The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground

8.5/10

I love the John Cale VU. Their first two albums are great and have their place chiseled out in the history of rock music for good reason.

I just happen to love Cale-less VU even more.

I think experimentation and thinking outside the box and all that is great. It should be done much, much more nowadays. However, most don’t do it because, although the potential reward is much greater, the risk is also much greater. And musicians already take a huge risk by trying to make a living in music. VU was no exception as it turned out to be an unsuccessful approach in terms of sales and popularity. But, the payoff was huge for us, as it was a huge success in terms of inspiration and breaking new ground. I shudder to think of what music would be like today if it weren’t for these guys.

All that said, I may be contradicting myself a bit by saying that stripping the mighty Velvet Underground of its eccentric, mad genius was exactly the best thing for VU, as it allowed the beauty of Lou’s songwriting and singing to shine through unimpeded. Although it hurts to say it, this is an excellent example of addition by subtraction. I think we all knew Lou had it in him to pen such simple, gorgeous songs as “Candy Says” and “Pale Blue Eyes,” and now he actually could. And how refreshing it is just to hear them jam out simple, rockin’ songs as they do so well on “What Goes On” and “Beginning to See the Light.”

Then there’s the really underrated song of the album, the mid-tempo, slow-building “I’m Set Free.” I get chills when the song culminates to its chorus and they all harmonize “I’m Set Free!” It’s like the sober little brother of “Heroin.” Just awesome stuff.

Ok, so I can’t escape this review without addressing the most controversial song on the album, “The Murder Mystery.” While it’s really quite a fascinating experiment on wordplay, studio trickery, and sound collages, it just doesn’t belong on this album. It comes out of nowhere and takes nearly 9 minutes away from the tone that was established so perfectly on the previous eight songs. I rate this album as I as I do despite it, not because of it. It’s the one flaw that brings it down from perfection, and it’s a shame that they had to include it. It would have been much better released on another album, or as a b-side.

Fortunately, Mo brings the album back to earth with the quaint, innocent acoustic sing-a-long song, “After Hours,” appropriately closing the door on the best thing The Velvet Underground ever did.

Downloading...

So we all know the biggest issue of the last decade in music, in terms of how it's released and distributed, has been the issue of downloading. Now, I'm not about to go into a lecture one way or another to say it's right or it isn't, but allow me to just say that becoming open to it has, well, opened up a few doors to music I wouldn't have otherwise heard.

Recently I downloaded two albums that are out of print and are either costly to acquire, or flat out impossible. I've always wanted to hear the most praised My Bloody Valentine EP, You Made Me Realise, as well as Live '77, a live bootleg from a very obscure Japanese noise-rock band (but highly praised in certain circles) Les Rallizes Denudes (who never released any proper albums). So now, after wanting to hear these albums for so long, with minimal effort, here they are sitting in my collection. Should've done this years ago, to be honest. I don't know what was stopping me other than I've always been VERY anal about wanting the physical copy of any music I truly want to hear and own (I know, I know, you can stop rolling your eyes at my absurdity now).

I don't plan on going on a downloading spree and just acquiring everything under the sun, new releases, etc. because I still am very much a "purist," and love expanding my physical collection. But being more open to the idea will allow me to hear a lot of great music I never would've heard otherwise.

I'm late to the party (way beyond fashionably late, too), but at least I came, right?

Massive Attack - Blue Lines

5.1/10

This album and I didn't get off to a great start. My introduction to Massive Attack was the spectacular and timeless Mezzanine. It instantly became one of my favorite albums ever. Then, later I decided to backtrack and check out the equally praised Blue Lines.

What I heard disappointed me. It sounded firmly planted in the 90's with it's production style, vocals, and overall general vibe. It didn't have the lush atmosphere and deep, brooding vibe of the aforementioned Mezzanine. Nothing really seemed to build or expand. It was just a bunch of songs with decent grooves and dated effects. I barely wanted to hear it for a second time.

As I've given this more and more chances, I've come to appreciate the warm soul that this album exudes. It's an album to just chill to, not really put your full attention to necessarily.

If I can find a way to get past the dated sound, there are actually some pretty good grooves and soulful vocals. I do tend to cringe a little when I hear that extremely contrived and repetitive rap phrasing such as in the title track. I find the key to enjoying this album is to not take it too seriously.

But really, it just depends on my mood. If I can stomach this album, I quite enjoy it. Right now, as I review this album, it leaves me a little cold and it just really doesn't do a whole lot for me.

Beck - Sea Change

8.2/10

Beck really goes all over the place musically, doesn't he? I don't know about you, but of all the directions he's taken throughout his career, I was most surprised when he went the direction of downtrodden, lonely singer/songwriter. Perhaps not nearly as surprised, however, as when I discovered this is Beck at his best.

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The restraint really suits his voice and persona quite well. I could only halfway buy into him when he was dancing around singing about "Sexxx Laws," but here on Sea Change I can really feel he's in the zone.

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I'm really most impressed with the songwriting and overall use of various instruments, including a quite prominent string section. The strings add almost a theatrical-ish element without taking away from the intimate feelings of the songs.

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While the album is definitely more on the downside of things, it's not exactly depressing like, say, Elliott Smith is. Instead it's more slanted towards being apathetic, no better exemplified than by the third track, with the very straightforward title "Guess I'm Doing Fine." Because of the somewhat lighter feeling of reluctant acceptance, this album is more relaxing and even calming than other released by other artists along this same vein.

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Maybe another reason this album is relaxing is because Beck himself sounds a little worn out. He even states that he's "tired of fighting, tired of fighting for a lost cause." He sounds beaten and defeated. But somehow still, I find comfort in those words instead of worry or pain.

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Not only is Beck in top form musically on Sea Change, lyrically he's at his most poetic and profound. He certainly sets the tone on the opener "Golden Age" with "These days I barely get by, I don't even try." And on "End of the Day" he profoundly points out that "You owe nothing to the past but wasted time, to serve a sentence that was only in your mind." I worry sometimes how guilty I am of this, but at least I'm not alone. Many more lyrical gems are scattered throughout in every single track.

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Many times Beck evokes Nick Drake on this album. I know it's blasphemous to say this, but I really would put this on the same level as much of his work, save for maybe Pink Moon.

Meat Puppets - Up on the Sun

8.7/10

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One distinct sign of a good record is that it's ALWAYS better than you remember it being. This is one of those albums for me.

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What always sticks out to me is the extremely beautiful guitar interplay between the bass and guitar. No song displays this virtuosity more than "Maiden's Milk," with arpeggios galore and even a whistling line over the top of it all.

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Another great thing about Up on the Sun is its consistancy. Every song is fresh and builds momentum throughout the album. Songs seem to increase in energy as the album goes on.

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This might be a bit of a stretch, but at times (thinking this as I'm listening to "Buckethead") this album sounds like what Gang of Four's Entertainment! would sound like if you were to take away the political and social angst and replace it with a much more carefree, fun approach.

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I guess one knock on this album is that over time I've grown somewhat tired of the flat vocal approach. Meat Puppets II is actually much better in that regard, with memorable vocal lines spewn throughout. But in terms of instrumentation and how the band sounds as a whole, this takes the cake.

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Great album for fans of Felt, The Feelies, and other similar bands with jangly guitars and dry vocals.

In short, I've delved head first into my Autechre binge the last couple of weeks, and through the process they've become one of my favorite groups ever. Their combination of beats and atmosphere and rhythms have taken a hold of me. I can't remember the last time I was this obsessed about any group since The Cure starting six years ago.

So far the standout to me is Untilted. It's pummeling beats grabbed me instantly. It's an assault on the brain. LP5 and Confield are runners up, the former being a mature evolution of their early period, and the latter, a clinical, carpenter-like execution of rhythms, beats, and textures. Their widely considered masterpiece, Tri Repetae, is pretty solid, but gaps in quality on that album bring it down slightly. Oversteps, their newly released album from just one month ago, is a stellar album full of atmosphere and texture. I'm still absorbing Draft 7.30...talk about an album that's difficult to wrap your head around, but I sense brilliance lies somewhere in there. I've yet to listen to Quaristice, but with the shorter song lengths I'm excited to hear what could be considered Autechre's punk album.

Eventually I will get to hearing their first two albums, which I hear are much more ambient and simple, but gorgeous.

So, if you love Autechre, let me hear about it. If you haven't heard their stuff, give it a try and at least try something new, it's worth it.

Autechre!

I've always been much more of a left-brained person. I'm analytical by nature, and my best subject in school was always math. And it kind of makes for an interesting music listener. I mean I love melody and harmony as much as the next guy, don't get me wrong, but I do tend to pay attention to beats more than some, and that's probably why I was a drummer instead of a guitar player.

I bring this up because I've recently discovered an excellent electronic duo (IDM, or, Intelilgent Dance Music, to be specific...what a ridiculous name for a genre, "hey look at me, I dance intelligently!") named Autechre. Why I haven't gotten into this stuff before is beyond me, but it has captivated me and taken a hold of me recently.

It's not for everyone. The music can be thought of as really cold and nonhuman. It is, after all, made strictly by a couple of humans solely on their computers, with no vocals, no nothin'. But the beats and textures and rhythms and subtle melodies are amazing to hear.

Perhaps I'll come back with a review or two of their stuff, but for now I'm just going to enjoy delving deeper into their discography.