Reviews
Updated
September 21st, 2001
Reviews
Ojo has been reviewed
FOUR times in September, and all
reviews are GLOWING!,
as well as the August
review!! Not to
be missed!!!
The latest Ojo review
comes from 
.
It is an odd, but
great review. Check it out below!!!
"Ojo
- Minutia (Virtu Records)
You
weird, weird bastards. Even if to the outside world Texan's have a reputation
for
being
a bit off-the-wall, nothing will ever prepare you for the lunacy Ojo
(Spanish
for 'eye') throw out. Opener 'Coleslaw', equal parts unlistenable and mesmerising
sets
the quintet's stall out as well as anything, and although they're obsessed
with carving
out
as many time changes and bizarre sounds as possible, 'Minutia' isn't another
Green Jelly.
Thank
fuck for that, eh? Indeed, there are moments here of sheer twisted genius.
Witness the
stop/start
headfuck that is 'Sugar Beat', Mars Attacks vocals et al. '?' goes
from
gentle exotic drumming, to all-out screaming metal, jazz, and then over
to a
menacing
cousin of the pan-pipes within two minutes. The Scissormen are a perfect
reference,
but if they're too obscure, try Mr.Bungle. Although Ojo strive -
sometimes
desperately - to sound different and difficult, they're certainly
demanding
their right to be unique. More power to 'em, the nutters.
Rating
- 7/10 "
Ojo
has again been reviewed by 
.
It is
another amazing review. Check it out!!
To
be honest, I've been bored shitless with music recently, or at least newer
stuff.
Which
makes Ojo somewhat a breath of fresh air, to be more precise, the kind
you
get
when sticking your head out the window of a moving car. Odd is a word that
comes
to
mind when describing Ojo but when I tell you the band are from Waco, Texas
you
probably
wouldn't be surprised and some of the lyrics point towards life in this
"little
bitty town" which came under the world's attention in 1993.
Musically
there's lots of Mr. Bungle influence spazzing all over the place with frequent
tempo
and
genre changes. This zany outlook fills my head with thoughts of Jim Henson
puppets
dancing
on the set of Sesame Street. Sounds ridiculous but imagination is a pre
requisite to
this
record as each of their songs take you on a journey through funk, jazz
and at times,
down
right silliness. They manage to put comedic elements in the context of
thought
provoking
songs, yet for all its wackiness the bands serious side is never far away
and
underlies
much of the record. The beauty is that it can be enjoyed on so many levels
and
each
person will probably enjoy this record on a different note. You have songs
like the
awesome
"Squeeze" with trip hop drum loops and a dark vibe that Depeche Mode would
be
proud
of. On the other side of the spectrum the sporadic madness of "Zhu Zhunt
Li'l Runt"
which
is either the sign of an insane or genius band. My moneys on both. Not
forgetting the
use
of Native American flute music which rather than used for the sake of it
makes for a
unique
listening experience and yet another example of the bands inventiveness
and lack of
constraints.
All in all I can't stress enough how refreshing this record is. 'Minutia'
being the
sort
of pleasant surprise you'd given up hope of finding.
(5
/ 5)
Brian
Webb
Ojo
has been reviewed once again, this time
by 
You
can click the link, or check the review below:
"Following
the breakup of the band Phylum in 1998, vocalist Tony Aguilar and drummer
Brandon
Marquin then joined with the three-piece act Buyers Ride, (Dave Doran-Guitarist,
Brian
Wright-Guitarist, and Russ Chapa-Bassist) resulting in a new group called
Ojo, which
in
Spanish means "Eye". Based out of Waco, TX, the five-piece began taking
their music
statewide
through Dallas, Ft. Worth, Austin, San Antonio, and Houston, followed by
the
release
of their debut album Minutia, which was recorded at DRS Studios in Waco,
TX,
engineered
by Steve Rosa, and produced by the band.
Bursting
with imaginative quirkiness, Ojo boasts a sound that spans endless genres,
resulting
in an idiosyncratic profusion of metal, funk, jazz, ambient noise, breakbeat,
carnival
music, sampling, psychotic melodies, worldbeat influences and other various
oddball
styles. Comparable to a hybrid of Dredg, Dainami and Mr. Bungle, Ojo utilizes
creative
songwriting
and the innovative bastardizing of genres, instruments, and noise to create
music
that
is not only unique, but exists on the edge of bizarre, while still remaining
accessible.
Each song in itself is highly unique from one another, featuring dynamic
song
structures
that encompass a wide variety of sounds & musical styles that unexpectedly
shift
from
one to the other with seamless ease & disorder. Further fueling the
group’s eccentricity
is
their ultra-tight musicianship, technical wizardry and willingness to explore
outside the
realm
of musical composition. In the end, Ojo has forged an improvisational soundscape
that
shines with its extreme creativity and undeniable brilliance.
Verbally,
frontman Tony Aguilar is not quite as quirky or eccentric as the group’s
musical
landscape, employing a style that is reminiscent of Dredg, or Fingertight
with
faint
Mr. Bungle influences. For the majority of his vocal delivery, Tony utilizes
strident,
emo-driven
melodies to express his eclectic lyrics, while a diverse variety of
funk-inspired
rhythms, hip-hop influences, voice effects, distortion, and hardcore
screams
are integrated to provide startling contrasts. Overall, it is apparent
that
Tony
Aguilar possesses a dynamic voice with amazing harmonics, which perfectly
complements
the uniqueness & diversity that is Ojo. Featuring 23 tracks & nearly
74
minutes of unconventional songwriting & ingenious musical composition,
Minutia is
a
stunning debut album by Ojo that showcases their artistry, talent &
potential. Featuring
the
band’s eccentricity is the melodic, funk-contrasted peculiarities of Zhu
Zhunt Li’l Runt,
the
striking diversity of the energetic Judge Persius’ Grocery Store and the
cathartic
noise
found on the intro Coleslaw & the interlude ?. On the other side of
the coin is
the
group’s more accessible nature, represented by the breakbeat dominated,
hip-hop
influenced
Sugar Beat, the melodically driven Tall Tale that is contrasted by a
bizarre
intro & off-the-wall vocals, the memorable dance-inspired rhythms &
Incubus-like
vocals of Squeeze, the vibrant & melodic Silly Soon, and the emotionally
powerful
Dredg-like Ceramic Fa Smile. Representing the group’s more ambitious creations
is
the epic 11-minute Jar and Lid Thing, the versatile Wombat, which features
a
dramatic
disparity between uninhibited aggression & jazz-influenced melody,
and
the
restrained ambiance & harmony of the touching Jerry (In the Rocks).
Continuing the
group’s
more ambient approach are the three ending tracks including Similar To
Symphonic,
a
dialogue spoken over turntables, while Bell & Wire and Capone’s Rest
are acoustic-driven
noise
that possesses a surreal quality. As a whole, Minutia is a very strong
foundation from
which
Ojo can build upon to expand their sound and continue breaking the mold.
After
the release of Minutia in 2000, Ojo added the 6th and newest member to
their
band
in Kevin Cook, a.k.a. DJ Terminal (Saxophone/Samples). With the added dimension
of
DJ Terminal to their creative mix, Ojo is eager to show off their improvement
&
maturity
as a band, as they unleash the next product of their imagination with the
release
of
a 6-song EP in November 2001…
Final
Score: 8.0 out of 10"
Ojo's
Cd "Minutia" is the "CD of the Moment" on
This
site is all the way in France,
and
even over there, Ojomania has spread!!!
Check
out this review!! (translated from French)
"Ojo
comes from Texas,more accurately from Waco, and this may be due to the
FBI
or
some sect, but the least one can say is that these guys are different from
any
other
band.Their music is a mixture and an amalgam of more than about ten different
styles
of music going from Jazz to Trip Hop and Metal and Funk.
Nevertheless,
their music. which can't be plainly labelled, puts
them
next to Big Dumb Face (Limp Bizkit's guitarist's side project),
Mr
Bungle (Mike Patton's side project), Primus, or Incubus.
MINUTIA:
The sleeve of the record already announces itself a psychedelic album:
a
pigeon with protruding eyes keeps close to 2 twisted children who stand
on
the
bank of a river where a nuclear power station is proudly erected. From
the very
first
seconds of the CD,we are sure it's not one of those nth neo metal
albums
which only follows the path of dollars.
A
short mistreated jazzy , in the mood of the 40's, intro and then the tortured
souls
of
Ojo begin their work,strange laughter and sounds,fusion in the
Incubus
style,distorted voices, fusion again,melodic part...all of this in one
single track!
We're
far from monotony...One could assume that such an abundance of styles would
have
a harmful influence over the music but this would be omitting the talent
of
the 6 Ojo members.The connections between the parts are executed with spirit,
the
particular vocals perfectly mix up with the music, the rhythm is always
there...
I
won't describe here each track of the album,for it's impossible to make
it short,
but
in this album are present:tribal rhythms ,cartoon-like voices and
other
strange vocals, catchy melodies, some piano, some trumpet,some sax,some
screamings...and
so on.The production is excellent too...but the list of the
qualities
is too long to be set up. First album and masterpiece for Ojo,
marvellous
and successful melting pot of music styles,sounds and distortions,
Minutia
is a must-have for any fan of "different" or simply mastered innovative
music.An
open invitation to a simple "lay down on your bed and
listen"
activity which will probably lead these Texans to a certain notoriety,
but
before this let's take advantage of the music... The album is unfortunately
not
distributed
in France (nor it is in the United States) but you can contact the band
to
get the cd,we give you the address:
ojoband@hotmail.com
. Some MP3's are available for
downloading
at MP3.com,
but Minutia only takes its
beauty
in its totallity. A band to be followed closely....
Bacteries
reviewed Ojo's EP "Minutia" last month
and
chose it as the site's featured release for August.
Check
out this review!!
"Why Should I Care?:
It's not every day
that a new band emerges fully able make your
head spin, pulse race
and stomach flip in excitement, all through the course
of only one song.
But that's exactly what Ojo are capable of doing.
Hailing From Waco,
TX, it should be of no surprise that this band are a
little bit odd and
unconventional, but rest assured it wont be long before
they have their own
cult of fans.
What Should I Expect:
Blending hard rock
with basic jazz and funk sensibilities, schizophrenic
vocals and an array
of around 20 different instruments, the music can
at times have an almost
world beat feel. Filled with inventive skill and
imagination, they
have achieved the unthinkable; cultivating one of the
most intriguing, inspiring
and diverse records of the year, "Minutia".
Due to their multifaceted
approach, a direct comparison is nearly impossible
to name, but rest
assured the end result of this proverbial cornucopia of
sounds is like nothing
that has come out before. With the creativness of
Mr. Bungle, mixed
with the crazy antics of Dog Fashion Disco, rubbing
shoulders with the
bastard son of Incubus and brawling with the drawn
out melodies of dredg,
this band are everything to everyone."
Jamie
Garrett from the Bear 102.5 KRBQ
wrote the following about Ojo:
Ojo
is a truly unique band in the sense that while the rest are content with
"good enough",
Ojo
is striving to rise above the pack. With a pride taken in the songwriting
process that is rare even amongst the greatest musicians, Ojo combines
numerous "genres" of music without letting the rock n roll become lost
in the background. Any band can cover an artist, but it takes a lot more
to rise out of the ashes of the rest of the herd and gain recognition.
The rhythm catches you by both ears and sucks you into the world of Ojo.
Once you are there, door after door after door are continuously opened
to a different aspect of the music you are listening to; whether it's the
amount of effort that must go into the songwriting process, or the intensity
and passion that you feel while listening. Ojo is a truly unique band that
I would pay my hard earned money to watch play.
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