[1] Hamster Theatre's music is based on European Rock in Opposition[2] and is influenced by many sources, including Lars Hollmer, Erik Satie, Captain Beefheart, Frank Zappa, and Henry Cow.
When he returned to the United States, Willey recorded a solo album entitled Songs from the Hamster Theatre, which he released on cassette tape (later reissued on CD in 1995).
Carnival Detournement received favorable reviews from critics "for its melodic, atmospheric, moody, and unpredictable blend of modern classical, avant rock, and European folk influences.
[1] Most of their performance, with mixing and mastering by Bob Drake, appears on the second CD of their double-CD, The Public Execution of Mister Personality / Quasi Day Room: Live at the Moore Theatre, released in 2006.
[2] A reviewer at AllMusic called the album "a landmark two-disc studio/live set proving that the European RIO-based sounds of the '70s and '80s have taken root and can sprout up almost anywhere, even in the post-millennial Rocky Mountain State.