The Rubber Room column is a weekly look at recent and notable releases that don’t fall into the rubric of traditional reviewed material—namely 7”’s, 12”’s, 3” CDs, EPs, cassette-only, DVDs and MP3-only releases.

Ryan Adams
If I’m a Stranger (B side of “Now That You’re Gone” 7”)
[Homepage, 2004]

If there is one thing that Adams excels at, apart from getting hot celebrity girlfriends, its writing some of the most incredible songs ever and making it incredibly hard to find them. Tucked away on a tour 7” is a perfectly formed country tinged ballad that would break the hardest of hearts and be the highlight of any other artist’s LP. Veering left and left again from the punk pop of Rock N’Roll and the mournful (in a good way) Love is Hell this mandolin fuelled lovesick lament proves that all the pills, broken bones and press can’t stop Ryan Adams.
[Scott McKeating]

LFO vs !!!
Me and Giuliani Down By the Schoolyard
[Warp, 2004]

On paper, one of the least likely couplings since J-Lo and Ben Affleck, yet Mark Bell's old-skool destruction of 'Giuliani' is a match made in heaven. Reducing the vocals to a single loop of Nic Offer singing '..what's so fucking great about dancing..', Bell keeps the song's basic percussion while destroying everything that dares to stick its head into the treble range with his spastic synth rips. Building towards a majestic celebration of the cowbell and the handclap that'll bring tears to the eye of every Casio fetishist, this track makes it clear that Bell isn't growing old *too* gracefully.
[Dave McGonigle]

Franz Ferdinand
This Fffire (Playgroup Remix)
[Domino, 2004]

The current kings of disco-punk get thoroughly remixed by Playgroup's 'Big' Trevor Jackson. Always one of the weaker songs from their self-titled debut, here 'This Fffire' has a sack full of dark 80s synths shoved up its arse, and emerges a better and indeed funkier person for it. Jackson ups the beats and loops the climbing guitar riff from the verses to great effect, emphasizing the natural hook while making it fight for air over what sounds like a dive-bombing Stuka. It's not as radical a re-imaging as the magic Bell works on !!!, but it's also a case of if the track ain’t broke, don't fix it.
[Dave McGonigle]

Double Leopards & Wolf Eyes
Breeding Turbines, Vol. 1 CS
[American Tapes, 2004]

Double Leopards seem to be captaining the ship here; in absentia are the sluggish beats and demonic howls prevalent on many of Wolf Eyes’ higher-profile releases. They do pitch in with their gongs, though, helping give this an organic feel to the ghost screams, e-bow rumble and head-nodding chirps and whistles. The overall effect? It’s like sinking naked into a thousand layers of moss. This, of course, has always been one of Double Leopards’ greatest advantages—the ability to pull-in the listener with lulling drone rather than mind-destroying static.
[Ian Johnson]

69corp
Demonseed
[Something In Construction, 2004]

I’m not sure why shadowy Scottish remixers 69corp decided to write a song about the old Julie Christie evil-computer-breeds-with-housewife movie, but don’t hold its origins against “Demonseed”; it has a rolling hypnotism to its mantra-like refrain that proves dangerously addictive. When those horror-movie strings start rising it’s almost too much, but 69corp cunningly keep to the right side of the line separating novelty from enjoyability. The b-side, “Dubseed”, is pretty much what you’d expect; they do a fine job of dubbing out the song, but nothing truly mind blowing happens as a result.
[Ian Mathers]

Audion
The Pong
[Spectral, 2004]

Don’t expect too many “Dog Days”-like vocal hooks from Matthew Dear’s Audion material as The Pong, much like the Kisses EP, is hard-core, acid-tinged techno. “The Pong” relentlessly tweaks morphing bleeps and writhing synths over a fulminating brew of ringing hi-hats and pounding bass drums. The somewhat more merciful “Your Place or Mine” begins laconically with a soft shufflestep until vaporous smears hypnotically strafe the rhythms and threaten to offset their regulated course. The least conventional piece, “The Dog,” does in fact add a vocal element but as a submerged vocal croak that Dear drags through cauldronesque murk of burbling bass lines and insectoid chatterings. Here’s hoping the upcoming Audion full-length is as radical as The Pong.
[Ron Schepper]

The Heavenly States
King Epiphany
[Baria, 2004]

The Heavenly States officially released their new single on the United States' election day, emphasizing the disc's political nature. "King Epiphany" sounds like standard pop-rock, but with angry anti-war lyrics. Rather than drawing on the juxtaposition, though, the message settles under the bubblegum music. The second track, "Monument" provides the real visceral protest—the song's a recording of three overlapping voices reading the names of 420 Iraqi civilians who have been killed. It's affecting, but it's something you'll play as protest (as people did at the Republican National Convention) without revisiting.
[Justin Cober-Lake]