By Eleftheria Parpis
-- taken from Creem Magazine, October 1993 --
In these days when bell bottoms, flower-power haircuts, and love beads are more a sign of the fashion-concious than the rebellious, for Canadian quintet Acid Test to glean its name from author Tom Wolfe's 1968 generational classic The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test may seem a bit contrived. When front woman Lucy Di Santo, with her long black hair parted in the middle, takes the stage of N.Y.C.'s Limelight in a brown, crocheted bikini top and cut-off jeans that dangle from her slender hips (calling attention to the butterfly tattoo on her abdomen), she too perpetuates the notion that the band is trying too hard to hark back to the days of "Make Love Not War".
However, when the music kicks in, the illusion of overly crafted retro mass appeal is instantly smashed to bits, shattering the preconceptions of a prepackaged band riding the groovy train of today's '70s revival. Out of this petite Joni Mitchell-like persona comes the combined stage presence of Janis Joplin, Patty Smith, and Kim Gordon. Aggressive and self-confident, Di Santo dances around the stage, commanding her bass to lead Acid Test into a frenetic musical euphoria.
Guitarist Steve Fall, wearing oversized overalls and a backwards baseball cap, runs around in frantic circles as he blankets heavy layers of guitar over Di Santo's funky bass lines and drummer Jim Alty's relentless rhythms. Mike Harland - DJ Jus' Rite - scratches vinyl, while keyboardist Atom Percy is so swept away by the stage energy that he jumps up and rides his keyboard like a surfboard. This ecstasy on stage, catalyzed by each other's talents, says Percy, is the Acid Test experience - genuine, not affected at all. "It's what happens to us when we play. It's like my eyes just roll into the back of my head. And it's not about drugs, it's about music."
Born in Toronto of techno raves, industrial rage, '80s pop, and '90s noise - with a bit of P.Funk thrown in - Acid test achieves a beautiful mix of musical chemistry. And if each member of the band had a choice, Fall would like to see Acid Test tour with Ministry or Soundgarden; Percy with Nine Inch Nails; Harland with Sonic Youth; Di Santo with Lenny Kravitz, The Black Crowes, or The Cult. "We really feed off of each other and people feel it. I think skater kids can get into our music, industrial fans, ravers, '70s psychedelic fans... we're a mish-mash of styles" says Fall.
Or as Atom explains it, "You can listen to our music in a dark, candle-lit room and trip out to it, or you can listen to it at a party or a show and mosh your brains out."
Although Drop flags Acid Test's American debut (Sire/Reprise), the band is no stranger to Canadian radio, given that the first single off the release, "Mr. Skin" was originally written and performed for the Bruce McDonald-directed independent film Highway 61 and received favorable reviews and local airplay. At the time, the band consisted only of Di Santo and Fall, so for Drop, the song was re-recorded with the existing line-up in mind. "It was much more dance-oriented," Fall says, "so we updated it with a lot more guitars to better suit the rest of the band."
When naming the group, Di Santo says she likened the feeling of creating music with other musicians to the captivating experience she felt when first reading The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. "As a teenager, I read the book and was totally lost in the descriptiveness of it. It took you inside the whole picture," says Di Santo, hoping listeners will be as taken in by Acid Test. "IT also means finishing the test." That's a test they all believe they're up to.
-- taken from Creem Magazine, October 1993 --
In these days when bell bottoms, flower-power haircuts, and love beads are more a sign of the fashion-concious than the rebellious, for Canadian quintet Acid Test to glean its name from author Tom Wolfe's 1968 generational classic The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test may seem a bit contrived. When front woman Lucy Di Santo, with her long black hair parted in the middle, takes the stage of N.Y.C.'s Limelight in a brown, crocheted bikini top and cut-off jeans that dangle from her slender hips (calling attention to the butterfly tattoo on her abdomen), she too perpetuates the notion that the band is trying too hard to hark back to the days of "Make Love Not War".
However, when the music kicks in, the illusion of overly crafted retro mass appeal is instantly smashed to bits, shattering the preconceptions of a prepackaged band riding the groovy train of today's '70s revival. Out of this petite Joni Mitchell-like persona comes the combined stage presence of Janis Joplin, Patty Smith, and Kim Gordon. Aggressive and self-confident, Di Santo dances around the stage, commanding her bass to lead Acid Test into a frenetic musical euphoria.
Guitarist Steve Fall, wearing oversized overalls and a backwards baseball cap, runs around in frantic circles as he blankets heavy layers of guitar over Di Santo's funky bass lines and drummer Jim Alty's relentless rhythms. Mike Harland - DJ Jus' Rite - scratches vinyl, while keyboardist Atom Percy is so swept away by the stage energy that he jumps up and rides his keyboard like a surfboard. This ecstasy on stage, catalyzed by each other's talents, says Percy, is the Acid Test experience - genuine, not affected at all. "It's what happens to us when we play. It's like my eyes just roll into the back of my head. And it's not about drugs, it's about music."
Born in Toronto of techno raves, industrial rage, '80s pop, and '90s noise - with a bit of P.Funk thrown in - Acid test achieves a beautiful mix of musical chemistry. And if each member of the band had a choice, Fall would like to see Acid Test tour with Ministry or Soundgarden; Percy with Nine Inch Nails; Harland with Sonic Youth; Di Santo with Lenny Kravitz, The Black Crowes, or The Cult. "We really feed off of each other and people feel it. I think skater kids can get into our music, industrial fans, ravers, '70s psychedelic fans... we're a mish-mash of styles" says Fall.
Or as Atom explains it, "You can listen to our music in a dark, candle-lit room and trip out to it, or you can listen to it at a party or a show and mosh your brains out."
Although Drop flags Acid Test's American debut (Sire/Reprise), the band is no stranger to Canadian radio, given that the first single off the release, "Mr. Skin" was originally written and performed for the Bruce McDonald-directed independent film Highway 61 and received favorable reviews and local airplay. At the time, the band consisted only of Di Santo and Fall, so for Drop, the song was re-recorded with the existing line-up in mind. "It was much more dance-oriented," Fall says, "so we updated it with a lot more guitars to better suit the rest of the band."
When naming the group, Di Santo says she likened the feeling of creating music with other musicians to the captivating experience she felt when first reading The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. "As a teenager, I read the book and was totally lost in the descriptiveness of it. It took you inside the whole picture," says Di Santo, hoping listeners will be as taken in by Acid Test. "IT also means finishing the test." That's a test they all believe they're up to.
