You Can't Poison a Pig

A band name like Pig in a Can leads the listener to hope that this modern blues project owes more to Captain Beefheart than Robert Cray. Indeed, tracks like the spookily atmospheric title song, basically a found piece of rural philosophy by Harmonica Slim set to an ambient-blues backdrop, are effectively weird. Unfortunately, the proper songs suffer from a severe skronk deficit; "Tried to Get Along" wouldn't sound out of place on a Moby album, and "Don't Leave Me Baby" sounds like someone has attempted a mash-up of an old Lightnin' Slim outtake with the rhythm track from a mid-'80s Ministry song. At its best, electric blues can often have a chaotic, edge-of-madness feel, as the emotions of the lyrics and passion of the playing threaten to erupt unexpectedly. By the end of You Can't Poison a Pig, it's clear that this collective is simply too restrained for that. It would help if the pig wanted to get out of his can a little more often.