1 comments about In God We Trust, Inc..

1. jello biafra manages to match the incredible pace of the music with his words- so fast, in fact that your eyes can't read fast enough even when you are provided with the lyrics.

2 comments about Clincher.

1. I just couldn't allow that one bad review to stand. This is a solid release and definitely is no "demise" of the band. Yes, "Jackson" was a great release, but I thoroughly enjoy the rest from their Touch & Go years. Besides, the track 'Dean Martin' has one of the most pleasing, yet still loud, riffs you'll ever hear. Very good, albeit short release.



2. This EP began the decline of Tar. Once the band left Amphetamine Reptile for Touch & Go, it seemed like they lost focus. Gone was the stunning interplay of heavy, repetitive guitars and inventive drumming. Instead, the songs became much more straight-ahead and conventional. Sort of a lighter, more poppish Tar. Perhaps they decided to try to broaden their appeal in the wake of the commercialization of grunge.

   I recommend seeking out Tar's earlier stuff, especially JACKSON. Clincher just isn't that great, except for the cool pix of the aluminum-clad guitars on the cover.

1 comments about Goddess on a Hiway Pt. 2.

1. Mercury Rev are well known for their atmospheric sound, derived from a background in film soundtrack composition and production (for Lewis Klahr, among others). Features the b-sides "I Dreamt" (as read by Robert Creeley--prev. unreleased) and "Very Sleepy Rivers" (culled from their impressive debut album _Yerself Is Steam_). The title track is the more traditional "single" from their dream epic album _Deserter's Songs_. Great stuff.

No comments about Nothing Else Matters.

5 comments about Transient Random-Noise Bursts with Announcements.

1. THIS is the album I used to play before going out at night. Because of rock, noise, pop, and bossa. The neighbours wanted to kill me everytime "Our triniton blast" ended. And I'd wait all night until "Jenny Ondioline" fades out.
   I think this is the one which defines best their style. Absolutely classic.



2. This was Stereolab at its peak. A synthesis of sexy 60's pop culture noise, Neu-esque drone rock, and Jean Jacques Perrey's space age pop, with a 90's indie rock bend. This cd was my intro to stereolab in 1993 and it is their most memorable and rewarding in the end.
   "Tone Burst" is a perfect example of a kind of cheeky 60's french pop thing with its droney vintage analog bleeps and Laetitia Sadier's sexy vocals gliding over the background in a manner that even touches upon "The Gift" by the VU. " Pack Yr Romantic mind" has that bossa thing going on for the first time in Stereolab's sound. "Im going out of my way" is an upbeat 60's rave up that ends with this cool experimental analog noise. "Jenny ondioline" is like a homage to NEU! clocking around 17 minutes of Sonic Youth-y, shoegazer-ish drone rock. If you can find it, there is a limited edition single for Jenny Ondioline that has a 3:51 edit of Jenny O and 3 rockin B-sides, most notably "French Disko", which later appeared in another version on Switched on Vol 2 on Drag City Records.
   Any way you look at it this period of Sterolab was my favorite, and this cd is a great introduction to Sterolab's genius. It may even be the best, most consistent snapshot we'll ever see from Stereolab.



3. I just feel a fondness and simplicity with sound and ideology that seems more integrated on this album. "To compose, Decompose, and recompose...de ma paresse". PAUSE is an incredibly blissful indulgence in sound and lyricism, haunting the texture of historic knowledge with emotion (just my take). Warm analogue music, ironically categorized as electronica/avant garde. If you don't know Stereolab, you are missing out!



4. If Stereolab made videogames instead of music, this would be Mario 2. It's the oddball, the one that doesn't fit right in snugly with the others (even in its own time frame). But it's up there with the best of them.
   Following Peng's humble melodies, this is the only Stereolab album that actually sounds like the nineties. As with Peng, the music is heavily distorted (grainier, but mixed more professionally), but on this album, even the vocals get distorted and we even get to hear the two of them raise their voices from time to time, if only seldom. Much of this album focuses on white noise that builds up as songs continue on, rather than have a crescendo (some songs have great crescendos too, though). Jenny Ondioline (part of which comes from the "Exploding Head Movie" b-side) is an 18 minute track comprised of likely no more than five chords--it is the buildup of white noise that keeps this song interesting, and it really is a great song.
   If you're a Stereolab fan who hasn't yet heard this album, but has heard everything else, you are bound to be shocked. It's loud, it's noisy, it's so...nineties. Songs like "Golden Ball" and "Our Trinitone Blast" will dispel your idea of Stereolab being constantly boppy and overtly happy. There are some really dark tracks on this album! The last track, "Lock-Groove Lullaby" is probably the darkest on the album.
   I love Stereolab and I love this album. It's not as good as Mars Audiac Quintet, but what is? Every single song on this is great music to just space out to and contemplate the day. It's weird, it's amusing, it's frightening, and it's the ballsiest move by this groop in the first half of their career. Give it a spin. This one's worth checking out, Stereolab fan or not.



5. but still good in its own right. this song has a few very good songs on it, like crest, pack yr romantic mind, our trinitone blast, and the last song (that great melody comes up at the end of the 8th track as well and is a breath of fresh air). but mostly it represents an aspect of stereolab i dont like, which also comes up in their "space age bachelor pad music" album. while some people call this "decadence", i think thats a rather slick synonym for "repetitive". this cd is definitely not one you can listen to closely and enjoy from beginning to end. i mean, one song is almost 20 minutes long and is basically 1 chord throughout. no changes for 20 minutes. dont get me wrong, i am a huge stereolab fan and have seen them live (theyre great live, but mary hansen is dead now). one of the great things about later stereolab is how the songs daringly change to something you would have never imagined possible at the onset of the song, like jazz in a way. i really tried to love this album since i paid for it new, but i cant like it nearly as much as mars audiac quintet or dots and loops, both of which i have never paid for. those are the essential 'lab albums, with emperor tomato ketchup trailing closely behind.

No comments about The Official Ironmen Rally Song [Maxi Single].

2 comments about Year After Year.

1. Now that the dust has settled on the socio-musical phenomenon that was "grunge", the true innovators of rock music from the early '90s can finally claim their place. Idaho's debut album was a tour de force of concise songwriting, inspired vocal performance and ear-tingling guitar noise. Jeff Martin's vocals ranged from narcoleptic drones to impassioned howls, supported by a wall of overdriven guitar fuzz and feedback that has long since served as a blueprint for a multitude of welterweight rock pretenders. The album contains a generous amount of nihilism that borders on depression, and this alone will alienate many listeners. However, those that have the desire to venture beyond Idaho's gloomy facade will find a wealth of invigorating sonic delights.



2. it's a shame this is the record of idaho's that's out of print because it is the best. idaho sound genuinely, seriously bummed on this disc but what keeps it from being a misery-fest are the many moments when the songs just erupt in stunning howling melody ('here to go' is catharticly beautiful, really spine tingling). the guitars ring forever and the drums just drive ahead with druggy insistence while jeff martin croons like he's about to slide off his stool or bellows in abandon.

   lots of bands do the sadcore thing but this is the real deal! it's bracing and beautiful despite the bleakness, an incredible record.

No comments about Tomorrow Will Be Too Long: The Best of the Monocrome Set.

No comments about A Shot and a Beer.

No comments about Mama.