Although it came out in 2003, I finally heard this recently and I can’t stop playing it. In fact it’s so good that I will devote an entire column to a full review. At this point, though, all you should know is that if you like pop-punk, early ‘70s glam or power-pop, this record is an absolute must-have that’s just as good as any of its influences. And yes, I’m four years late to the party, but nevertheless this may be my new favorite record of the millenium.
I’ve continued to listen to this over the course of several nights (one disc at a time) and this past week I got up to discs 3 and 4. When I was younger, the material on the 1st 2 discs (up to their terrific 3rd album Zenyatta Mondatta) resonated with me much more, but now after playing these albums again after not listening to them for many years, I find that the material on discs 3 and 4 hold up much better. Most of disc is taken up by Ghost in the Machine, their excellent 4th album featuring the hits “Every Little Thing She Does is Magic,” “Spirits in the Material World” and “Invisible Sun” (its video was banned by the BBC for its supposedly pro-Republican sentiment and by that I mean Irish independence). However, the hits don’t really tell the story here. Sure the album expanded the band’s sonic pallette to include keyboards and horns, but the real standouts are “Secret Journey” (a #46 US single that should’ve charted much higher) and the album closer “Darkness”, one of drummer STEWART COPELAND’s best compositions. Their last album Synchronicity is just about its equal with the lack of material (only one song each) contributed by guitarist ANDY SUMMERS (the great “Mother”) and Copeland (the light but fun “Miss Gradenko”) weighing it down a bit. Still, who can deny the majesty of side 2 mega-hits like the ubiquitous “Every Breath You Take,” “Wrapped Around Your Finger” and especially my favorite “King of Pain”? It’s not that this material needs any more attention as its already very well-loved, but what’s not often stated is the difference producer HUGH PADHAM made to their sound. He made them more commercially accessible without sacrificing their core sound and as a result, these records stand up much better 25 or so years later than many other records from the same time period and that’s no small feat.
Murderball (Unrated)
A documentary about the 2004 U.S. Paralympic Rugby team, this is essential viewing not only for those interested in the sport (which involves wheelchairs used as battering rams), but for those curious about how even quadripeligics can withstand adversity and regain a sense of identity through their chosen sport. In a nutshell, it really puts things in perspective.
This is a wonderful reunion record that sounds like it takes from different eras of the band. Original bassist LOU BARLOW and longtime drummer MURPH accompany guitarist J MASCIS here and as a result, it sounds a lot like what would have happened had Barlow stuck around for Dinosaur Jr’s tenure at Warner Brothers. At times, it sounds like the record that could’ve been made between Bug and Green Mind, but at other it sounds like a more stripped-down version of some of their later Warner Brothers records like Without a Sound. “We’re Not Alone” in particular reminds me of their alternative radio hit “Feel the Pain” and notably, Barlow’s contribution “Back to Your Heart” reminds me of SUGAR’s “Hoover Dam”. The production is key here, striking the perfect balance between the muddiness of their SST records and the major-label gloss (though of course only comparatively) of their later work. A great comeback effort.
A fine return-to-form after the so-so Winchester Cathedral, Vistations is a brilliant synthesis of their first album Internal Wrangler and its disjointed angularity along with the song structure and hooks of their second album Walking with Thee. I look forward to seeing this material played live when they come to Johnny Brenda’s next month.
Although it’s been out on import for a while, it just came out here for the first time. I like this record quite a bit, but I’m not sure I buy all the hype. The excellent single “Young Folks” is the standout, but it’s not all that representative of what this Swedish band does. That’s part of the problem. Sometimes they like to dabble with electronica (like “Young Folks” or the wonderful “Amsterdam”) and other times they play noise-pop reminscent of fellow countrymen LEGENDS while on other songs they play cutesy indie-pop. While they handle all of these styles well, the diversity makes it feel like they’re still trying to figure out which band they want to be. Perhaps one day, they’ll make a truly great record that’ll fulfill their potential.
A great return to form after the lesser (but still quite good) Warnings Promises, this at times sounds like the record they could’ve made between 100 Broken Windows (their masterpiece and one of my favorite records of the ‘00s so far) and The Remote Part and at other times like an outtakes record from the latter album. In any case, songs like new single “No Emotion”, opening track “In Competition for the Worst Time” and especially “A Ghost in the Arcade” rank up there with some of their best songs.
Half Cocked and Radiation double feature at International House
These two ‘90s MICHAEL GALINSKY films were shown last night at International House with the director in attendance to answer questions at the end of the evening. Unfortunately, it was very underattended, but that didn’t temper the discussion at the end at all. Half Cocked is from 1994 and is a quasi-documentary of the indie-rock scene during that time period. Centered around a stolen van and set largely in Louisville, Kentucky and various locations in Tennessee, it features cameos from IAN SVEVONIUS, DAVID PAJO and many other indie-rock notables. THE GRIFTERS make an appearance as well. It’s definitely recommended if you were involved in the scene at all during that time or knew others who were. Radiation centers around a real-life Spanish concert promoter named UNAI (essentially playing himself) and his attempts to bring the band COME along on tour with him along with a performance artist from New York City.
Lately, however, as we found out later, Galinsky has been focusing on documentaries including an upcoming one about the fight against a proposed arena in Brooklyn, NY.
When people think of this band, the bulk of their attention usually goes to its awesome self-titled first Lp from 1981. However, because of the influence, relative popularity and iconic status of that record, this much-delayed 1986 follow-up recorded with a different version of the band often gets forgotten. That’s a shame, though, as this is a great record in its own right. Mostly in the style of the first Lp except with a bit more of a hard-rock influence, the song here vary from the silly (“Do the Freddie”), re-recorded older tracks (“Welcome to Reality”), political (just try to get the chorus of “Losing Battle” out of your head after listening to it) and almost goth-rock (“She Wolf”) along with a cover of the IGGY AND THE STOOGES’ classic “I Got a Right”.
This 2-disc compilation of everything this great New York hardcore band released on the Blackout label came out in 2000 and if you like this band (or late ‘80s and early ‘90s New York hardcore) at all, this is well worth purchasing. This includes their 1st Lp Just Can’t Hate Enough and their 2nd Lp Thanks Fer Nuthin’ along with the Live at CBGBs 7” EP, the Old, New, Borrowed and Blue EP along with demos and compilation tracks. You also get liner notes from vocalist PAUL BEARER (one of the greatest punk names ever). Although very much a precedent for later hardcore in that they added metal (guitarist ALAN BLAKE was specifically influenced by the great Swiss band CELTIC FROST) to the mix, at their heart Sheer Terror (named after an early GOVERNMENT ISSUE song) were punk rock to the core in terms of their attitude, pissing off any and everyone from the straight-edge kids and nationalist skinheads who dominated the scene at the time. Paul often spouted hilarious and offensive stage banter, insulting the audience at every opportunity. In that way, he was almost like legendary Mabuhay Gardens emcee DIRK DIRKSEN (R.I.P.), though with the New York attitude of say, THE NIHILISTICS.
