The Velvet Underground & Nico Review

ALBUM OF THE MOMENT:

The Velvet Underground & Nico by The Velvet Underground

In the Velvet Underground & Nico, Lou Reed has taken rock music and broken it down into its most basic form. What he leaves us with is a celebration of animal instinct and sick depravity that predates the punks. The music is intellectual and yet simplistic, unique and yet natural sounding, disturbing yet beautiful. The album begins with the hypnotically dreamy Sunday Morning and then comes the nihilistic and simplistic perfection of I’m Waiting For My Man, the beautiful and melancholic Femme Fatale, the demonic and glorious Venus In Furs, the inside-out blues of Run, Run, Run, the profoundly sad but oddly uplifting All Tomorrow’s Parties, the disturbing majesty of Heroin and then There She Goes Again and I’ll Be Your Mirror; the calm before the storm. When I first heard this album, during my Beatles phase*, I wasn’t so sure about it. Many of the songs seemed too simple and not all that infectious. Now I believe that the epitome of rock music isn’t the catchy, well-produced pop/rock tunes of Sgt Pepper’s but the musically simplistic and emotionally complex Velvet Underground & Nico. If Beethoven travelled to the future to see how music had progressed, this is the first album he should hear.**

Highlights: Sunday Morning I'm Waiting For My Man, Venus In Furs, All Tomorrow's Parties, Heroin

*Teehee!

**Or sit next to depending on when he time-travelled.

TRACK OF THE MOMENT:
The All Golden
Van Dyke Parks

In The Court of the Crimson King Review

ALBUM OF THE MOMENT:

In The Court of the Crimson King by King Crimson

Here’s a statement that’s bound to start some controversy.* In The Court of The Crimson King may be the most epic musical experience since Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. Sure, I’ve not listened to nearly enough classical music (or jazz for that matter) to justify that claim but as far as rock music goes, I can’t think of anything that comes close in terms of sheer tremendousness.** Okay, perhaps it is unfair to overlook all the classical and jazz I’ve yet to hear, especially considering how indebted King Crimson are to that music. Stripped of rock’s blues roots, King Crimson are symphonic, romantic and just, you know, fucking brilliant! Cryptic, mystical lyrics permeate the album; lyrics that I believe would not seem out of place at a poetry reading***. 21st Century Schizoid Man is the heavy opener with its awe-inspiring riff that will rock your face off.**** It’s then contrasted by the gentle and symphonic I Talk to the Wind which sets the stage for the mournful and romantic Epitaph. We are then treated to Moonchild, a pleasant sounding song that quickly deteriorates into a quiet lullaby of an improvisation. And just when you’ve finally gathered together the pieces of your brain and are halfway done taping it all back together, disaster strikes; disaster in the form of a title track. Your face melts away in awe at the pure majesty of its eerie glow.***** Oh, you’ll be feeling this for weeks! In The Court of The Crimson King is respected as a (or the) landmark album in progressive rock. It’s big, it’s clever and it isn’t the sort of album your complimentary Apple earphones will do justice to.

Highlights: In The Court of the Crimson King, 21st Century Schizoid Man, I Talk To The Wind

*Well, perhaps if anyone read this bloody thing!

**Some contenders: Tommy, Marquee Moon, Rock Bottom ooh and Irrilicht by Klaus Schluze! (That’s some cosmic shit right there!)

***a rarity in rock lyrics.

****Long time followers of this site will be treated to a slight tingly feeling on the top of their neck.

*****Ever seen Raiders of the Lost Ark?

TRACK OF THE MOMENT:
Even Flow
Pearl Jam

Lateralus Review

ALBUM OF THE MOMENT:

Lateralus by Tool
It can sometimes be difficult to get into a genre that you haven’t grown up with. Maybe it’s too weird (experimental music), it’s been bastardised by the mainstream (rap music) or, in the case of my experiences with metal, it is widely believed that it all sounds the same. The key to unlocking that myth is to listen to lots of metal. In Lateralus, Tool has perfected progressive metal. The songs* on this album are complex epics with odd time signatures**. One could describe this album as an intricate puzzle waiting to be solved. But the dark style and the catchy hooks are enough to make it one that’s enjoyable to puzzle over***. Lateralus is a very genre bending album that not only blends progressive rock and metal but also shows ethnic influences epitomised on the track Reflection. I also may**** detect a grunge influence in the vein of Pearl Jam in the vocal melodies. I’ll need to listen to this album and metal in general more often to understand exactly where this album stands musically and historically. However, from what I’ve heard so far and with the power vested in me, it is my honour to declare this album kick-ass. Oh, and if you need any more reason to listen to this album, Wikipedia: “The track "Mantra" is the slowed-down sound of Maynard James Keenan gently squeezing one of his cats.” Exactly.

Highlights: The Grunge, The Patient, Lateralus, Reflection

*if that’s the right word to describe them

**Mad props to Danny Carey!

***Let’s see how many ways I can say that something has replay value.

****or may not depending on how incorrect I am

TRACK OF THE MOMENT:
All My Friends
LCD Soundsystem

Murmur Review

ALBUM OF THE MOMENT:Murmur by R.E.M

I find that people overestimate the importance of catchiness in music. I mean, the majority of us could probably recite the Crazy Frog song without much assistance* but that doesn’t make it a musical meisterwerk. The songs on R.E.M’s debut album Murmur are instantly enjoyable and not at all difficult to get into but they’re not particularly infectious. Perhaps it has to do with the cryptic lyrics or the somewhat hard to hear vocals**. Maybe it’s the odd melodies or the fact that it doesn’t always follow a verse-chorus-verse structure. However it’s achieved, the lack of catchiness means that you could listen to Murmur as if it were the first time more than once***. Although the songs aren’t as catchy or well known, I prefer the songwriting on Murmur to the tracks on the critically acclaimed Automatic for the People. Murmur seems more varied, consistent, subtle and mysterious in its emotion whereas songs like Everybody Hurts are kind of whiny. Many say that this album was the point when post-punk became alternative rock. I’m not really sure if drawing that line is all that good an idea. R.E.M clearly has punk roots and a post-punk emotional side to it. The bottom line: R.E.M is a band with a very distinct yet natural and timeless sound. To me the album sounds like the innocence of childhood infused with teenaged post-punk melancholy and the occasional kick of righteous punk energy to the groin of the faceless corporations****.

Highlights: Laughing, Perfect Circle, Catapult

*Though it may pain you to your core, you cannot dispute this.

**Perhaps that's just me
***Imagine watching The Sixth Sense for the 2nd time and still thinking its good.
****or your teachers, bosses, parents, schoolmates, people who just don't understand etc.

TRACK OF THE MOMENT:
Shallow Days
Blackalicious

Good Review

ALBUM OF THE MOMENT:

Good by Morphine

Morphine were an American jazz rock band that specialized in rather minimal, melancholy, moody music, with most of their debut album being composed only of voice, bass, sax and drums. Morphine’s debut album Good is a good (excuse the pun*) album for getting rid of the blues. It grabs you with the sinister sounding title track and then shows you what beauty and variety can be achieved with sadness. Songs like the upbeat “You Speak My Language”, the emotional “The Saddest Song” and the cool-as-fuck “Have A Lucky Day” are all great, moody pieces that are not only ideal for a bad mood but also great for, you know, just chillin’**. I feel that this album would appeal to punk-heads*** as well as jazz-meisters. I also have a feeling that I should give this album more room to grow because I’m not sure whether I fully appreciate it yet. (When I listened to Blonde on Blonde after I did the review, it sounded better than it ever had before.) but I'm just here to tell you what I’ve enjoyed listening to and the main purpose of this blog is to recommend. I recommend this album to anyone in a bad mood.

“My biggest fear is, when I let you go, you’ll come and get me in my sleep.”

Highlights: You Speak My Language, The Saddest Song, Have A Lucky Day

*no, please do.

**in a "That's jazz." kind of way.

***Well, post-punk-heads but that doesn't roll of the tongue all that much.

TRACK OF THE MOMENT:

Oh No
Andrew Bird

Blonde on Blonde Review

ALBUM OF THE MOMENT:

Blonde on Blonde by Bob Dylan
Some say that Bob Dylan has a terrible voice. I find that some need to sort out their musical priorities. If the general public are ever to escape the bland, uninspired pop music of today, composition, emotion and originality should be valued over catchiness and vocal range (especially now due to the common use of autotune in pop music.) If it weren't for the music industry and shows like the X Factor, perhaps more people would value artists such as Bob Dylan over the latest pop diva to be hyped into oblivion. As for the album, Blonde on Blonde is generally calmer and more reflective than its predecessor (Highway 61 Revisited) and it has its fair share of catchy choruses but it's the melodic complexities, the emotionally charged and often ambiguosly pitched vocals and the abstract lyrics that keep it from becoming monotonous. Basically, when you listen to Blonde on Blonde for the 27th time, there will always be something you've not picked up on. Not to mention that this is one of the first recorded double albums so you'll never be short of music. Visions of Johanna and Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands are the album's calmest and most profound songs whereas One of Us Must Know is life affirming in a shouting from a hilltop kind of way. The lyrics are as good as they get and Dylan's voice is as unique and soulful as ever. The songs sound even less like folk tunes and more like epics. Blonde on Blonde is truly one of the first masterpieces of rock music.

Highlights: Visions of Johanna, One of Us Must Know, Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands

TRACK OF THE MOMENT:

Marquee Moon
Television

Marquee Moon Review

ALBUM OF THE MOMENT:

Marquee Moon by Television

Hailed as the the first post-punk album, Marquee Moon isn't just an incredibly influential album, but a bloody good one too! For the uninitiated, post-punk has its roots in the punk movement. (For the further uninitiated, punk is that bloke off those butter commericials. Yeah, he's dead to me too.) The difference between punk and post-punk is that post-punk bands are more likely to experiment with different genres and in general, they're more complex and intellectual and they're more introverted. But, like I said, this ain't just your everyday, run-of-the-mill, genre defining album. Not one song falls flat so Marquee Moon will not only rock your face off. Marquee Moon will not stop rocking your face off until your eyeballs melt out and your skull sets on fire. I'm not going to pretend to know anything about playing guitar but, as far as I can see, it's flawless on this album. The hooks are great and the instrumental solos never feel like they're there for the sake of a solo (if anything, they make the songs.) My favourite moment in the album is in the title track when the music stops and Tom Verlaine says in his convincingly odd voice "I ain't waitin'. Uh, uh." and back comes the riff. I don't know what he ain't waitin' for but I agree with him 100%. Second has to be the cries of "Tears, tears. Rolling back the years." from Torn Curtain and third, the explosion after the words "Guiding light. Guiding light. Guiding through these nights." from, well, you can guess the track.

Highlights: Marquee Moon, Torn Curtain, Guiding Light

TRACK OF THE MOMENT:
Once in a Lifetime
Talking Heads