''Funland'' is the third album by American

improvisational Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

band

Unknown Instructors Unknown Instructors are an all-star improvisational rock outfit that features the former rhythm section of Minutemen and fIREHOSE, bassist Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley; Saccharine Trust members, guitarist Joe Baiza and vocalist Jack Br ...

, featuring Mike Watt ( The Minutemen, fIREHOSE,

The Stooges The Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, was an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Da ...

Dos DOS is shorthand for the MS-DOS and IBM PC DOS family of operating systems. DOS may also refer to: Computing * Data over signalling (DoS), multiplexing data onto a signalling channel * Denial-of-service attack (DoS), an attack on a communicat ...

Banyan A banyan, also spelled "banian", is a fig that develops accessory trunks from adventitious prop roots, allowing the tree to spread outwards indefinitely. This distinguishes banyans from other trees with a strangler habit that begin life as a ...

), George Hurley (The Minutemen, fIREHOSE,

Red Krayola The Red Krayola (originally Red Crayola) is an American avant rock band from Houston, Texas formed in 1966 by the trio of singer/guitarist Mayo Thompson, drummer Frederick Barthelme, and bassist Steve Cunningham. The group were part of the 19 ...

), Joe Baiza (

Saccharine Trust Saccharine Trust is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1980 by singer Jack Brewer and guitarist Joe Baiza. The band would frequently perform with SST labelmates Minutemen and Black Flag. However, Baiza descri ...

Universal Congress Of Universal Congress Of are an American jazz ensemble from Los Angeles, formed in 1986. History The project was started by Joe Baiza and continued to develop his own fusion of free jazz and punk rock after his previous band, Saccharine Trust, ...

), poet/saxophonist Dan McGuire. The album features guest vocals by David Thomas (

Pere Ubu Pere Ubu is an American rock group formed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975. The band had a variety of long-term and recurring band members, with singer David Thomas being the only member staying throughout the band's lifetime. They released their ...

) and artist

Raymond Pettibon Raymond Pettibon (born Raymond Ginn, June 16, 1957) is an American artist who lives and works in New York City. Pettibon came to prominence in the early 1980s in the southern California punk rock scene, creating posters and album art mainly for ...

. The album was recorded at the same time as the previous album, '' The Master's Voice''.

Track listing

#"Maji Yabai" #"Those Were the Days" #"Later That Night" #" Frownland" ( Captain Beefheart cover) #"Door Of No Return" #"Afternoon Spent At The Bar,Sunny" #"C'mon" #"Chicago,Illinois" #"Lead!" #"No Words" #"No Chirping" #"Last Waltz"

Musical Personnel

* Mike Watt - bass, vocals on track 1,8 * George Hurley - drums * Joe Baiza - guitar * Dan McGuire - vocals * David Thomas - vocals on track 6 *

- vocals on track 9

Reception

Mark Kemp of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' gave the album three out of five stars. Mike Villano of ''

Metro Times The ''Detroit Metro Times'' is a progressive alternative weekly located in Detroit, Michigan. It is the largest circulating weekly newspaper in the metro Detroit area. History and content Supported entirely by advertising, it is distributed ...

'' praised the "experimental and eclectic sounds" as well as the vocals and said "If you didn't know better, in fact, you might think this is a lost Captain Beefheart album." Punknews.org gave it three and a half stars calling it "a fantastic musical trip." James Yates of '' Staten Island Advance'' said "the groove-heavy sinew and heady humor heard on "Funland" provides a singular trip that touches the deep recesses of mind and body, opening all kinds of guarded emotions and new possibilities" but found the 10-minute-long "No Chirping" indulgent. Brian Loeper of ''Spectrum Culture'' was less enamored with the album saying "Under no circumstances should anyone ever listen to this album" and giving it a single star. Graham Sanford of ''

Gapers Block Gapers Block (Gapers Block Media, LLC) was a Chicago-centric web publication focused on covering Chicago culture under the tag line: "''Slow down and check out Chicago''". The site, gapersblock.com, lists local events, aggregates other Chicago blog ...

'' also criticized the album sarcastically calling the band "the '80s punk/alt-rock set...equivalent of the Traveling Wilburys" and compared them to "

The Magic Band The Magic Band was the backing band of American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Captain Beefheart between 1967 and 1982. The rotating lineup featured dozens of performers, many of whom became known by nicknames given to them by Beefhe ...

as fronted by four

Ken Nordine Ken Nordine (April 13, 1920 – February 16, 2019) was an American voice-over and recording artist, best known for his series of word jazz albums. His deep, resonant voice has also been featured in many commercial advertisements and movie traile ...

s in search of a roadmap."

References

{{Authority control Unknown Instructors albums Smog Veil Records albums 2009 albums