2 Foot Flame was a mid-90's project featuring Jean Smith (Mecca Normal) with New Zealanders Michael Morley (Dead C/Gate/Wreck Small Speakers On Expensive Stereos) and Peter Jefferies (This Kind of Punishment/Noctural Projections). As can be expected, it was intense music coming from three intense individuals; Smith's rough/piercing vocal tones now being matched by Morley's alien soundscapes and Jefferies' brooding keyboards/drums to great dynamic effect.
Live on the Stork Club in 1997, the group appeared as just Peter and Jean, with Jefferies doubling up on simultaneous keyboards and drums in terse, primitive 4/4 pound, Smith taking an open-tuned electric guitar and playing noisy slide action ala Lydia Lunch/Teenage Jesus and the Jerks. "Pipeline to Vertigo" highlites some distorted, thumping morse-code transmissions with Jefferies equally-inimitable voice looming menacingly overhead, he slips in his own "Elevator Madness" and a killer take on the Spacemen 3 classic "Come Down Easy". I think Jean told me there was talk at one time of this Stork Club visit coming out as a proper release, but she also seemed to think I was more of a fan of this particlar session than anyone else. Listening back 13 years later it still sounds incredible.
Jean Smith? All this time I thought she was Karla Bozulich.
Posted by: boil | September 24, 2010 at 12:20 AM
this is fantastic!
Posted by: tjr | September 24, 2010 at 09:30 AM
bloody wonderful.
thanks Brian!
Posted by: will rodgers | October 27, 2010 at 01:42 PM