Emotional Listening #15

Mean Time - The Barracudas (Closer, 1983)
The Barracudas' sophomore LP, Mean Time, is a nice, random one-album discovery thanks to a blog I follow (Take the Pills, to be specific). At first, Mean Time just seemed like a decent power pop record with those chorus-y, jangly 80s guitars I love. Turns out, the melodies are strong as hell, and the musicianship is top notch. There's a sort of tough attitude to the vocals that reminds me of The Replacements, but the music here is just pure guitar pop bliss. "Shades of Today" and "Middle Class Blues" are excellent songs, and "Grammar of Misery" is an awesomely hilarious title.
Top jams: "Grammar of Misery," "Bad News," "I Ain't No Miracle Worker," "Shades of Today," "Middle Class Blues," "You've Come a Long Way," "When I'm Gone"

The Idiot - Iggy Pop (RCA, 1977)
I've been meaning to check out The Idiot, Iggy Pop's solo debut, ever since I got into and read about the writing and recording process that went into David Bowie's Low (both albums were written and recorded at virtually the same time). In case you didn't know, Bowie played a huge role in the creation of The Idiot, and it is completely obvious on first listen. While this particular record pales in comparison to the greatness of Low, it is a nice companion piece with its own merits. The music is gloomy and weirdly futuristic, if not almost post-apocalyptic sounding. There are some weak points for sure, and Iggy's voice isn't really exciting or anything to write home about, but there are some stellar moments as well. "Sister Midnight" is the perfect opener and "China Girl" would have fit perfectly on Low or Bowie's second brilliant Berlin album, Heroes. I can't decide which bookend of The Idiot is better, as the epic closer, "Mass Production," (which begins with an appropriately cheesy synth part that also is unsettling in the best way) is just as brilliant as "Sister Midnight," because of its repetition as opposed to in spite of it.
Top jams: "Sister Midnight," "Nightclubbing," "Baby," "China Girl," "Tiny Girls," "Mass Production"


Holiday - The Magnetic Fields (Merge, 1994)
Bravender has unassumingly been pushing Holiday on me for the past few years by including a song from it on almost every mix CD he's made for me. I've finally caved and over the past couple of months, it has pretty much been my favorite album to listen to, quickly becoming musical comfort food. To be completely honest, I'm not really interested in anything else Stephin Merritt has released as The Magnetic Fields, despite the fact that another close friend of mine (Brian LaBenne) as been trying to convince me to listen to 69 Love Songs for a few years. It being a 3xLP featuring, you guessed it, 69 songs, I'm just not up for the challenge. But, I am completely content with this one 14-song LP that is just about perfect. First and foremost, the synths on Holiday sound fantastic, and just about every melody line performed by one is memorable. Merritt's lyrics are clever and often times funny, and his deep, flawed voice sounds great singing all these wonderful, utterly genius melodies. It's weird that I would say that Holiday seems like it sounded dated even back in the mid-90s, considering that it is a predominantly synthesizer album, but this is just a neat little conundrum that adds to its enjoyable aura. If you're like me and have minimal knowledge of and experience with The Magnetic Fields, and are interested in exploring more, then it is crucial that you check Holiday out. Absolutely any of the songs listed below would be a great place to start.
Top jams: "Desert Island," "Deep Sea Diving Suit," "Strange Powers," "Torn Green Velvet Eyes," "The Flowers She Sent and the Flowers She Said She Sent," "The Trouble I've Been Looking For," "Sugar World," "All You Ever Do is Walk Away," "Take Ecstasy With Me"


Watusi - The Wedding Present (Island, 1994)
I decided to check out The Wedding Present thanks to another random post from Take the Pills. Watusi is their fourth LP, and the only one to be released on major label Island. I was instantly won over thanks to the fantastic opening one-two-three punch of "So Long, Baby," "Click Click," and "Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah." These three tracks set the tone for the album with their noisy guitar tones, poppy rhythms and catchy melodies. The swirling, jangly guitars on "Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah" are especially appealing. Beyond that, "Spangle" is a really nice ballad (though, Jimmy Eat World's cover of it is actually superior), and "Swimming Pools, Movie Stars" is probably the strongest jam here, showcasing the album's best chorus. I can definitely understand if one is of the opinion that David Gedge's vocals are a bit obnoxious (in the same way that Andy Partridge's are in XTC), but the melodies are memorable enough to help me look past that. Overall, Watusi is an excellent mid-90s major label indie rock album that will stick with me for quite some time.
Top jams: "So Long, Baby," "Click Click," "Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah," "Spangle," "It's a Gas," "Swimming Pools, Movie Stars," "Big Rat," "Catwoman"