For those not in the know, Replicants was a one-and-done covers project from members of Failure, Lusk, and Tool, a veritable super group of sorts. The band’s self-titled 1995 release featured spacey, alt-rock takes on songs by The Cars, T. Rex, Neil Young, David Bowie, a couple of Beatles, and a whole lot more. Tool’s Maynard James Keenan even pops in, providing vocals on a cover of “Silly Love Songs” of all things. As the record was my initial exposure to Ken Andrews and Failure (one of my all-time favorites), it’s pretty near and dear to my heart, a collection of classic rock jams and a couple of synth wonders spun into '90s jelly. It’s one of those albums I adore from start to finish, but for me, the real raison dêtre is the record’s centerpiece, the propulsive and intoxicating electro-crawl version of Missing Persons’ “Destination Unknown.”
I can’t even begin to recall how many 11th grade events and evenings “Destination Unknown” soundtracked. It feels like it was everywhere, an undercurrent of murky sound that followed me everywhere I went. The song’s mid-'90s, this-is-what-the-future-will-sound-like, pre-millennial aesthetic was like a harbinger of the digital age to come…or at the very least a cool tune to listen to outside while I washed my car in my parents’ driveway, anxiously wondering where the beer was coming from later that night. And while it may sound a little dated now (or just in time for a modern revival), I just can’t help but let it take me back.
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