Post by Joe Chip on Sept 1, 2013 22:57:38 GMT
The Sleaford Mods are great.
Buffalo Springfield - s/t debut album - "For What It's Worth" is a great single but otherwise there is little to distinguish this from any other cheesy Beatles-inspired 60s US band and absolutely no clue that Neil Young would go on to be a great musician.
Nirvana - Live At Reading - I never got them at the time. When I heard Bleach in 1989 I mentally relegated them to the lower rung of the American bands of the era - they certainly were nowhere near the Butthole Surfers or Killdozer, I didn't even think they were in the same league as Art Phag. The major label albums were indisputably catchy but it's taken meeting much younger people who found it all inspirational to finally listen with fresh ears and get it - the lyrics, always a stumbling block for me, don't matter at all - it's all about the emotion of the howl. The only comprehensible lyrics anyway (some In Utero stuff) were probably written by Courtney Love. I love this live album, it's cold and harsh and bleak as you could wish for, they evade a pretty melody throughout.
Gold Blade - The Terror of Modern Life - how do I review a record by someone who's kind of a mate? With honesty I hope. I very much enjoyed the Membranes output of the 1980s, they were even more northwest of England specific than the Fall and you can hear local bloodlines filtered through psilocybin in the sound of records like Kiss Ass Godhead and the amazing and unjustly ignored To Slay The Rock Pig. John Robb became a TV muppet and journalist but reformed a kind of cabaret version of the Membranes as Gold Blade in the mid-90s, I very much enjoyed their first few records but sometime around 2004 after some line-up changes they turned into a dreary cross between Oi! music and Slade who played in front of punk revival crowds. This record, while it still has one too many big choruses and Clash reference points, is their best for some years with a very intense and noisy title track and thoughtful lyrics throughout.
Nick Drake - Made To Love Magic - this is a repackage of the early outtakes collection Time of No Reply with minor and pointless changes which are presumably due to family/company bickering. One extra track from the final sessions (nothing special). He really was an extraordinary songwriter, heard at his best with minimal accompaniment. What is 'authentic' anyway? Probably not Leonard Cohen pimping out his emotions. Maybe if ND had survived he would have made horrible overblown albums in the 80 but we will never know.
Buffalo Springfield - s/t debut album - "For What It's Worth" is a great single but otherwise there is little to distinguish this from any other cheesy Beatles-inspired 60s US band and absolutely no clue that Neil Young would go on to be a great musician.
Nirvana - Live At Reading - I never got them at the time. When I heard Bleach in 1989 I mentally relegated them to the lower rung of the American bands of the era - they certainly were nowhere near the Butthole Surfers or Killdozer, I didn't even think they were in the same league as Art Phag. The major label albums were indisputably catchy but it's taken meeting much younger people who found it all inspirational to finally listen with fresh ears and get it - the lyrics, always a stumbling block for me, don't matter at all - it's all about the emotion of the howl. The only comprehensible lyrics anyway (some In Utero stuff) were probably written by Courtney Love. I love this live album, it's cold and harsh and bleak as you could wish for, they evade a pretty melody throughout.
Gold Blade - The Terror of Modern Life - how do I review a record by someone who's kind of a mate? With honesty I hope. I very much enjoyed the Membranes output of the 1980s, they were even more northwest of England specific than the Fall and you can hear local bloodlines filtered through psilocybin in the sound of records like Kiss Ass Godhead and the amazing and unjustly ignored To Slay The Rock Pig. John Robb became a TV muppet and journalist but reformed a kind of cabaret version of the Membranes as Gold Blade in the mid-90s, I very much enjoyed their first few records but sometime around 2004 after some line-up changes they turned into a dreary cross between Oi! music and Slade who played in front of punk revival crowds. This record, while it still has one too many big choruses and Clash reference points, is their best for some years with a very intense and noisy title track and thoughtful lyrics throughout.
Nick Drake - Made To Love Magic - this is a repackage of the early outtakes collection Time of No Reply with minor and pointless changes which are presumably due to family/company bickering. One extra track from the final sessions (nothing special). He really was an extraordinary songwriter, heard at his best with minimal accompaniment. What is 'authentic' anyway? Probably not Leonard Cohen pimping out his emotions. Maybe if ND had survived he would have made horrible overblown albums in the 80 but we will never know.