''The Way Things Work'' is the debut

album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

improvisational Improvisation, often shortened to improv, is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. The origin of the word itself is in the Latin "improvisus", which literally means un-foreseen. Improvis ...

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 Brewe ...

, featuring

Mike Watt Michael David Watt (born December 20, 1957) is an American bassist, vocalist and songwriter. He co-founded and played bass guitar for the rock bands Minutemen (1980–1985), Dos (1985–present), and Firehose (1986–1994). He began a solo ca ...

(

Minutemen Minutemen were members of the organized New England colonial militia companies trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute's notice, hence the name. Min ...

, fIREHOSE,

The Stooges The Stooges or Iggy and the Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, were an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Dave Alexande ...

Dos DOS (, ) is a family of disk-based operating systems for IBM PC compatible computers. The DOS family primarily consists of IBM PC DOS and a rebranded version, Microsoft's MS-DOS, both of which were introduced in 1981. Later compatible syste ...

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

George Hurley George Hurley (born September 4, 1958) is a drummer noted for his work with Minutemen and fIREHOSE. Music career Early years Originally from the East Coast, Hurley and his family moved to San Pedro, California, when he was six years old. ...

(Minutemen, Firehose,

Red Krayola 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 1960s ...

Joe Baiza Joe Baiza (born January 11, 1952) is an American guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. Most of Baiza's music touches on a fusion of punk rock and jazz. Eugene Chadbourne cites Baiza as one of the most noteworthy guitarists to emerge from the South ...

(

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 guitarist-vocalist Joe Baiza after his previous group Saccharine Trust went on hiatus. The new ensemble continued to devel ...

), Jack Brewer (Saccharine Trust), and poet Dan McGuire. The album was created and recorded on the spot in one day in 2003 at Karma Studio in

San Pedro, California San Pedro ( ; ) is a neighborhood located within the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay and Los Angeles Harbor Region, Harbor region of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los ...

. Watt would record his third solo album '' The Secondman's Middle Stand'' in the same studio five months later. McGuire credited the Saccharine Trust album '' Worldbroken'' as an influence saying he wanted to use it "as a template for that first album." The album has been compared to

Captain Beefheart Don Van Vliet (; born 'Don Glen Vliet'; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. Conducting a rotating ensemble known as the M ...

's classic ''

Trout Mask Replica ''Trout Mask Replica'' is the third studio album by the American band Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band, released as a double album on June 16, 1969, by Straight Records. The music was composed by Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet) and arrange ...

''. One notable track, ''Punk (is Whatever We Made It to Be)'' features interpolated lyrics from several songs from Minutemen's album ''

Double Nickels on the Dime ''Double Nickels on the Dime'' is the third album by American punk trio Minutemen, released on the SST Records in July 1984. A double album containing 45 songs, ''Double Nickels on the Dime'' combines elements of punk rock, funk, country, spok ...

''.

Track listing

#"I'll Show You Everything" #"Where You Find It" #"Punk (is Whatever We Made It to Be)" #"Something Eternal" #"Starving Artists" #"The New Bluesman" #"Punch Out *The Layoff* Gratuity" #"Walk with Me" #"Creature Comforts" #"An Evening In Hell" #"Scansion" #"Adam's Apple" #"Turf Songs" #"I Think" #"Lost and Found" All songs written and composed by Joe Baiza, George Hurley, Dan McGuire and Mike Watt, ©2005 Prestidigitation Music (BMI), except "Punk (is Whatever We Made It to Be)", composed by Joe Baiza,

D. Boon Dennes Dale Boon (April 1, 1958 – December 22, 1985), also known as D. Boon, was an American musician, best known as the guitarist, singer and songwriter of the punk rock trio Minutemen (formed by previous members of the Reactionaries). He ...

, Jack Brewer,

Chuck Dukowski Gary Arthur McDaniel (born February 1, 1954), better known by his stage name Chuck Dukowski, is an American punk rock musician. He is most well-known for being the bass player and an occasional songwriter for Black Flag. Career Early years ...

Personnel

– bass *

– drums *

– guitar; vocals on tr. 6 * Dan McGuire – vocals (except where noted); saxophone on 6 * Jack Brewer – vocals on tr. 2, 6, 11, 14; maracas and tarine on 6

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Way Things Work Unknown Instructors albums 2005 debut albums Smog Veil Records albums