Man, that riff. That bassline. Those beats! There’s nothing wrong with wearing your sonic heart on your musical sleeve, and as all of these classic sounds fall into place, I have one story that comes immediately to mind. When The Cult scrapped the recordings for what would be their third album, went to America and hired Rick Rubin, he put to them a straightforward question. “Do you guys wanna make English pussy music, or do you want to rock?” A rhetorical question, no doubt, but their answer came in the form of their breakthrough album, Electric.
“Aint Got Nothing But Time” feels like it could be the alternative answer to the same question. The riff is simple but exquisitely cut. The bassline is felt rather than heard, the drums do their job, perfectly – it’s about drive rather than drama, power rather than showboating. The vocals dance over the top, anthemic, fist-in-the-air, compelling, awesome.
This is what old-school rock ‘n’ roll is all about. It is built from less than you think and achieves more than you thought possible. It is about effective, sucker-punch power, no frills, well, not many, all grit and groove.
Rock music is about people showcasing their skills; it is a genre where more is more. Rock ‘n’ roll, on the other hand, is about players serving the song, about what is not played, about swing and style, raw elegance. It’s not about showing off, it is about a group of players getting together and making music which looks you straight in the eye and dares you not to react – dance, boogie, punch the air, down your beer, scream the lyrics, flip your wig, cut a rug, or whatever the cool kids are calling it today. And in that world, this is the business!
If you ever find yourself living in a shack in a one-horse town, or trying to get to heaven ‘fore the sun goin’ down. Then this is your anthem, you lil’ devil!
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