Auf Der Maur

(Capitol)
by Craig Regala

Bass player whose resume includes Hole and The Smashing Pumpkins. The players are pretty much Queens Of The Stone Age/A Perfect Circle alumni. She sings in a pleasant tone riding above the material which she wrote with a bit of help from Josh Holme (QOTSA) and Steve Durand (Tinker). Mid-tempo sculpted arena hard rock hewing to the decent parameters of such, well-put by Chris Gross (Masters of Reality) production. I like it OK, but if the “band,” as it were, could’ve toured the thing for a year before cutting, it’d’ve gelled and grooved more. Nothing memorable, but I wish I had the chance to see it live. Without her/their history, I doubt it’d do much business, although it’s strong enough that with a helluva push, a song in a major movie – say track nine, “Would if I Could” – it may penetrate. My favorite track is the last one: “I Need I Want I Will.” Kinda between the Scorps’ “Animal Magnetism” and something off that last Mazzy Star record.
(www.aufdermaur.com)