The Batlord

CLEVELAND ROCKS!!!: Proto-Punk and Art Rock In the Land of Drew Carey - Part VII

Tin Huey: Breakfast with the Hueys EP

To wash the taste of failure (i.e. Dead Boys) out of my mouth I'm now trying the next Tin Huey EP. Why do I keep getting the urge to listen to a band that I have no reason to think that I like? I don't know, but here goes...




Well, for starters, this is actually a single. I don't know who, but somebody lied to me. Ah well. At times this sounds as much like jazz as it does rock. And it always sounds at least somewhat goofy. I really don't know how to describe this band in an intelligent way since I know fuck all about jazz and even less about musical composition. So, I'm sort of stuck at goofy, weird, jazzy, and occasionally even rockish. This doesn't sound nearly as random or incoherent as the debut EP, but it's certainly not particularly straightforward. But the songs do actually sound like songs this time around.

The first song, "Robert Takes The Road To Lieber Nawash" (yeah, me neither) starts off with lounge jazz and bizarre, stream-of-consciousness lyrics, until it descends into chaos with what I can only describe as game show music. Eventually it builds to a crescendo of drums, guitar, and for some reason, horns all blasting away at you as if to say, "HEY! ISN'T THIS ****ING WEIRD, YOU DUMB ****?!?!?!" Yes. Yes it is.

"Squirm You Worm" almost sounds like an actual rock song. But, with you know, jazzy bits. It's almost a straightforward rocker kinda sorta. It has a simple driving rhythm courtesy of guitar and saxophone (I think) and a vocal performance that has some sort of proto-rap quality to it at times that is actually rather entertaining. I think that I...I actually like this song. *gasp*

I don't know how much I like this single, but I definitely like it a hell of a lot better than the debut. I might actually check out their debut album at some point. Maybe.

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The Batlord

The Batlord Learns to Like Country...Maybe: Part I

I've been meaning to give country an honest chance ever since I realized that I liked Johnny Cash. But I'm not sure that I'm ready for Patsy Cline just yet. By the way, who the fuck is Patsy Cline? Anyway, so I'm gonna try some alternative country first.

Uncle Tupelo: No Depression

I remember listening to this once or twice at some point a few years ago and not being repulsed by it, so I figure it's about as good a place to start as any. Apparently it's country by way of punk rock and highly thought of. Unfortunately this is another case of not being able to find a lot of the songs on Youtube, so yeah, fuck people who don't upload the whole album. You're making my life more difficult.




Reminds me of The Replacements if their country influences were more explicit. The punk influence is obvious, but a lot of the time it sounds more like power pop to me. When the songs veer toward the heavier end of the spectrum the riffs are big and hard and catchy as hell and wouldn't be out of place on any FM radio rock station, though Uncle Tupelo is always ready to throw in some charming cow-punk into the mix to bring back the country fun. Kick fucking ass. When they go for a country ballad it's heartfelt and the singer's voice makes you feel comfortable as country should. Thankfully his singing voice is recognizably Southern but without that cheesy twang that makes me wanna gag. Slow or fast the songs never feels folky though. They feel more like something you would hear in a greasy bar while bikers are either smashing beer bottles over each others' heads or shedding a sneaky tear.

If the rest of the stuff I check out is as good as this then I might just be well on my way to digging country. Highly recommended.

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The Batlord

The Batlord Learns to Like Country...Maybe: Part II

Neko Case and Her Boyfriends: The Virginian

Continuing on, I likes me a female singer. They make me happy and disarm me in a way that most male singers just can't, which sounds just about perfect for country. I tried to remember the name of some chick I'd heard of a while before, so here I am about to check out Neko Case. Cross your fingers...




That's more what I think of when I think of when I think of country. It's got an bags of energy and fun that could put Sylvia Plath in a good mood. Neko Case's voice might be annoying to some, but it's just as charming as a june bug with a fiddle. I don't know what that means, but I wanted to say something nonsensical that sounded Earthy. I don't know enough about old school country to compare this to that, but it has a feel to it that reminds me of what little I know of stuff like that. Just with a modern take that lets you know that Neko Case is aware of punk rock and alternative, though it never sounds like cow punk. The music just has a pep to its step that I don't imagine it would have before 1976. I imagine that this wouldn't be out of place at either a club full of college kids or a hoedown.

Of course it's not all fun and games. This is a country album after all. It's not a country album if there aren't ballads about how your man/woman done you wrong, and this album is no different. Neko Case's voice can be fun and bouncy one moment, but the next it sounds like the most heartbreaking jukebox-in-a-middle-of-nowhere-hillbilly-diner country singer.

There is something that sounds like irony throughout the album though. She definitely loves country, but I can't be sure that she's taking the whole thing entirely seriously. Maybe I'm wrong though. Either way, Neko Case is as addictive as heroin, so if you have any interest in country then I'd highly recommend this.

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The Batlord

The Batlord Learns to Like Country...Maybe: Part III

Townes Van Zandt: Our Mother the Mountain

An actual old school country album for once. Yesterday a friend on another forum suggested the title track to this album and I listened to it about five times in a row. I even looked up the lyrics to follow along. I never do that. So, I'm kinda stoked to listen to this...




I'm not used to this kind of minimalist country so it's taking a little work to get into. It's pretty much just him and his guitar. There are accompanying instruments at times but the guitar is the center of the attention. His voice is low though not as low as Johnny Cash and is perfect for imparting despair and world weariness. But like I said, it takes a bit of getting used to and I had to actually go look up the lyrics and read them while listening to really reveal the songs' true scope, which is often quite engrossing and atmospheric. Some of this is some truly dark stuff. You could seriously slit your wrists to songs like "Our Mother the Mountain" or "St. John the Gambler". I wouldn't normally go through this much effort to read lyrics like this, but even just hearing bits and pieces of them got me interested. My favorites so far are the dark, surreal stories that I imagine are probably metaphors for his rampant drug use (apparently he was known to shoot up heroine in front of his children, and apparently he even injected the odd jack and coke into his veins) and death.

Given time, I might very well consider this brilliant, but I've got a ways to go before music like this comes naturally to me. This album doesn't really have any rock or pop influences to make it go down easy. It's pretty pure folk country and if you aren't making an emotional connection to the music then you might as well go listen to something else. Even so, I dig it far more than I probably would a lot of his contemporaries in the sixties/seventies.

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Trollheart

If you dig Townes then try checking out Steve Earle, whom Townes taught all he knew. Steve also did a tribute album to his mentor, called, er, "Townes"...

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

The Batlord

Already done.

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The Batlord

The Batlord Learns to Like Country...Maybe: Part IV

Emmylou Harris: Pieces of the Sky

Alright, I'm trying another actual old school country album. Here's hoping...




Oh god. I tried, but I'm only human. This is about as dull and cheesy a country album as I was hoping to avoid. I tried to listen to the whole thing, but I had to give up after like fifteen minutes to go clean the vomit from my shirt. Now, I think I'm gonna go smash my testicles with a hammer to make myself feel better.

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Plankton

May I suggest trying some Dwight Yoakam? Particularly, his "This Time" album.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Ti...t_Yoakam_album)

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See location...

Trollheart

For me it'd be "Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc"...
Point of order, Mister Chairman: what Steve Earle have you listened to? Just wondering....

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

The Batlord

Just Copperhead Road. I wasn't exactly overwhelmed. At least after the first half.

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