Giant Sand: Maxwell's, Hoboken, NJ
Rob Tannenbaum, Rolling Stone, 5 August 1993
CHAOS IS A constant menace in giant Sand's music. For a few years, it overwhelmed Howe Gelb's writing — he'd launch a song with a fierce guitar riff, only to have the momentum stall suddenly or collapse altogether. Giant Sand's new album, Center of the Universe, is a thrilling breakthrough because Gelb has incorporated chaos into the song structures — instead of driving straight into a ditch, he races along in the breakdown lane.
Total word count of piece: 260