noel Von Harmonson to the core duo. Alas, they now sounded like Guided By Voices at their most indulgent
and redundant, with a boatload of tedious languid ballads. The highlight is the
slow-motion acid blues Sic Alps Ranger.
Sic Alps (Drag City, 2012) is similarly devoid of energy, full of
harmless poppy ditties like Moviehead. Slightly
better is the single She's On Top, that sounds like
a slow-burning southern-rock remix of the Troggs' Wild Thing.
After a nine-year hiatus, Erase Errata released a seven-song mini-album,
Lost Weekend (2015).
