Subversive Intentions – Variations on the Seinfeld Theme
4.2.18 by Ryan Masteller

We’re nothing if not up for a good laugh around here at Tabs Out, so if you’ve got a “stunt tape,” chances are you’re getting covered. Congratulations, then, are in order to Subversive Intentions, whose “Variations on the Seinfeld Theme” had me dreaming about uproarious comedic situations before I even had a chance to care about what was on the tape. I mean, I love me some Seinfeld (Frank Costanza might be the greatest character ever conceived), so the thought of someone riffing on Jonathan Wolff’s iconic fretless bass runs gave me some goosey chillbumps. It was all I could do to stop myself from shouting “Serenity now!” at the top of my lungs.

The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized it would probably be tiresome to hear the exact same thing over and over, slightly varied in an attempt at “interest.” Fortunately, Subversive Intentions doesn’t ACTUALLY tackle the Seinfeld theme, but the artist also known as ND Dentico DOES fire through “fragmentary improvisations on electric bass, sound collages, and micro drones.” Twenty-seven short pieces adorn side A, while side B contains a half-hour piece called “Drone I,” a tectonic shifting smear of all that came before it. The brevity of the compositions keep the attention locked in, and the changes in pace from one piece to the next add flavor and color. Before you know it, you’ll be confidently shutting down anyone who doubts that this tape is anything more than a “trick” or a “show” with zingers like, “Well the Jerk Store called – they’re running out of you!”

These “reclaimed cassette tapes [are] dubbed in real time with hand cut j cards from salvaged books. Each cassette has unique album art.” Edition of 25 on Histamine Tapes. Mine’s the “Greens Wild and Domestic” one!