Emotional Listening #53

Silverbeet - The Bats (Flying Nun, 1993)
I have previously covered albums by The Bats in a number of Emotional Listening posts: their 1987 debut LP, Daddy's Highway, the 1990 follow-up, The Law of Things, 1991's Fear of God and 1995's Couchmaster. Now, I shall complete my coverage of their 80s and 90s full-length material with 1993's Silverbeet, which, ended up better than I at first thought. It's really just more of the same: upbeat, jangly guitar pop with excellent vocal melodies and nice, chimey leads. Of the five albums mentioned here, it's probably my fourth favorite, but, it's still really great. "Courage" and "Sighting the Sound" are particularly awesome, but, "Straight on Home" takes the cake. If I were to list my favorite all-time bands, I'm not sure exactly where The Bats would rank, but, they'd be up there!
Top jams: "Courage," "Sighting the Sound," "Slow Alight," "Valley Floor," "Love Floats Two," "No Time for Your Kind," "Straight on Home," "Half Way to Nowhere"




Camper Van Beethoven - Camper Van Beethoven (Pitch-A-Tent, 1986)
This is the third Camper Van Beethoven record I've invested time in. It's definitely not as good as 1989's Key Lime Pie, but, while not as zany (thankfully), I probably like it about as much as their 1985 debut LP, Telephone Free Landslide Victory. Their aren't quite as many standout tracks on Camper Van Beethoven, but, it's pretty consistent overall. "Good Guys and Bad Guys" and "Joe Stalin's Cadillac" present a great one-two punch, and "Shut Us Down" is an awesome, surprisingly huge albeit short closer. "We Saw Jerry's Daughter" is straight-up jangle pop, and has become one of my favorite songs in recent memory. CVB are very hard to categorize as they're all over the place stylistically, so I always have a difficult time writing about them. Sorry about that.
Top jams: "Good Guys and Bad Guys," "Joe Stalin's Cadillac," "Five Sticks," "We Saw Jerry's Daughter," "Surprise Truck," "The History of Utah," "Still Wishing to Course," "Peace & Love," "Shut Us Down"




16 Lovers Lane - The Go-Betweens (Beggars Banquet, 1988)
I can't remember how I became interested in Australia's The Go-Betweens, but, I'm glad it happened. 16 Lovers Lane, their sixth album, is near perfect. Having been released in 1988, the production is obviously very 80s, however, replacing all the synths with strings and acoustic guitars. It's basically moody jangle pop with arrangements that truly flourish. The vocal melodies and chord progressions are as good as anything else going on at the time as far as I'm concerned, and the less futuristic instrumentation really lends itself to the quality and originality of the songs. "Love Goes On!," "Quiet Heart" and "Love is a Sign" is an outstanding way to start the record off. Sure, there are some songs that are better than others, but, there's something to love in every single one. "Streets of Your Town" is probably the most immediate jam here, outside of "Love Goes On!," but I have a hard time deciding if it's better than the wonderfully autumnal "Quiet Heart."
Top jams: "Love Goes On!," "Quiet Heart," "Love is a Sign," "The Devil's Eye," "Streets of Your Town," "Clouds," "I'm All Right"




Aja - Steely Dan (ABC/MCA, 1977)
I've given Steely Dan's crowning moment, Aja, sporadic listens throughout the past couple of years, and it's about time I blog about it. I don't understand why so many people feel embarrassed about liking this album, because it's pretty incredible. It's very technical, but smooth and sexy. Do you call this progressive R&B? I have no idea. There are so many obvious jams here, but, my favorite moments are the extended drum and piano breakdown in the title track (as well as the parts immediately leading up to it), and all of "Peg" (duh), which is ALMOST as good as "What a Fool Believes." Aja doesn't need anything else said about it, so I'm gonna stop there.
Top jams: "Black Cow," "Aja," "Deacon Blues," "Peg," "Home at Last"




Bandwagonesque - Teenage Fanclub (Creation/Geffen, 1991)
Okay, here we go, finally. Travis and my girlfriend Sara have been telling me to dive into this record for quite some time now, and it's about time I did that. I'm sure I'm in the minority when I say that, at this point, I prefer Teenage Fanclub's 1990 debut LP, A Catholic Education to this, but, Bandwagonesque is still an incredible record, and one that I think over more time will become an all-time favorite of mine. Bandwagonesque is more Big Star-inspired power pop than it is 90s slacker indie rock (I feel that A Catholic Education is the reverse of that), but, that's totally okay. Norman Blake's vocal melodies are absolutely killer ("The Concept," "What You Do to Me," "Alcoholiday"), but, so are Gerard Love's ("December," "Star Sign") and Raymond McGinley's ("I Don't Know"). Once again, I have a difficult time picking a favorite between "What You Do to Me," "I Don't Know" and "Alcoholiday" (right now, it's "Alcoholiday"). I even love the silly instrumental closer, "Is This Music?" Are they mocking 80s new wave and post-punk, or paying homage? I don't know!
Top jams: "The Concept," "December," "What You Do to Me," "I Don't Know," "Star Sign," "Alcoholiday," "Is This Music?"