Swax

Okeeblow, the second disc from Chico resident Marty James, aka Scapegoat Wax, came out last year on Grand Royal, the Beastie Boys’ now-defunct label. Seven compositions from Okeeblow turn up again on Swax, James’ follow-up for Disney-owned Hollywood, although they were re-recorded for this bigger-budget project. The result makes for a slithering, thrift-store, Caucasian funk soundtrack to blunt-fueled nightcrawling in mom’s Honda Accord while pretending it’s a pimpadelic Coupe de Ville, falling somewhere between Beck, the Beasties and Sublime. Of the new stuff, the strongest tracks are “Watching the Rain,” which explores a theme similar to the Police’s “Every Breath You Take” and is set to an irresistible, loping track laced with acoustic Spanish guitars; and “Lost Cause,” a Smash Mouth-like track that vacillates between clattering stoner textures and generi-grunge power chords. Worth a spin.