Month: July 2020

#21: Tom Waits, ‘Rain Dogs’ (1985) vs. Radiohead, ‘The Bends’ (1995)

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Oh Tom Waits. Sigh. I want to love you so much. On paper you fit right into my weird musical wheelhouse. I’ve tried so many times to love you. I hear people talk about how amazing you are. You attract people with a unique musical pallet (I have a unique musical pallet). Your mix of avant-jazz-rock-pop should fit well with my love of avant-jazz-rock-pop. Your “I don’t care about anyone’s convention” and ferocious independence is something I am all over. But, for me your sharp witted knife edge sound never cut through my skin. And Rain Dogs is no different. Tom, why can’t I love you? The closest I got was Bone Machine and Mule Variations (interesting that these are his 90s offerings).

Part of my issue with Waits is that his barfly musings and back alley grime musicality seems almost cliche. Maybe at the time it was new and unique, and fit well as anti-anthems in and age where slick commercial gluttony was king, but as someone who didn’t grow up with him, it seems comically theatrical (I can feel the boos and the hissing from our more snobby readers). I can’t take him seriously. I want to but maybe it is just too late for me.

There is one redeeming track tho that blows me away. I play it constantly. I assume that the Waitsies know exactly the one I am talking about. This track is a slow pretty lamenting dirge. It’s the most palatable song on the album I think. It’s the one that seems the most honest. It has a vulnerability that the other tracks on the album don’t have. It’s the track called Time. That song is just gorgeous. There is a weakness to that song that makes it a complete tear jerker. Especially on the second run through of the chorus. The words get muted, as if he is so moved by his own words, Waits seems to back away from the mic or maybe he gets choked up. It’s beautifully devastating. All his songs should sound this honest. Sorry all you Waitsies out there. What many consider his best left me wanting more.

So. The winner is clear on this one. It’s The Bends. Whoa nelly. This album is a doozy. Complete Brit Alt Rock perfection. There are no stinkers on this one. The emotion of the album ranges from hard and heavy to soft and beautiful. “Nice Dream” is a perfect example of how they expertly dance back and forth from pretty to pretty ugly (but in a good rock your off you asses kind of way). Alternating dynamics is really just at the surface of this album. There is a lot of depth in The Bends that is a joy to spelunk in and because of this, the album comes across as more honest to me.

The Bends is 90s Brit Rock perfection. It is hard to think that any album would beat this one for me other than their later offerings. I pity the contender who goes up against OK Computer.

JS

WINNER: Radiohead, ‘The Bends’ (3 points)

BATTLE TALLY

80s: 12

90s: 18

EARNED POINTS
80s: 23
90s: 37

Next week’s battle – #20: Pretenders, ‘Pretenders’ (1980) vs. Liz Phair, ‘Exile in Guyville’ (1993)

#22: The Smiths, ‘The Smiths’ (1984) vs. Jeff Buckley, ‘Grace’ (1994)

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What a bummer. I was really looking forward to this battle only to discover both albums left me a little underwhelmed and full of questions. So let’s do this review as a Q&A:

Q: Why the heck did Rolling Stone pick the Smiths’ debut and not The Queen is Dead as the sole Smiths album on their 80s list?

A. Not sure – could anyone from Rolling Stone chime in on this peculiar choice? In the meantime, here’s an observation that may be relevant – the magazine did their 80s list right at the tail end of the decade. In other words, arguably too soon. Art needs time to marinate in our collective conscience and settle into its rightful place in history. It’s pretty obvious now which Smiths album is the best (isn’t it?) – perhaps it wasn’t so clear when they were still relatively fresh.

Q. Would Jeff Buckley’s Grace be on the 90s list if it didn’t contain the now legendary version of “Hallelujah”?

A. No.

And while we’re on the topic, I know Buckley’s version of the song is wonderful, but I’d like to point out that the song was written by Leonard Cohen and the arrangement made famous by Buckley was actually created by former Velvet Undergrounder John Cale (check it out). So, yes, kudos to Buckley for finding the formula that made it famous, but let it not be forgotten his achievement is a cumulative one that stands on the shoulders of two giants.

Q. Would Buckley’s Grace be on the 90s list if it weren’t the only album from a promising singer/songwriter who died a few years after its release?

A. I doubt it. But an ability to go from a stirring, smoky rendition of “Lilac Wine” to hard rocking “Eternal Life” is pretty impressive.

Q. Why do Buckley’s vocal stunts piss me off but not Morrissey’s?

A. Because, for reasons I cannot support with actual evidence, I believe Morrissey and I don’t believe Buckley. I think Buckley had a touch of what I call Mariah-Carey-itis, in which the artist loves the sound of their admittedly impressive voice more than the words they are singing, leading to distracting demonstrations of their range, such as the irritating and bombastic climax to Grace‘s title track.

Morrissey is prone to abrupt leaps into a jarring falsetto but for whatever reason I trust that he is doing it with purpose and meaning. Also, there is a cosmic law that says Morrissey’s voice will resonate deeply in the soul of anyone who is sad, cynical or was a teen in the 80s. Depending on the day, I check all three boxes.

Q. What’s better – an album with a singular feel and sound, or one that leaps effortlessly from one genre to another?

A. More data and analysis is needed to answer definitively but, in this case, singular feel and sound prevails. The Smiths had a vision for their art, and the debut was just the opening shot. I’m less optimistic that Buckley knew where he was going, or would have gone anywhere more interesting than where he started.

JG

WINNER: The Smiths, The Smiths (3 points)

BATTLE TALLY

80s: 12

90s: 17

EARNED POINTS
80s: 23
90s: 34

Next week’s battle – #21: Tom Waits, Rain Dogs (1985) vs. Radiohead, The Bends (1995)

#23: Black Uhuru, ‘Red’ (1981) vs. The Smashing Pumpkins, ‘Siamese Dream’ (1993)

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This one might be the toughest one for me. These albums took a while to take hold. Also, it’s hard to find a through line connection for comparison between them. The quintessential 90s shoe-gazer vs. the blueprint for 80s reggae. To me they both felt sorta ho-hum. I know better grunge and I know better reggae.

After repeated listening, that opinion changed for me with one album at least. I didn’t want to like Siamese Dream; and this was working out fine for me until I finally let the album play past the first 5 tracks. The album starts off okay but it feels very superficial. A bit empty and one note. Little did I know the depth that was to come. I think the term ‘Burying the lead’ applies very well to Siamese Dream. This album gets better as it progresses. It gets more complex. It gets more melodic. It gets way more emotional.

Billy Corgan knew what he was doing and I didn’t give him enough credit. I thought he was (1) a crybaby adolescent who made angsty music in the comfort of his bedroom; (2) luckily tapping into the angsty zeitgeist of the 90s by going out of his bedroom; and (3) rocking with a kick ass band that was better than he deserved. I was ever so wrong. My quick judgement was unwarranted.

So, in my desire to get past this battle. A quick decision is in order.

The Crybaby wins! And I learned a little something about being too hard on Billy Corgan.

JS

P.S. I eventually did warm up to Red too. It was actually really great.

WINNER: The Smashing Pumpkins, Siamese Dream (3 points)

BATTLE TALLY

80s: 11

90s: 17

EARNED POINTS
80s: 20
90s: 34

Next week’s battle – #22: The Smiths, The Smiths (1984) vs. Jeff Buckley, Grace (1994)

 

#24: X, ‘Los Angeles’ (1980) vs. Pavement, ‘Slanted and Enchanted’ (1992)

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What a maddeningly awesome battle this turned out to be: awesome because these are two astounding debut albums of beautiful noise from uncompromising indie bands, and maddening because I hate to pick a winner…and, by extension, a loser.

“WHAT!?” I can hear the indie rock connoisseurs shout. “How is this even a contest?!”

I understand the outrage. Not many people even know about X any more. Meanwhile, the reputation of Pavement in general and Slanted and Enchanted in particular is unassailable. Many folks who know music better than most will tell you this is not merely one of the best albums of the 1990s, but perhaps THE album of the 1990s (you’ll have to take it up with Rolling Stone why it’s way down at #24).

And, yes, it’s amazing. A messy, wild collection of let’s-try-anything noisy sonic experiments that works extraordinarily well. Stephen Malkmus writes mind-bending tunes, can do anything on a guitar and sometimes sings exactly like Lou Reed, which I greatly appreciate. (I thought often about Lou and his Velvet Underground during this battle as it’s hard to imagine either of these bands without the influence of those 1960 pioneers of uncompromising beautiful noise.)

But then I put on X’s Los Angeles and oh boy.

I don’t like punk but I LOVE this – 28 minutes of propulsive punk perfection about the seedy underbelly of their home city, full of things you don’t expect from a punk band: poetic lyrics, rockabilly guitar, wacky boy-girl harmonizing vocals, and even organ courtesy of the Doors’ Ray Manzarek, who discovered the band and produced the album. It’s unbelievably fun, catchy and easy to listen to, even if it does get a titch disturbing at times with its matter-of-fact exploration of nasty subjects like sexual violence, racism and heroin addiction.

So am I really going to do the unthinkable and pick AGAINST Pavement? Yes.

I’m sorry, indie rock connoisseurs, I know it’s madness. Just please do me a favour: once you’ve scooped your jaw off the floor, spend some time banging your head to “Nausea” and “The World’s a Mess; It’s in My Kiss” and maybe you’ll understand a little tiny bit.

JG

WINNER: X, Los Angeles (3 points)

BATTLE TALLY

80s: 11

90s: 16

EARNED POINTS
80s: 20
90s: 31

Next week’s battle – #23: Black Uhuru, Red (1981) vs. The Smashing Pumpkins, Siamese Dream (1993)