MEDICINE SHOW by Todd Tobias

From the Hidden Shoal Recordings site:
Beginning with the dark groove of ‘Night of the Club Foot’, through the gaseous synths of ‘Pre-Dawn Visitation’, evoking a hallucinogen-fuelled walk among a misty moon-lit forest, to the visceral lurch of ‘Manatoc Enters The City / The Long Fall’, Medicine Show plays out like the soundtrack to a Terry Gilliam movie starring Tom Waits, each song a totally immersive scene, leading inexorably into the next.

From Todd Tobias:
Medicine Show is a graphic novel in music form. The story takes place on the border of history and pre-history, and involves a fellow named Manatoc who was raised among a hill tribe of hunting nomads. An invading army of "civilized" men appear and build a walled city, and then go about doing what civilized men do, which is to enslave the local primitive population or else hunt them down for sport. Manatoc serves as a scout for the invaders' army in order to get to know his enemy. In the meantime he has become something of a messiah among his people, including those living inside the fortress city serving as slaves. His adventure leads him to the city itself, where he is double-crossed by his hosts, and meets a sad and dramatic end. It's by no means a cheerful tale, but remember the words of Dr. Seuss: "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

Tracklist

1.	Night of the Clubfoot	2:35

2.	Manatoc is Born	2:25

3.	Half Animal	1:52

4.	Pre-Dawn Visitation	2:22

5.	The Children Follow	2:30

6.	Clubfoot's Return	1:47

7.	Shadows With Teeth	3:18

8.	Flesh Interval	1:28

9.	Asmodaeus and the Unlucky Traveler	1:26

10.	Pathfinder	2:40

11.	Burial Mound	1:54

12.	Medicine Show	1:34

13.	Manatoc Enters the City/ The Long Fall	4:28

14.	Death Watch	1:23

15.	Fanfare of the Impalers	2:57

16.	Prayers to a Blind Sky	2:17

Credits

released April 26, 2012

Written, performed and recorded by Todd Tobias.
Cover art by Stuart Medley and Todd Tobias.
Some humans were harmed in the production of this album, but no animals were injured.

License