The Rock Thread

I consider In utero to be the perfected grunge sound, but it's not a pefect album for one reason: Rape Me, a simplistic rehash of better Nirvana songs with better lyricism and delivery of themes, effectively being the Midnight Sun to Polly's Twilight.

Yeah, I said it.

Cocteau Twins - "The Spangle Maker" E.P. (1984)

While I thoroughly enjoyed 1983's excellent duo of releases in third full-length "Head Over Heels" & the equally high-quality "Sunburst & Snowblind" E.P., "The Spangle Maker" E.P. saw Scotland's Cocteau Twins taking a clear step up into the more elite echelons of popular music with three stunning tracks that never fail to leave me feeling exhilarated through their glistening beauty & emotive elegance. The vocals of Elizabeth Fraser are as spectacular as you'll find & cement her as one of my favourite front women of all time. The first two tracks in particular have simply ruled my playlist so far this week so this should be compulsory listening for dream pop & ethereal wave lovers. 

For fans of Tamaryn, White Flowers & Cranes.

4.5/5

Night Sun - "Mournin'" (1972)

This one-off album from a relatively unknown German band is actually really solid. I first checked it out while exploring all of the underground proto-metal of the 1970's last year & really enjoyed it with this return visit only strengthening my feeling that these guys deserved more attention than they've received over the years. Night Sun's sound blends hard rock, progressive rock & heavy psych beautifully with a higher register vocalist who sounds very similar to what you'd get if you crossed Led Zeppelin's Robert Plant with Deep Purple's Ian Gillan which can't be a bad thing. The musicianship is excellent & I particularly enjoy the heavier & more psychedelic moments with album highlight "Living With the Dying: being a genuine early heavy metal classic. Despite the tracklisting tailing off a bit over the last few tracks, "Mournin'" comes highly recommended from this old metalhead.

For fans of Lucifer's Friend, Flower Travellin' Band & Sir Lord Baltimore.

4/5

Eno - "Another Green World" (1975)

I've never quite understood the appeal in the highly praised fourth full-length from English ambient wizard Brian Eno if I'm being honest so I've found myself returning to it more often than I probably should have over the years in the quest for the elusive appeal that everyone seems to inevitably find in it. I've found myself getting a little closer to unlocking its secrets on this occasion too, although I still find it to be no more than a mildly enjoyable listen. I'd describe the sound of "Another Green World" as being a combination of art rock & electronic music with the fourteen-song tracklisting jerkily offering material from both sides of that equation. The more ambient/electronic stuff interests me the most which isn't really a big surprise with some of the rock & pop tracks coming across as being more quirky than anything else which has never been my preference in music. Still... you can't deny the dude's ambition as there are very few records that sound like this one & there's certainly enough to keep me interested here, even if I do think that this might be the end of the road for me & "Another Green World".

For fans of Robert Fripp, Cluster & David Bowie's "Low" album. 

3.5/5

The Jesus Lizard - "GOAT" (1981)

I've been dipping into some noise rock related albums and artists this past week as I am getting a little worn out by new releases and metal in general.  Don't feel confident enough yet to be able to write a full review but this has been a standout release from the few I have sampled.  Got onto Big Black "Songs About Fucking" last night and also flirted with The Jesus and Mary Chain "Psychocandy" the night before but that one was not my bag.

@Vinny.

Noise Rock is probably one of my favourite genres. Back in the late 80s/early 90s Touch & Go and Amphetamine Reptile were two of my go to record labels for picking up blind purchases. I prefer Jesus Lizard's follow up to Goat, Liar, just though it's pretty close and 'Atomizer' just over "Songs About Fucking". 

My Top 10

Big Black - Atomizer (86)

Tar - Jackson (91)

Dazzling Killmen - Face of Collapse (94)

Big Black - Songs About Fucking (87)

Tar - Roundhouse (90)

God Bullies - Mama Womb Womb (89)

Steel Pole Bath Tub - Butterfly Love (89)

Jesus Lizard - Liar (92)

Unsane - Scattered, Smothered and Covered (95)

Cows - Cunning Stunts (92)

Just under this but could rise, is my favourite new noise rock release from Austrian band, Desolat ("Get Sick and Let Me Watch You Die", 2024) which definitely has an Unsane influence

The Red Crayola with The Familiar Ugly - "The Parable of Arable Land" (1967)

I've really struggled with the popular debut album from this Houston-based experimental psychedelic rock act this week as I don't understand the pointless noise interludes & (with the exception of the excellent "War Sucks") the actual songs aren't strong enough to balance the equation. Apparently, the band invited all of their fans down to the studio with whatever they could find to make sounds & then recorded them all randomly banging away over the top of each other with the result leaping over the boundary of what can be considered to be music. I'm baffled as to the level of praise this record generally receives.

For fans of Pere Ubu, Spacemen 3 & The 13th Floor Elevators.

2.5/5

Grand Funk - "Grand Funk" (1969)

The 1969 sophomore album from Michigan's Grand Funk Railroad (or simply Grand Funk as they were known at the time) is an absolute beauty that features a noticeably gritty psychedelic hard rock sound & a timeless production job that leaves all of the different elements sounding warm & well separated.  The bluesy vocals of drummer Don Brewer & guitarist Mark Farner are exceptional here with some sections giving me the strong impression that a young Rob Halford may have been paying close attention to this record. It's a big call but I'd take "Grank Funk" over "Led Zeppelin II" these days & it's not all that far behind "Led Zeppelin I" either.

For fans of Uriah Heep, Blue Öyster Cult & early Scorpions.

4/5

For some mysterious reason I just decided to binge their catalogue out of the blue.  This came in as my #2 by the band, followed by "We're an American Band."

Caravan - Caravan (1969)

Genres: Canterbury Prog Rock, Psych Rock

After having put together a good chart of my top 100 post-bop albums (which I chose to do because I struggle to get into post-bop), I decided my next venture would be one I've quite likes so far, but have largely neglected in favor of other education ventures: Canterbury prog rock.  Now I've heard a grand total of TWO Caravan albums.  If I Could Do It All Over Again was a great album with a beautifully chill vibe, but felt slightly empty when compared to Soft Machine albums.  In the Land of Grey and Pink felt a bit emptier, but still managed to play up the band's strengths more.  Retrospectively, the albums are ranked 92/100 and 86/100.

Because the stereo is apparently satanic to upload to YouTube, I'm listening to the mono on Archive.org.  This debut is doing a good job entertaining the psychedelic genre fan in me.  There's a very careful balance between psychedelic, jazzy, hard, trippy and calm.  As a result, this feels a bit busier than the other two albums I've heard.  Of the majority of psychedelic prog I've heard so far, this is the most aware and tame.  This does not necessarily mean it breaks new ground, and the compositions, while fun and quite spirited, are essentially made of pieces that were already done similarly and beaten by the others, so while the album has a wonderfully 60's vibe to it, there isn't much about the album that I can say I "love."  Maybe this is because the album is so active in its mild switches from genre to genre (mild and tame, I repeat), that it doesn't have any breathing room to let the structures feel longer and more balanced?  In other words, it needs a little breathing room.  But the album maintains its strengths all the way through.

So this is a great genre album for fans of 60's rock, showcasing a lot of cool tricks that were popular at the time with spirit being the best trait.  Lots going on, but in need of some breathing room for most tracks except for the 9-minute closer, Where But for Caravan Would.  Skillful debut.

90/100

Caravan - In the Land of Grey and Pink (1971)

Genres: Canterbury Prog Rock, Psych Rock

As I mentioned in my previous review for Caravan's debut, this album's reverence eludes me, especially due to immediate comparison to Soft Machine's works.  Hell, I even listened to Fourth yesterday and gave it a 95.  But if I'm going to re-evaluate this album, immediately comparing it to another on of their classic albums is as good of a time as any.  If I'm going to get myself invested in and educated concerning the Canterbury scene, then I need to re-evaluate this ASAP.

Three tracks in, I was already strongly considering a higher position.  This isn't as blatantly psychedelic as the debut album, and it doesn't drown it out like the second album.  This album is five tracks and fixes a couple of noticeable flaws in the debut that were created by its own strengths: the variety factor is further balanced and not as busy, allowing for the necessary breathing room.  As far as instrumentation goes, it's fine enough, but not brilliant.  The real reason to listen to this album is for its careful, breezy, chamomile tea-time vibe.  Know many rock albums that are perfect for chamomile tea?  Well, here you go, right on a pale salmon platter. All the little tricks used for the prog and psychedelia are expertly placed, from minor bursts of piano to flute midtros to keyboards.  And I'm quite admiring the decision to go into cutesy and folksy prog pop.  Love to Love You may not be prime songwriting, but it's infectiously charming, acting like a midway point between Beatles and Jethro Tull.  The chill factor almost reaches Steely Dan heights.  As far as the 20-minute epic for the second half goes, a genre fan would naturally like it well enough.  The thing is, it stays more fun and finely-tuned throughout and never really amazes me.  I'd even take off a couple points for how inferior it sounds to the first half because of that.  So it's a fine album with some obvious improvements, but for its lack on imagination in the second half, I'm only giving it one more point.

91

OKAAAY, so here are mt current Caravan rankings.

1. If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You: 92

2. In the Land of Grey and Pink: 91

3. For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night: 90

4. Caravan: 90

I don't think I've ever heard a more 9/10 band.

Robert Wyatt - Old Rottenhat (1985)

Genres: Canterbury Prog Rock, Art Pop, Singer/Songwriter

Although Soft Machine is my favorite band in the Canterbury scene, I have struggled to get into Robert Wyatt's works.  He's too subtle and sometimes confuses emotionless vibes with a deep-rooted series of repeating complex beats, which can still boast some impressive composition but also feel incomplete.  In comparison to Soft Machine, this is a completely different world, one that is intentionally built to be introspective and beat-driven.  It shows mostly on this album, Old Rottenhat.

Lyrics, there's some pretty good poetry here, especially on The Ahe of Self.  This album's also notable among prog fans for being Wyatt's most blatantly political album.  There are some things I agree with here, but Wyatt had a communist period at one point, so depending on your political beliefs, you may want to check the lyrics carefully.  The album's even dedicated to an MI5 agent who was convicted for being a Russian double agent.  For the most part, lyrics are doing the majority of the work, but sometimes, the poetry just isn't as strong as it is on other tracks, leading the repeating complexities to keep a mellow mood with a couple cool twists here and there that still go on forever, sounding fairly pretty due to skillful production but never reaching creative heights.  Honestly, the album behaves a lot like a techno album, being lowbrow and built in repetition, but this is a ROCK album, and it doesn't manage to reach any serious emotional heights, so any of the six-to-eight-minute songs will only manage to be cute and enjoyable but underwhelming as well.

One can say that the unique reliance on complex repetition and mellow moods are bold and unique, and boldness helps, but the overall effect sounds like Robert Wyatt's, as the last track P.L.A. puts it many times, "trying to sleep."  This is strictly for Wyatt fans and boasts some strengths that are heavily noticeable if you're looking, but don't make up for the lacking melodies and lacking progressive unpredictability that build the genre, especially for bands like Wyatt's band.

67

So on my Canterbury ventures I'm currently exploring Picchio dal Pozzo.  The debut was a massive creative splurge with some impressive harmony, instrumentation and personality.  It was a little unhinged, though, not on the hyperactive side, but based on hoe often the band showed off the many sounds they can make as opposed to fleshing out songs.  So this one gets around an 89.

This econd one, Abbiamo tutti i suoi problemi... God, what happened?  Simple, repeated sax notes, going on end for minutes, like the early stages of demo tapes being rerecorded for an album.  What happened to the excessive spark that took us from the forests of fairies all the way to alien planets with robot citizens?  What happened to all the personality?  This is so boring in comparison.  No sense of melody, no depth, no variety.  Almost halfway through and strongly considering a 4/10 for it.

Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger & The Trinity - "Streetnoise" (1969)

It took me a couple of listens to truly appreciate 1969's double sophomore album from this talented group of collaborators. I'd probably describe their sound as being progressive jazz-rock with the striking vocals of Driscoll & the well-executed organ work of Auger being the main focal points. The deeper moments are great while there are also a few really interesting cover versions that take a totally different direction to the originals. Thoroughly recommended.

For fans of Soft Machine, The Moody Blues & early Deep Purple.

4/5

Glenn Branca - "The Ascension" (1981)

I didn't like Branca's 1980 "Lesson No. 1" E.P. much but this debut full-length is excellent, both highly creative & experimental yet still aesthetically pleasing. Sure, it's use of dissonance can be a factor for some listeners but there can be no doubt about the influence that Glenn had on the music scene that was to come. You'll be able to pick up clear examples of where some of the most celebrated artists in musical history have borrowed (at best) from "The Ascension", from Primus to Sonic Youth to Swans to Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Hell, the closing title track is pretty much the blueprint for the entire post-rock movement! This is a highly rewarding musical experience if you can handle the more cerebral approach to experimental noise rock.

For fans of Sonic Youth, Swans & This Heat.

4/5

Temple of the Dog - "Temple of the Dog" (1991)

I still give his old grunge record a spin every now & then & it's held up really well. I first discovered Temple of the Dog through album highlight "Hunger Strike" shortly after release but my interest in the group was expanded upon significantly during my first real relationship in 1993/94 as my ex-girlfriend was a grunge fanatic. Temple of the Dog was somewhat of a super-group comprised of members of Soundgarden, Audioslave, Green River, Mad Season, Pearl Jam, Skin Yard, Queens of the Stone Age, etc. so it was always going to amount to something high-quality, particularly given it was fronted by Chris Cornell i.e. my all-time favourite make vocalist. Other than the incredible "Hunger Strike" (which features a stunning collaboration between Cornell & Pearl Jam front man Eddie Vedder), I don't think that there are any other genuine classics here though & the quality level does dip a touch through tracks 7-9. Still... I really enjoy "Temple of the Dog" & think it makes for a worthy tribute to the late Andrew Wood (the former Mother Love Bone front man who died of a heroin overdose the previous year). If you ever wondered what it would have sounded like if Chris Cornell sung for Pearl Jam then here's your chance to find out because it sounds very much like that.

In terms of the early grunge movement, I'd place "Temple of the Dog" touch behind Soundgarden's "Louder Than Love" & Nirvana's "Bleach" but comfortably ahead of Mudhoney's "Superfuzz Bigmuff". 

For fans of Pearl Jam, Soundgarden & Mother Love Bone.

4/5