blackleatherbookshelf | Entries tagged with grunge

Rocking Out Like It's '94
4 Out Of 5 Stars

Weezer took a four year hiatus before delivering "Everything Will Be Alright In The End," with much hullabaloo that they were returning to previous form, the kind that made the Blue album and Green album great. And guess what. For a change the hype lives up to the album. "Everything Will Be Alright In The End" is full of big riffs, catchy hooks and geeked out songs that only Rivers Cuomo can produce.

They even poke fun at fan disappointment in the lead single "Back To The Shack." They promise to play the "start with the lightning strap...more hardcore." They also let you know that even they are tired of "those stupid singing shows," But they also turn the other cheek with "Eulogy For a Rock Band." Did they feel like they might have been left behind? "Time marches on, words come and go," they sing, as they worry about becoming the kind of band machine that plays the greatest hits circuit forever and ever. It's a trap the band won't have to worry about.

Cuomo still turns out great turns of lyrical phrase like (in "DaVinci") "Stephen Hawking can't explain you, Rosetta Stone can't translate you." It's done in the trademark power-pop that has always been the hallmark of the best Weezer songs. It's no coincidence that Ric Ocasek (of The Cars) is back to producing, he was behind the boards of the Blue and Green albums. It's more of the point that Weezer wants to remind you that they have greatness in them once all the right ingredients are in place. That includes a duet with Best Coast's Bethany Cosentino on "Go Away," where she's the one calling Cuomo out for years of d-baggery.

That's not to say the album is pure brilliance; both "The British Are Coming" and album closer "The Futurescope Trilogy" suffer from blandness on the former and trying too hard on the latter. Even so, "Everything Will Be Alright in The End" compensates for the past few mediocre albums (anyone seriously looking back at "Hurley" with nostalgia?) and puts them back on top of their game.

Current Mood: blah
Current Location: Philadelphia
Current Music: "DaVinci" Weezer

Very Evenflow
4 Out Of 5 Stars

What Pearl Jam did, maybe even unwittingly, was to weld the thick sludgy minor-chord sound (and general angst) of grunge to arena size rock choruses and guitar power. In doing so, they managed to quickly outshine their nearest peers (Nirvana) commercially and ultimately become the vanguard for rock through the 90's. Along with Red Hot Chili Peppers and maybe Soundgarden, they shaped the sound of a decade and thrived to see their success sustained creatively.

"The Essential Pearl Jam" (a repackaging of Rearviewmirror, as reflected in the title) reflects (har har) that 12 years between Ten and Binaural in solid fashion, even if does lean heavily on the first three albums. It also offers a dozen later track to show that, even while the band's spotlight had faded somewhat, albums like No Code were better even while the band purposely was making music that antagonized fans expecting more of "Jeremy." Treats like "Do The Evolution" and "Man Of The Hour" sound just as powerful as any of the pre-Vs. material.

And for those who argue that Eddie Vedder is a big old sourpuss, they miss out on fun stuff like the tribute to old 45's "Spin The Black Circle" or the totally un-ironic cover of "Last Kiss" (that actually hit the top ten in 1999). Guitarist Stone Gossard rips some particularly innovative riffs through the proceedings here, and it's worth noting that Goassard (as well as the rest of the band) usually co-wrote the band's songs. On "Rearviewmirror," they are divided into two CD's, with an "Up" disc of rockers and the "Down" side of more pensive or acoustic material.

It is the second disc where more of the interesting material lies for me. I've always personally felt "Better man" to be the best song Pearl Jam ever wrote, and the closer, "Yellow Ledbetter" is a damn good blues number with Mike McCready hitting a terrific facsimile of Jimi Hendrix. There is plenty of meat spread between the two discs, and for the casual radio fan of Pearl Jam, this is a great sampler at a fine price.

Current Mood: cold
Current Location: Philadelphia
Current Music: "Spin The Black Circle" Pearl Jam

Like a Bolt From The Blue
4 Out Of 5 Stars

Pearl Jam's discovery that just being a great rock and roll band has its merits again has been a joy to hear. They continue this hot streak started with "Backspacer" with "Lightning Bolt," a mixture of pulse pounding rock and even some punk fury, along with some deeply touching songs that expose just what an affecting singer Eddie Vedder can be.

"Getaway" sets the tone from the beginning, decrying that everyone searching for a better place, but you have to come through "the dark stormy weather." Still, Vedder is happy to claim that "what's mine is mine." This is just before launching into the furious guitar attack of (first single) "Mind Your Manners," a barely three minute detonation. Even with that level of brevity, Mike McCready unleashes a spike of a guitar solo. If you were watching the videos for the Wrigley Field debut of "Lightning Bolt" (complete with Mother Nature adding visual effects), you already know that the mystery woman gives the band something to tear through as it builds to its crescendo.

The moments of balance come with the softer "Sirens" and "Sleeping by Myself" (which first appeared on Vedder's solo "Ukelele Songs"), where nuance rules the day. They've come to understand that softness doesn't always have to come with caustic. That's really driven home on "Lightning Bolt's" closer, the positively lush with emotion "Future Days." The sound of grown men taking on a world that perhaps "Jeremy" would have grown up to love, it's a gorgeous song, rating with the band's absolute bests.

Lest anyone get the idea that Pearl Jam might be forgetting their purpose in life, they haven't. The rock is still fierce, Vedder can still emote like few singers of his era, and McCready retains his status as the band's utility weapon of choice. They haven't forgotten their love for music, once again dipping to the spinning of the black circle for the guitar boogie of "Let The Records Play." But now that's tempered by a man who can say (on "Future Days") "I believe, I believe because I can see, our future days...days of you and me." "Lightning Bolt" may contain plenty of thunder, but Pearl Jam can now also see the calm after the storm.

PS. The Album packaging is sumptuous enough to give an old geezer like me nostalgia trips to when the album sleeve was part of the fun of buying new music. There are some things a download just can't replace.

Current Mood: okay
Current Location: Philadelphia
Current Music: "Getaway" Pearl Jame

An Utter Sandblast of an Album
4 Out Of 5 Stars

The members of Nirvana were so caught off guard at the explosive success of "Nevermind" that it took them three years to record the follow-up. They were even quoted as saying they wanted to make an anti-nevermind to shed some of their fans who looked at the band (and in particular, Kurt Cobain) as movement leaders. "In Utero" was somewhat successful at that attempt, as it is possibly one of the loudest and most distorted albums recorded by a major rockstar band. Producer Steve Albini's original production was so harsh that the record company demanded a remix, which was done when the masters were turned over to REM producer Scott Litt, who remixed them under the title of "additional engineering."

But even he couldn't smooth out the roughest edges of "In Utero." The band got its initial wish as well. "In Utero" was selling on a slower pace than "Nevermind" was until Cobain decided addiction, success and depression were too much for him and he ended his own life. That act reignited the sales of "In Utero" and the whole Cobain as spokesman of a generation rage. His suicide still doesn't detract from the album's strengths and flaws. Cobain was a unique songwriter, in that his style of 'soft-loud-soft-screech' version of verse-chorus-verse altered songwriting for a whole generation of acts. And when he was on, he was stunning. There's no denying the power of "Heart Shaped Box" and "Dumb" or the depth of the haunting "All Apologies." Drummer Dave Grohl was the feistiest drummer in a long line of skinpounders, and bassist Kirst Novoselic held the bottom together in the midst of all the chaos.

At the same time, the album's flaws are glaring. The intentional dissonance can sometimes get in the way of the band (like on "Radio Friendly Unit Shifter," which sounds like a slam against the record company's insistence on getting another "Smells Like Teen Spirit") or the crash and burn howling on "Scentless Apprentice." But when you consider that this was the kind of Stooges' "Raw Power" approach Nirvana was aiming for, it's pretty amazing that they got away with it. Also, given that the music was essentially Cobain's suicide note to the world, it cemented "In Utero" as a riveting punctuation point to the end of Nirvana's lifespan.

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Current Mood: accomplished
Current Location: Philadelphia
Current Music: "Pennyroyal Tea" Nirvana

Are You Experienced?
4 Out Of 5 Stars

One of those weird, tragic stories of Rock and Roll, the Gin Blossoms found themselves riding a massively successful record only to fall victim to the stresses of the rock and roll lifestyle. "New Miserable Experience" walked a near perfect balance of jangle-pop with guitar rock, churning out a multitude of hit singles that remain memorable today. "Hey Jealousy" and "Follow You Down" were written by singer and guitarist Doug Hopkins, who was dismissed from the band for alcohol abuse just as the new album was peaking. The songs that were making folks sing along weren't enough to save Hopkins, who committed suicide in 1993. None of that overshadowed the album, which went on to platinum status all the same.

While Hopkins' story dominates Gin Blossoms own history, the album has its own story to tell. Singers Jesse Valenzuela and Robin Wilson also were serious songwriters and contributed the well known "Alison Road" and "Until I Fall Away." Valenzuela also ventured into roots rock with "Cajun Song." There was just enough of an edgy vibe to the better rockers on "New Miserable Experience" to keep it from falling through the cracks of grunge's popularity of the time. It was as if Nirvana had studied with R.E.M. and created a hybrid. That successful duality dominated this album, keeping it as fresh today as it did in the early 90's.

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Current Mood: satisfied
Current Location: Philadelphia
Current Music: "Follow You Down" Gin Blossoms

Climb Every Mountain
4 Out Of 5 Stars

"Pioneer" finds The Maine pulling away from the major label treadmill after a single album, striking out as an indie once again and proving that they've lost nothing in the transition. If anything, they've gained a more stripped down sound, a jagged power-poprock that serves their roots proud. Like many bands in the post Nirvana age, they've mastered the soft/loud/soft dynamics of songcraft, but do so minus the dissonance and with zinger songs.

I've got a tough time picking a fave from this CD, as the whole thing packs a lot of meaty work. I love the guitars in "My Heroine," the breezy "While Listening to Rock and Roll" and the poignant "I'm Sorry." I like this a little less than Maroon 5 but a little more than The Fray. Like those bands, The Maine like anthemish rock, tight storytelling and a good hook. While they are hardly pioneers in the genre, "Pioneers" will likely seem pretty tasty for its no-frills and basic sense of what makes a good rock-tune tick.

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Current Mood: awake
Current Location: Philadelphia
Current Music: "I'm Sorry" The Maine

Minor Harvest

4 Out Of 5 Stars

The second "best of" release from Soundgarden was meant to correspond to a version of Guitar Hero. While the earlier "A-Sides" is a beefier collection, this CD pares down to 12 songs. Of course, you can splurge and jump up to the double disc that has live versions and B-sides. However, Soundgarden is a decent collection of one of the most influential of the Seattle bands, along with Pearl Jam and Nirvana.

Soundgarden mixed the sludgy hard riffs of Black Sabbath and Led Zepplin with the attitude of the Grunge period. Lead singer Chris Cornell is a world class frontman, whose vocal style ranged from a screaming wail to hushed psychedelia. Kim Thyall remains a terrific guitarist, with versatility that grew the longer the band existed. Soundgarden also followed the classic career arc; really good rock band starts indie (the Sub-Pop single, "Hunted Down"), start finding their chemistry ("Hands All Over" from "Louder Than Love") gel completely (the incredible "Rusty Cage" from "Bad Motor Finger") and then cut a classic for the ages (all the cuts from "Superunknown"). Then they begin to unravel (still great "Blow Up The Outside World") as they cut the swansong album. But they still cut three great hard rock albums, and one world class single/video in the swirling drone of "Black Hole Sun."

There are two bonus reasons to have "Telephantasm." "Birth Ritual" from the movie "Singles" is included, and the new song that brought Soundgarden to reunion, "Black Rain," is better than expected. Granted, a copy of "A-Sides" and "Superunknown" is likely all the Soundgarden you'll probably ever need, but for a best of, this single disc does the job.

Current Mood: accomplished
Current Location: Philadelphia
Current Music: "Black Hole Sun" Soundgarden

Once Upon a Ten
5 Out of 5 Stars

Pearl Jam's debut album, "Ten," helped to upend the state of American Rock and Roll. Coming off the remnants of several other noteworthy bands (most of all, Mother Love Bone) and recruited San Diegian singer Eddie Vedder, "Ten" stripped the fluff and posturing away from late 80's hair-metal and scraped it down to primal guitar and deep angst. Vedder gave this perfect voice, and guitarist Mike McCready stayed more inside the classic rock manual when it came time for guitar leads.

The result was an a album that resonated both the current rock lovers and the grunge crowd that was lusting for anything that gave of something that resembled Nirvana's grunge vibe. "Evenflow," "Alive," "Jeremy" and "Black" soon became established on radio and MTV, and the rest,as is often said, is history. That established, the most exciting thing about this deluxe remaster is the obvious care the band, producer Rick Parashar, bonus disc remixer Brendan O'Brien and other contributors put into this edition. The original album sounds as blistering as it always did, and the second disc rethinks the original while losing none of the impact. O'Brien reins in the echo/reverb, pushes Vedder more to the fore and makes things a bit cleaner. Disc one is like getting caught in a ravaging sandstorm, the remix is like getting a sand blaster applied in a precise location. Either way, you're getting pounded and laid bare.

The DVD is the MTV Unplugged performance of March 1992 (roughly when "Ten" was beginning to peak), and captures the band in all its anti-swagger glory. The DVD is also devoid of clutter and scraps, making it a more valuable watch. The scraps are in the main packaging, with articles about Mookie Blaylock (Pearl Jam's original name), lots of pictures, posters, passes, and plenty of Vedder's surprisingly good sketches. The deluxe version of "Ten" is exactly how a re-issue should be done; no waste and plenty of value, respectful to both fan and band.

Vitalogy Expanded Edition (3 Bonus Tracks)

Current Mood: chipper
Current Location: Philadelphia
Current Music: "Black" Pearl Jam

Pleased to meet you, Nice to know me
4 Out of 5 Stars

For a band often slogged off in their early days as grunge posers, Stone Temple Pilots built themselves a might strong body of work. "Thank You" tracks songs from their 5 top ten albums and adds both the new "All In The Suit That You Wear" and an unplugged version of "Plush" to make a very good single disc set. The only things that were missing for me, a casual listener, was their version of Zep's "Dancing Days" and the radio favorite "Pretty Penny."

Otherwise, "Thank You" focuses on STP's two secret weapons, guitarist Dean DeLeo and vocalist and perpetual rock causality/vocalist Scott Weiland. While Weiland went through personas as often as he went through rehab, DeLeo added a consistently heavy crunch to their songs, often offset by wonderful, melodic playing. His power of "Sex Type Thing" and the heaviest rocker here, "Down," pile drive their way into your head (and in the case of "Sex Type Thing," drove them to stardom). Then there's the Beatlesque chiming of "Lady Picture Show" and the bluesy "Sour Girl." DeLeo is one of the 90's unsung guitar heroes.

That is likely because he's overshadowed by Scott Weiland and all his accompanying drama. But Scott is a strikingly versatile vocalist, capable of the grungely howl that put them on the map to the soulful croon he employs on "Creep" and the acoustic version of "Plush." He is also one of the 90's more oddball frontmen, as anyone who ever saw his Bowie/Glam phase around the time of "No 4" could tell you.

Mix all these together and "Thank You" cooks like a great singles comp should. Despite not being on chronological order (and maybe even to its benefit), these fifteen songs hold together as a great listen. You can slip this in the player and keep cruising without hitting skip once. "Interstate Love Song" (from "Purple," my favorite STP CD) alone makes this a great in-the-car discs, so if all you need from STP is the radio stuff, "Thank You" fills the tank.