SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MAXIMILLIAN – MAXIMILLIAN

Maximillian
Maximillian
RidingEasy Records

In 1969, Maximillian, a short-lived New York City-based band made up of African American and Latino musicians, released its self-titled album. Consisting of singer Buzzy Bowzer (aka Maximillian), lead guitarist Mojack Maximillian, and bassist Moby Medina (aka Moby Maximillian), along with drummer Jerry Nolan, who would later play with the New York Dolls. Maximillian would be the sole release from this band. Reissued for the first time since 1969 by RidingEasy Records and Permanent Recordings, Maximillian is an unearthed gem that sounds as if George Clinton hosted a series of studio sessions with the likes of The Stooges, Jimi Hendrix, and Cream.

Maximillian opens with a ballad, “Naked Ape”. The muted drums and rhythmic bass are aided by an array of rich strings that swell at key moments to fill in the otherwise sparse soundscape. At the centre of the song is Bowzer’s vocals, soulfully approaching a timbre that goes beyond raspy very much in style of James Brown. While the song very much feels as if it was pulled right from George Clinton’s collective, the following “Kickin’ 9 To 5” is much more in tone with the psychedelic blues rock of the 1960’s. Feeling like a loose Rolling Stones track, Bowzer once again shines for bringing a wild sense of reckless abandon to his vocals which, ironically, feels as though it is holding the song together from going off the rails.

Once the novelty of finding an otherwise lost record from ’69 wears off, Maximillian struggles to maintain the excitement of its own hype. Firstly, the mix feels completely out of balance. With Vann choosing to bury the drums, the bass and vocals are cranked to accommodate the otherwise empty feeling tracks; however, with Mojack Maximillian choosing to almost exclusively rip lead lines, this does not change the fact that the album feels hollow and outdated for even ’69. Furthermore, the songs are in strong need of refinement, with many of them lacking a strong structure and running far longer than they need to. Despite this, there still is a number of cool moments on the record, from the Sabbath-meets-The Stooges sludge rock of “Scar On My Memory” and the haunting blues of “Little Amazon”, to the Hendrix-inspired “New Lover”.

Resembling a series more akin to loose jams, Maximillian plays like opening a time capsule. While psychedelic in its roots, the album perfectly captures the darkness and discontent of the end of the decade. Where Woodstock stands as a generational touchstone that embodies the peace and love of the flower child era, this period was concluded with the fatal Altamont Free Concert just months later. While this feels unanimous, it is often a white-washed view of America at the time. In this sense, Maximillian shares a sonic legacy with many rock bands of the era, its cultural legacy resides closer to that of Funkadelic and Sly and The Family Stone’s 1971 release, There’s A Riot Going On. Unfortunately, Maximillian is not a classic record, nor a cult favourite; the band suffers from a lack of refinement in their songwriting and a truly rough mix, however, the record seems to be hot on the trail of something fresh, with the band just approaching a level of unique greatness. Had there been a follow-up record, Maximillian very well could have achieved cult-classic status, maybe even rivaling The Stooges and Funkadelic

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