[rts] twenty years ago, part 1
Dec. 16th, 2011 09:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jon_chaissonSo let's see...at this time twenty years ago, I was living sort-of offcampus with Lissa in an apartment on Beacon Street, just down the street from Emerson, back when its main campus was on the corner of Beacon and Berkeley. It was my junior hear in college, and things were...well, they were up and down for me. I was learning how to write a script, but I wasn't making any actual films. I was writing songs for the Flying Bohemians, but I wasn't really recording many of them. I was writing, but I was trying to revive the IWN for the umpteenth time. I was still going out with T., but our relationship was pretty strained by then. I was quite creative at the time, but I was pretty much told by my advisor that I probably should have gone to MA College of Art if I really wanted to make movies instead of just learn about theory. An emotional rollercoaster, to say the least.
But hey...that was twenty years ago, and I'm all over that. This is about the music.
It's kind of funny, listening to 1990-1991 again, because in Boston, alternative music was in the balance. WFNX was playing a great amount of Britpop and shoegaze, which I loved, but was of course tempering it with the emerging grunge sound from the opposite coast. With the Northeast being as collegiate as it is, it took awhile for the hard rock with dark lyrics to win over the bouncier, drug-infested dance rock. It really could have gone either way, if it wasn't for the prevailing mood of the Gen-X Slackers: ennui, frustration, and annoyance. Sure, it was nothing compared to nowadays, but at the time it was one of those times of assertion, much like the 50s, where the younger generation realized they could get away with it now.
So what have we learned, musically?
Pop Will Eat Itself, "X Y & Zee" from Cure for Sanity, rel. 1/22/91.
This album was released on my 20th birthday and got a decent amount of play on my headphones. There were quite a few songs out there at the time that had the "we're living the future and it's AWESOME" theme; this is just one of them. This version is kind of interesting in that it's a more club-friendly version, whereas the album version has a lot more rock to it.
Jesus Jones, "Real Real Real" from Doubt, rel. 1/29/91.
Sure, I could have posted the track everyone knows from this album ("Right Here, Right Now"), but I thought I'd share another song that shows that the band wasn't a one note band. They were unique in that they had elements of both analog and digital in their sound, and could rock and dance at the same time. They're still one of my favorite bands of the 90s.
Daniel Ash, "This Love" from Coming Down, rel. 2/5/91.
The Love & Rockets guitarist/vocalist finally releases a solo album that's a mix of covers and strange dance-pop (much like what L&R would record a few years later). This was a huge hit on WFNX at the time.
Material Issue, "Diane" from International Pop Overthrow, rel. 2/5/91.
Pity that these guys never quite made it, and that the lead singer eventually took his life, but at the time they were a great three-piece playing loud Replacements-esque alternapop that was so prevalent at the time--this is the sound that a lot of bands had at the time...a LOT of bands in Boston and elsewhere. One of my favorite Boston bands at the time, Pipes, sounded just like them.
Throwing Muses, "Not Too Soon" from The Real Ramona, rel. 2/18/91.
Being in Boston, I was always thrilled when local bands released new stuff, because I knew stations would play the hell out of it. I'd been a Muses fan for at least a few years before this album came out, and this and "Counting Backwards" are some of my favorites of theirs. I just recently found out that Kristin Hersh hid behind a guitar in this video because she was quite visibly pregnant at the time. And of course, the always cute Tanya Donelly is cute here. :p
Kitchens of Distinction, "Drive That Fast" from Strange Free World, rel. 2/19/91.
Oh, I loved this song, with its frenetic pace and killer bassline, not to mention its reverb-drenched sound that reminded me of all my favorite 4AD bands.
The Godfathers, "Unreal World" from Unreal World, rel. 3/12/91.
Leave it to the Godfathers to release a contrarian album that says "We're living in the future and WE'RE SCREWED", but it was well worth it. It was their last US-released album (they released I belive 3 more UK-only albums that are a bitch to find), but it's a great one, which includes a decent cover of "How Does It Feel" (originally by The Creation, and later covered by shoegazers Ride).
Chapterhouse, "Pearl" from Whirlpool, rel. April 1991.
This is the track that got me into the whole shoegaze/Britpop scene. It's a simple song, but it's a gorgeous-sounding one. Nice use of the then-prevalent "When the Levee Breaks" drum sample, but I think it works great here. I keep forgetting that Ashley Bates from this band ended up in Tunng many years later.
Massive Attack, "Unfinished Sympathy" from Blue Lines, rel. 4/8/91.
I'm not even going to say anything here. Just watch the video and be amazed.
The Crash Test Dummies, "Superman's Song" from The Ghosts That Haunt Me, rel. 4/9/91.
A few years before the big hit "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm", this Canadian band came out with a beautifully written ode to the passing of the Man of Steel.
Fishbone, "Sunless Saturday" from The Reality of My Surroundings, rel. 4/23/91.
By far one of Fishbone's strongest and fiercest songs, this Spike Lee-directed video only strengthens just how kick-ass this song is.
Inspiral Carpets, "Caravan" from The Beast Inside, rel. 5/7/91.
(Original video here)
Another Britpop/Manchester band I got into at the time. This is the opening track from their second album, which for some reason doesn't get nearly as much love as their others, but it's my personal favorite.
EMF, "Children" from Schubert Dip, rel. 5/14/1991.
Sure, everyone knows "Unbeleiveable" from the same album, but the whole album is a fun dancy romp, and it's worth having in your collection.
Smashing Pumpkins, "Rhinoceros" from Gish, rel. 5/28/91.
I've never been the biggest Pumpkins fan, but I've always liked this song. This album is interesting in that it's a hell of a lot trippier than their later albums. Not to mention that Billy has a full head of hair here. :p
Big Audio Dynamite II, "Innocent Child" from The Globe, rel. 6/16/91.
A surprisingly mellow track from Mick Jones, but a great track. Interesting use of Ultravox's "Vienna" and Phil Collins' "In the Air Tonight" as the sampled beats. Other trivia: the drummer in this version of the band used to be in Sigue Sigue Sputnik, which Mick suggested as a band to ex-Generation X guitarist Tony James...who Mick would later jam with to form Carbon Silicon. Small weird world, that.
Candyflip, "Strawberry Fields Forever" from Madstock..., rel. 6/25/91.
I'll leave you hear with a goofy one-hit wonder by one of the many Britpop wannabe bands out there, doing a nifty cover of a Beatles tune featuring heavy use of the famous James Brown "Funky Drummer" sample.
More tomorrow!
But hey...that was twenty years ago, and I'm all over that. This is about the music.
It's kind of funny, listening to 1990-1991 again, because in Boston, alternative music was in the balance. WFNX was playing a great amount of Britpop and shoegaze, which I loved, but was of course tempering it with the emerging grunge sound from the opposite coast. With the Northeast being as collegiate as it is, it took awhile for the hard rock with dark lyrics to win over the bouncier, drug-infested dance rock. It really could have gone either way, if it wasn't for the prevailing mood of the Gen-X Slackers: ennui, frustration, and annoyance. Sure, it was nothing compared to nowadays, but at the time it was one of those times of assertion, much like the 50s, where the younger generation realized they could get away with it now.
So what have we learned, musically?
Pop Will Eat Itself, "X Y & Zee" from Cure for Sanity, rel. 1/22/91.
This album was released on my 20th birthday and got a decent amount of play on my headphones. There were quite a few songs out there at the time that had the "we're living the future and it's AWESOME" theme; this is just one of them. This version is kind of interesting in that it's a more club-friendly version, whereas the album version has a lot more rock to it.
Jesus Jones, "Real Real Real" from Doubt, rel. 1/29/91.
Sure, I could have posted the track everyone knows from this album ("Right Here, Right Now"), but I thought I'd share another song that shows that the band wasn't a one note band. They were unique in that they had elements of both analog and digital in their sound, and could rock and dance at the same time. They're still one of my favorite bands of the 90s.
Daniel Ash, "This Love" from Coming Down, rel. 2/5/91.
The Love & Rockets guitarist/vocalist finally releases a solo album that's a mix of covers and strange dance-pop (much like what L&R would record a few years later). This was a huge hit on WFNX at the time.
Material Issue, "Diane" from International Pop Overthrow, rel. 2/5/91.
Pity that these guys never quite made it, and that the lead singer eventually took his life, but at the time they were a great three-piece playing loud Replacements-esque alternapop that was so prevalent at the time--this is the sound that a lot of bands had at the time...a LOT of bands in Boston and elsewhere. One of my favorite Boston bands at the time, Pipes, sounded just like them.
Throwing Muses, "Not Too Soon" from The Real Ramona, rel. 2/18/91.
Being in Boston, I was always thrilled when local bands released new stuff, because I knew stations would play the hell out of it. I'd been a Muses fan for at least a few years before this album came out, and this and "Counting Backwards" are some of my favorites of theirs. I just recently found out that Kristin Hersh hid behind a guitar in this video because she was quite visibly pregnant at the time. And of course, the always cute Tanya Donelly is cute here. :p
Kitchens of Distinction, "Drive That Fast" from Strange Free World, rel. 2/19/91.
Oh, I loved this song, with its frenetic pace and killer bassline, not to mention its reverb-drenched sound that reminded me of all my favorite 4AD bands.
The Godfathers, "Unreal World" from Unreal World, rel. 3/12/91.
Leave it to the Godfathers to release a contrarian album that says "We're living in the future and WE'RE SCREWED", but it was well worth it. It was their last US-released album (they released I belive 3 more UK-only albums that are a bitch to find), but it's a great one, which includes a decent cover of "How Does It Feel" (originally by The Creation, and later covered by shoegazers Ride).
Chapterhouse, "Pearl" from Whirlpool, rel. April 1991.
This is the track that got me into the whole shoegaze/Britpop scene. It's a simple song, but it's a gorgeous-sounding one. Nice use of the then-prevalent "When the Levee Breaks" drum sample, but I think it works great here. I keep forgetting that Ashley Bates from this band ended up in Tunng many years later.
Massive Attack, "Unfinished Sympathy" from Blue Lines, rel. 4/8/91.
I'm not even going to say anything here. Just watch the video and be amazed.
The Crash Test Dummies, "Superman's Song" from The Ghosts That Haunt Me, rel. 4/9/91.
A few years before the big hit "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm", this Canadian band came out with a beautifully written ode to the passing of the Man of Steel.
Fishbone, "Sunless Saturday" from The Reality of My Surroundings, rel. 4/23/91.
By far one of Fishbone's strongest and fiercest songs, this Spike Lee-directed video only strengthens just how kick-ass this song is.
Inspiral Carpets, "Caravan" from The Beast Inside, rel. 5/7/91.
(Original video here)
Another Britpop/Manchester band I got into at the time. This is the opening track from their second album, which for some reason doesn't get nearly as much love as their others, but it's my personal favorite.
EMF, "Children" from Schubert Dip, rel. 5/14/1991.
Sure, everyone knows "Unbeleiveable" from the same album, but the whole album is a fun dancy romp, and it's worth having in your collection.
Smashing Pumpkins, "Rhinoceros" from Gish, rel. 5/28/91.
I've never been the biggest Pumpkins fan, but I've always liked this song. This album is interesting in that it's a hell of a lot trippier than their later albums. Not to mention that Billy has a full head of hair here. :p
Big Audio Dynamite II, "Innocent Child" from The Globe, rel. 6/16/91.
A surprisingly mellow track from Mick Jones, but a great track. Interesting use of Ultravox's "Vienna" and Phil Collins' "In the Air Tonight" as the sampled beats. Other trivia: the drummer in this version of the band used to be in Sigue Sigue Sputnik, which Mick suggested as a band to ex-Generation X guitarist Tony James...who Mick would later jam with to form Carbon Silicon. Small weird world, that.
Candyflip, "Strawberry Fields Forever" from Madstock..., rel. 6/25/91.
I'll leave you hear with a goofy one-hit wonder by one of the many Britpop wannabe bands out there, doing a nifty cover of a Beatles tune featuring heavy use of the famous James Brown "Funky Drummer" sample.
More tomorrow!
