Reviews – Page 66 – 7th Level Music

Rewind Review: Husker Du – New Day Rising (1985)

Husker Du‘s third album, New Day Rising, is as scorching today as it was in 1985. The band (Grant Hart – drums and vocals, Bob Mould – guitar and vocals, and Greg Norton – bass and vocals) were moving away from hardcore punk to more melodic tunes…but just barely.

The opening title track comes in hard to shove you into a real or imaginary mosh pit wherever you happen to be at the time. “The Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill” has Norton’s vocal chords shredding as hard as Mould’s guitars. Norton’s bass drives “I Apologize” as Mould sings about trying to make amends in a relationship going bad due to his short temper. Norton and Hart’s backing vocals (and Hart’s sharp cymbal crashes) give boost to Mould’s plea.

Gen X punk rockers like Hart, Mould, Norton, and myself still remember the anger we felt during the Reagan Era. Husker Du wrote about this on “Folk Lore” – a song that still rings true today with lyrics like “Now the women scream for equal rights, their man wants to have an affair, children learn to hate the world, and no one seems to care.” The abrupt end with the lyric “One thing I know for sure, your heroes always die.” is like right hook to the jaw.

Norton is pissed about someone turning their back on him in “If I Told You.” “I couldn’t convince you if I tried. You weren’t around the time that I cried,” he sings while Hart’s snare drum rolls sound like machine gun fire and Mould somehow turns up the fuzz on his guitar even more.

“Celebrated Summer” has Mould reminiscing about how fast time passes when you spend it “getting drunk out on the beach, or playing in a band” with your friends. “Perfect Example” switches things up with quieter guitars and slightly slower drums as Mould almost whispers lyrics about moving on from a bad relationship but still hoping he’ll be remembered for the good times.

Norton’s bass line on “Terms of Psychic Warfare” is instantly recognizable if you’re a fan of the band, and Hart’s vocals are a scathing rebuke of someone he left at the curb (“You’ve got your own bed now. I suggest that’s the one you sleep in.”). “59 Times the Pain” takes on a bit of shoegaze and sludge that’s almost disorienting. “Powerline” keeps the melodic drone going a bit longer, and “Books about UFOs” is a sweet love song to a girl who spends her time looking at the stars instead of what’s right in front of her.

“I Don’t Know What You’re Talking About” is a solid rocker about that guy everyone knows who rambles on like he’s an expert on everything yet gets angry when he’s confronted with facts that counter his argument. Huh. That sums up 2019 well, doesn’t it? “How to Skin a Cat” is weird chaos that you have to hear in order to appreciate. I can’t do it justice here. “Whatcha Drinkin’?” is a fun punk blast about getting drunk, regretting it, and getting drunk again later. The album ends with “Plans I Make” – an absolute barn burner of a tune with Mould going bonkers, Norton playing like he’s also driving a Grand Prix race car at the same time, and Hart trying to access the basement by pounding his kit through the floor. I realized how much Husker Du inspired A Place to Bury Strangers upon hearing it for the first time.

New Day Rising is a punk classic. It’s essential. All Husker Du is, really.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Pink Floyd – The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967)

Pink Floyd‘s debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, is one of those classic records that deserves its legendary status. Its influence can be found not only among all the other United Kingdom (and many elsewhere, of course) psychedelic bands of the 1960’s and 1970’s, but also among modern psych-rock bands around the globe. No one could have predicted this, of course, because the album is so damn weird.

The opener, “Astronomy Domine,” moves like a funeral dirge across the cosmos – somehow combining space rock with doom-psych. “Lucifer Sam” has a killer, fuzzy bass groove by Roger Waters while Syd Barrett sings a tribute to his cat (“That cat’s something I can’t explain.”). “Matilda Mother” pours on the echo effects as Barrett and Waters sings about a long-forgotten king and Richard Wright lays down a sweet organ solo. “Flaming” is a trippy, hippy track about “lazing in the foggy dew” and “sitting on a unicorn.”

“Pow R. Toc H.” is an instrumental track that brings in jazz piano and softens Nick Mason‘s beats to sound like they kept him behind a velvet curtain in a dark nightclub. It mixes in maniacal laughter and chaotic guitar riffs now and then to keep you on your toes. “Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk” is the first track on the album written by Waters, so it’s no surprise that bass and drums move to the forefront while Barrett’s guitar and Wright’s keys seem to be having their own, frantic conversation.

The second instrumental, “Interstellar Overdrive,” would help pave the way for doom-psych with its deep bass grooves, haunted house organ, Tell Tale Heart drums, and Psycho guitar. Just to mess with us, the next track on the album is “The Gnome” – which is literally about a gnome (named Grimble Gromble) going on a “big adventure amidst the grass.”

Need a song featuring Barrett’s view of the cosmos? How about “Chapter 24,” in which he sings, “All movement is accomplished in six stages and the seventh brings return. The seven is the number of the young light. It forms when darkness is increased by one.” Sure. Why not? It’s nice to hear Wright’s organ taking the lead among the instruments on it. “The Scarecrow” tick-tocks along like the subject’s arms “when the wind cut up rough.” The closer, “Bike,” is, believe it or not, a love song. Barrett offers to give his girl “anything, everything, if you want things” including his bike, his cloak, his mouse (named Gerald, although Barrett doesn’t know why), his gingerbread men, and, the most precious gift of all – his music. It’s a lot of fun at first, and then descends into some sort of Lovecraftian dream.

The album is fun, fascinating, and baffling. My dog had no idea what to make of it when I played it in the house one day. I’m still not sure what to make of it either, but that’s okay. You’ll find something different about it each time you hear it.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: R.L. Burnside – Too Bad Jim (1994)

It doesn’t even take ten seconds for blues legend R.L. Burnside to hook you on his 1994 album Too Bad Jim. The opening guitar riff of the first track, “Shake ‘Em on Down,” is a floor-stomper that transports you back in time to a peanut shell-littered honkytonk bar serving cold beer out of a dented aluminum horse trough someone brought from their farm.

Too Bad Jim has plenty of rockers, but it is a blues record, after all. This is evidenced by the second track, “When My First Wife Left Me.” “When my first wife left me, God knows it put me out on the road,” Burnside sings at the beginning of this tale of hard times of his clothes getting very thin. “Short-Haired Woman” continues this trek down a lonely, dusty Mississippi road and features nothing but Burnside and his guitar that sounds both intimate and yet distant at the same time.

“Old Black Mattie” brings the drums back into play and gets everyone dancing (including the Black Keys, who are clearly influenced by Burnside’s playing, vocal stylings, and grooves). “Fireman Ring the Bell” keeps the floor shaking and “Peaches” switches up the groove to a sexy slink around the room as Burnside sings about his woman’s peaches being sweet. I think you get the idea.

“Miss Glory B.” is another solo lament about how Burnside is burdened by gossip even though he tries to keep to himself. He’s out to silence those rumors on “.44 Pistol,” which brings in the heaviest drums on the record and practically makes you strut around the room. You’re going to experience “Death Bell Blues” if you carry that pistol around long enough, and Burnside sings about the impending nature of death and wondering when and how the hooded guy with the scythe will escort him to the next life. The album ends with the longest track, “Goin’ Down South” – a dark cut about walking a long road of temptation, vices, and certain doom. Burnside saves some of his best guitar shredding for the closer, and the creepy crawl of the song would make even doom metal bands nod their heads in time and with appreciation.

It’s a solid album and a clinic on raw blues from a bluesman who, thankfully, got the recognition he deserved before he died in 2005.

Keep your mind open.

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Live: Reverend Horton Heat, Dave Alvin, New Bomb Turks, and Voodoo Glow Skulls – House of Blues – Chicago, IL – November 28, 2019

It had been well over a decade since I’d seen Reverend Horton Heat, New Bomb Turks, or Voodoo Glow Skulls live, so buying a ticket to their show at Chicago’s House of Blues was a no-brainer. New Bomb Turks are one of my favorite punk bands of all time, and Reverend Horton Heat is an unstoppable touring machine. VGS are bonkers ska punks whose blood is probably the formula for Red Bull. The icing on the cake was learning that punk / psychobilly legend Dave Alvin was going to be playing a half-hour set with Reverend Horton Heat during the show (which was called the “Holiday Hayride”).

Voodoo Glow Skulls opened the show, getting the crowd jumping and moshing and bouncing. They played new and older tracks, including a fun cover of “Charlie Brown” and their blistering new song, “Generation Genocide.”

New Bomb Turks were up next and threw down a fiery, raucous set that left a lot of people dumbfounded. Lead singer Eric Davidson did his best to keep the crowd fired up, including trying to pull people onstage. Only four people, me included, took him up on the offer (Me during their classic “Dress Up the Naked Truth,” which resulted in Mr. Davidson violating my mouth with his microphone while I knelt before him). The set was so quick and furious that the crowd seemed stunned into silence by the time they were done.

Reverend Horton Heat opened with an instrumental version of “We Three Kings” and then switched back and forth between fan-favorites like “400 Bucks” and “Bales of Cocaine” and Christmas tunes like “Silver and Gold” and “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” The whole band are top-notch musicians. A nice addition for the home crowd was the pianist, a Texan by birth, but a Chicago theatre veteran who played Jerry Lee Lewis in the local production of Million Dollar Quartet.

The whipped cream on the holiday pumpkin pie was a half-hour set by Dave Alvin (singer-songwriter, founding member of The Blasters and The Flesh Eaters) with the Reverend Horton Heat band backing him. Alvin commanded the stage as soon as he set foot on it and put on a guitar clinic, often leaving Jim Heath (AKA Rev. Heat) grinning and saying, “Well, I guess we have to follow that.” after Alvin exited stage left.

It’s a fun tour and was a jolly way to start the holiday season. It might be the last show I see in 2019, and it’s a good way to end my year of live music if that’s the case.

Keep your mind open.

Rewind Review: The Donkeys – Sun Damaged Youth (2018)

“It’s the year 2025, California has been banished from the United States for water theft.” That’s the first line of The Donkeys‘ futuristic surf-psych concept album Sun Damaged Youth. It’s about a “pack of teenaged misfits armed with skateboards” doing what they can to survive in a radioactive, yet still lovely, desolate landscape. Not only has California been abandoned, but so has most of Earth. The elite have fled to Mars and left the rest of us amid the toxic slime and tortuous heat they helped create.

The opening cut, “S.D.Y.,” is full of lovely Beach Boys melodies mixed with shoegaze surf guitars. 60’s retro organ sounds dominate “Radiation,” as they sing, “On the beach, you’re never out of reach.” Part of the story of this concept album is that the teenage wastelanders are kept sane by radio transmissions from a DJ known as “Cherry Cheetah” on KTOX Radio broadcast from somewhere deep underground. She presents songs like the dream-poppy “Candy Foam” and fictional bands like the Coffin Nails doing a surf instrumental called “Space Slip,” the Savage Detectives performing “Pier Rat” (a bit of a spooky tune with that vintage organ in it), the Santa Anas playing “Pink Seaweed” (an early 1960’s soul instrumental), and The Divine Invasions playing a dreamwave tune called “Weed Wacker.”

“Kool Kids” is shoegaze bliss with bright vocals that still have that distant sound that only shoegaze bands seem to know how to create. “We Are All So Young” is a salute to the point in life where one realizes youth is ending and adulthood is looming. “It’s time to leave the streets behind. I hear the mountains are doing fine,” they say. “Summer’s Dream” is like a long lost Beck cut with its languid beats and vocals as the SDY remember when summer days were spent playing games and surfing instead of scrounging for food and dealing with, as evidenced in the next track, “Green Gunk” that ruins everything it touches. “Unusual” is a short track that floats by you like a feather on the wind. “Sticky Sand” is an upbeat surf rocker that hides a warning about ocean pollution.

“All In the Eyes” brings in Eastern rhythms and guitar sounds (as well as chirping birds, perhaps the first ones seen by the SDY in years) as they sing about idyllic fields and how there’s “no need for disguise when everything’s real.” This is true. When “all the worth is gone, nothing is real,” as they say. This world is illusion. The world of the SDY is illusion, yet its lessons are important. The characters in the Donkeys’ fiction learn that what others see as a wasteland is truly a beautiful, present reality. We’d all be better off if we could see this.

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Jacques Greene – Dawn Chorus

Dawn Chorus, the excellent new house music album from Jacques Greene, is music for an afterparty or what comes after the afterparty. It’s the sound of what’s buzzing in your head as the lights in the club are turned on to move you onto the streets, the sounds of those streets, or the sounds coming from your car stereo or in your earbuds as you head home from a long night of raving.

The opener, “Serenity,” is warm and still danceable. You’ve achieved a fuzzy bliss from all the dancing and making out that’s been going on all night. The drums on the track have you dancing and the bright synths are almost like alarm clock klaxons reminding you it’s time to start thinking about what comes next. “Drop Location” thumps along with you as you cruise home in your car stuffed with friends or on the train with just a few bleary eyed party-goers and early morning workers.

“Do It Without You” is empowering house that builds to a slick beat and begs you to come back to the dance floor. “Night Service” is Greene’s testament to how nights at the club are like church for many. They’re a community gathering where love is expressed and a place where transcendence can be found among beats, lights, and sweaty bodies. “Sel” touches on some psychedelic elements that flow nicely into “Let Go” – a song that tells us, “Love isn’t lust, unless you say it.”

The words “Girls, ’cause I’m too hot for love” are looped throughout the instant hit floor-filler “For Love.” The tribal beats alone are worth the purchase price. “Sibling” and “Whenever” add synthwave elements to house beats for excellent effect. “Understand” starts off with a cool, warped sound that reminds me on sunlight bouncing off a skipping record.

The last two tracks, “Distance” and “Stars,” invoke images of dawn breaking as you shuffle into your place after the long night of fun, drop your keys in the bowl next to the front door, and put on some house music as you undress and then brush your teeth. You’re not quite ready to lose the beats running through your head just yet, but the moment you’re in calls for a wind-down, and you’re happy for it.

This is one of the best house music albums I’ve heard in a long while, and it should be high among lists of such. It will be on mine.

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Bleached – Don’t You Think You’ve Had Enough?

I love the title of Bleached‘s new record – Don’t You Think You’ve Had Enough? Ostensibly, it refers to sisters Jessica and Jennifer Clavin‘s take on bad relationships. Bleached has always excelled at writing songs about love, break-ups, drawing a line in the emotional sand, and embracing female empowerment. The album’s title can also refer to a host of other things, though – the political atmosphere, junk food, money for billionaires, your smartphone, etc. It’s a question we should all often ask ourselves because it keeps us in the now.

The solid rock groove of the opener, “Heartbeat Away,” has the Clavin sisters singing about how dangerously close addiction and heartbreak can be if you’re not careful (“I could go back to the way it was. All it would take is a slip in the mud.”). It’s no secret that Don’t You Think You’ve Had Enough? is the first album they’ve written while clean and sober, and this new clarity is all over the record. As evidence of this, look no further than the second track, “Hard to Kill,” which brings in a great disco guitar riff and is one of my favorite singles of the year.

“Daydream” is a garage rock song about longing after someone who might’ve been “the one,” but is now lost to time and vague memories. “I Get What I Need” has a cool swing to it that is difficult to describe (Early Kaiser Chiefs tunes?) but great to hear. “Somebody Dial 911” is easier to describe, because it sounds like a lost 1980’s alternative rock love song that cracked the Billboard Top 40. The guitar riffs resemble Cure riffs and the slightly echoed vocals remind one of Brit-pop from the era.

“Kiss You Goodbye” (also in the running for one of my top 20 singles of the year) is such a great tune that you might miss the fact that it’s a middle finger to a former lover and how Bleached feels “so alive” afterwards. It’s a track that isn’t afraid to explore and embrace the many genres that inspire the Clavin sisters (disco, pop, and post-punk in this track, in particular). “I don’t want what I can’t have,” Jennifer Clavin sings on “Rebound City.” “I just want to make you say, ‘I’m sorry. I never meant to break your heart.’ It’s a one-way boulevard.” Ouch. You’re tempted to feel bad for the dude she’s left, but you quickly realize he was a dickweed and Clavin is better off walking away with her middle finger raised.

“I don’t know if I’m cut out for this,” they sing at the beginning of “Silly Girl” – a song that’s a look-back to their past reliance on drugs and booze. Trust me, Sisters Clavin, you are. The slick production of this toe-tapper is proof. The California sun comes through on “Valley to LA,” which even has a west coast country vibe to it. Jennifer Clavin admits to her faults on “Real Life” (“That one time when I was such a piece of shit and made you sad…”). “Awkward Phase” is a down-tuned, but still lively, track about our teenage years and the attachments we have related to them that are hard to release (Haven’t we had enough of them?). The closer, “Shitty Ballet,” is a sharp take on a bad relationship and heartbreak. So often we dance around the things that make us uncomfortable or get lost in the illusion of comfort that is actually bad for us (again, without realizing we’ve had enough of it).

Bleached keep getting better with each record. Hearing them create art from a place of inner peace is a joy, and I couldn’t be happier for them. Don’t You Think You’ve Had Enough? might be the one of the most uplifting albums of 2019.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Austin 2019 recap – Day Three

We would spend about twelve hours in downtown Austin on the third day of Levitation Austin 2019. We had tickets to see a lot of bands, and it was the busiest day of the festival for everyone involved.

We began at, once again, Barracuda, where the RidingEasy Records showcase started off the afternoon. We missed the opening of Warish‘s set due to having to eat lunch beforehand at a nearby Thai restaurant. We knew we’d need fuel for the day. Warish was blaring on the inside stage, making my wife say, “There’s nothing ‘ish’ about it!” Their cover of Nirvana‘s “Negative Creep” was solid and much-appreciated.

Next up, and outside, were Here Lies Man, whose last two albums have been in the top ten of their respective years for me. They put on a groovy set to a crowd that was loving their heavy “Black Sabbath plays Afrobeat” sound and the warmer weather.

My wife became a fan of Blackwater Holylight after we went back inside to see their set. It was a cool, trippy, and sexy mix of psychedelia.

She also appreciated the killer set by The Well, who were among the band’s I was most excited to see at the festival. They threw down one of the best sets I’ve seen all year. It was hard-hitting, solid groove stoner-doom metal and a great mid-day lift.

We kept that theme going with Acid King, who flattened what little was left of the outside stage by now. It was great to see and hear these legends live. They still shred.

It was a quick walk to Stubb’s BBQ to see the Black Angels and John Cale. The Black Angels put on another fine set. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen them live now, and they never put on a bad show.

“I think we’re more excited than you are,” said the Black Angels’ lead singer, Alex Maas, before John Cale took the stage to play tracks that ranged from fun to creepy and covered his solo work and Velvet Underground cuts. The Black Angels joined him and his band onstage for an encore performance of “Sister Ray” that was a thrill for everyone on stage and in front of it.

The Black Angels (left) and John Cale and his band perform “Sister Ray.”

As cool as that was to see and hear, we still had more sets to catch. We zipped back to Barracuda to see Night Beats and Cosmonauts. Night Beats were first, with Danny Blackwell rocking his awesome hat as usual, and they put on a great show on the outdoor stage. Blackwell is a gunslinger with his guitar. I’d almost forgotten how much he shreds.

I’d heard good things about Cosmonauts’ live sets, mostly that they were guitar onslaughts. That description wasn’t far off, because they shook the walls of the building and were a great end cap to a long, wild day.

We were exhausted by the time we got back to the garage apartment we were renting in Austin, but it was a fun day. The next would bring death by audio.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Austin 2019 recap – Day Two

We started off the second night of Levitation Austin 2019 at Stubb’s BBQ, where the Flaming Lips were playing the outdoor stage along with Holy Wave and Mercury Rev. We got there in time for the last two songs of Mercury Rev’s set, which sounded good. The night was cold, but not as cold as the first. Plus, there were more bodies around to block the wind when it would whip through the outdoor stage area.

The Flaming Lips, as always, put on a fun show to an enthusiastic crowd reveling in balloons, confetti, and Jell-O shots being shot from a slingshot wielded by a man on a surfboard that took him through the crowd. Lead singer Wayne Coyne was in a playful mood and frequently chatted with the crowd. The Flaming Lips are my wife’s new favorite band after seeing them live twice. “I always feel happy,” she said about seeing their shows. That’s one of the best reviews you can get.

We zipped back over to Barracuda to catch Death Valley Girls and Elephant Stone. We hadn’t seen Elephant Stone in a long while and were eager to hear some of their new material. I’d also heard good things about Death Valley Girls’ live sets. They were first and as fun as we’d hoped.

“Hell’s house band” – Death Valley Girls

We then walked over to Elysium to catch David J‘s intimate acoustic set. He was accompanied by a pianist and played tracks from his new solo record as well as a Love and Rockets track (“Shelf Life”). It was a mellow way to end the night. My wife rested her head on my shoulder and a bouncer told her, “You can’t fall asleep here.” like it was a dire warning against the dangers of the goth club’s vampires devouring her if she did.

The set might be the closest I ever get to seeing Bauhaus or Love and Rockets live, so it was nice to see and hear.

The next day would be a marathon, but it would be worth it.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Austin 2019 recap – Day One

It was our fifth year attending Levitation Austin since 2013. The festival had been moved to the autumn from the spring this year, so I was interested to see if the change on the calendar would affect the size of the crowds at some of the venues.

The four-day festival started for us at Barracuda – the club where we would end up spending most of the next four nights. Nearly all the bands we wanted to see were playing there over the course of the festival, and the first show there was sold out. First up were Hoover iii from Los Angeles, who played a good set of psychedelia mixed with some shoegaze elements.

Next were a band I was really keen on seeing – Minami Deutsch. A Japanese band that makes krautrock? I’m there. They put on my favorite set of the night. We later met lead singer / guitarist, Kyotaro Miula, outside Barracuda at a food truck where we all complained about the unseasonably cold weather (for Austin, at least) and I convinced him to try the chicken shawarma wrap.

Another California band, Jjuujjuu, was next. I hadn’t seen them since a trip to Arizona years ago when they were part of the Desert Daze tour. They still sound great with their heavy psychedelic tunes.

Coming all the way from Melbourne, Australia were Stonefield, who were good to hear after I arrived too late to catch them in Chicago with ORB and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard a few months ago.

Austin’s own Holy Wave soon followed, and they put on a good set of stoner psych to a happy hometown crowd.

The night ended with Kikagaku Moyo, the second Japanese band of the night. I stayed for the first half of their set and then had to call it quits due to being exhausted from a long day of travel and the cold weather at the outdoor stage that was almost to the point of chilling me to the bone. Regardless, what I heard was good. Anything involving sitar shredding is fine by me.

It was a cold, but good start to the festival. The next day would bring confetti, Hell’s house band, more sitar shredding, and warnings against falling asleep.

Keep your mind open.

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