Track Listing 1. Tad - Jinx 2. Six Finger Satellite - Weapon 3. Rein Sanction - Creel 4. Beat Happening - Revolution Come and Gone 5. Thw Walkabouts - Maggie's Farm 6. Truly - Heart and Lungs 7. Mudhoney - The Money Will Roll Right In 8. Supersuckers - Caliente 9. Reverend Horton Heat - Marijuana 10. The Dwarves - Fuck Em All 11. Bullet Lavolta - Rails 12. Green Magnet School - Throb 13. Hole - Dicknail 14. Steven Jesse Bernstein - No No Man Pt. 2 15. Seaweed - Baggage 16. The Monkeywrench - Call My Body Home 17. Afghan Whigs - Miles Iz Ded 18. Love Battery - Foot 19. Codeine - Cracked in Two 20. Mark Lanegan - Woe 21. Earth - A Bureaucratic Desire for Revenge, Pt. 1
Buffalo Tom proved that their palate was a lot broader and their reach a lot farther than anyone might have expected on Let Me Come Over, and while the following year's Big Red Letter Day didn't show the same sort of growth, it also proved the band hadn't forgotten any of their tricks along the way. Big Red Letter Day sounds a bit poppier than it's immediate predecessor, though that seems largely a function of the production by the Robb Brothers, which features a bit more body and a significant amount more gloss than the leaner, cleaner tone of Let Me Come Over, and to these ears the strong, infectious melodies of the songs (and the tight ensemble playing by the group) hold up well to such treatment. And while the palpable angst of Let Me Come Over was obviously sincere but a wee bit samey by the end of that album, Big Red Letter Day cuts back on the rueful self-examination just a bit, and the hopefulness of "Dry Land" and "Anything That Way" was a welcome touch from a band that often had a hard time embracing their happiness. Unlike their last two albums, Big Red Letter Day didn't display much in the way of unexpected new sides to Buffalo Tom -- it just found them doing what they do very well indeed, and anyone who loves the band will enjoy this record. Souce: [AMG]
Buffalo Tom - I'm Allowed
Track Listing 1. Soda Jerk 2. I'm Allowed 3. Tree House 4. Would Not Be Denied 5. Latest Monkey 6. My Responsibility 7. Dry Land 8. Torch Singer 9. Late at Night 10. Suppose 11. Anything That Way
J Mascis fired longtime drummer Murph before the recording of Without a Sound, which came as a surprise to Murph. Naturally, the change in personnel hasn't changed Dinosaur Jr.'s sound much; the only difference between Without a Sound and Where You Been is a more pronounced country leaning (particularly on the album's high point, the rollicking "I Don't Think So") and shorter, more concise performances. What hasn't changed are the overpowering fuzz tones of Mascis' guitar, which tend to hide his more expressive vocals; it also makes digging out the gems on this album a little more difficult than necessary. Source: [AMG]
Dinosaur Jr. - Feel The Pain
Track Listing 1. Feel the Pain 2. I Don't Think So 3. Yeah Right 4. Outta Hand 5. Grab It 6. Even You 7. Mind Glow 8. Get Out of This 9. On the Brink 10. Seemed Like the Thing to Do 11. Over Your Shoulder
Sugar's Beaster is actually outtakes from their previous dynamite album, Copper Blue. It comes off as some kind of deranged, ugly sister of that sparking album, a yin to Copper's yang, a violent, angry, and seething wall of aggression with (this time) little concession to Bob Mould's pop prowess. Perhaps the most densely recorded, heavy trip the man has produced since Hüsker Dü's Metal Circus in 1983, Beaster is what you might get if Mould had been in the mood to construct a full album of songs like "Slick"'s insanity instead of "Helpless" and "Changes"'s monster hooks. Not that it doesn't still make for great listening once one gets used to the change in focus. "Feeling Better" could have made Copper, with its hooky base (more so than the others here), and the best song, "Titled," is ferocious, fast, furious, and a total knockout, the most aurally exciting post-Hüsker Dü track yet. Again, David Barbe and Malcolm Travis are such a superior rhythm section to Grant Hart and Greg Norton, Sugar is a better update rather than nostalgic reinvention, and bits of Zen Arcade and Black Sheets of Rain aside, Mould has never come off so twisted and out of his gourd. "Come Around"'s "vocals" are all but demonic, and "Judas Cradle" matches metal pounding with MBV/Sonic Youth brutal tones slashing out of the guitars, which gives way to "JC Auto"'s meld of "The Act We Act"-style pounding into a thundering, insane, heavy chorus. When Bob starts seething "I'm your Jesus Christ, I know, I know, I know," you wonder what exactly inspired these straitjacket fits! Man, that's something. Now, there is one major flaw: all the songs need an editor, as with excessive length they approach overkill from too much repetition. Never mind. This is a pretty killer experience more than a record. Whereas Copper Blue made you want to sing along, Beaster makes you hide under the bed. Can't say they didn't warn you; Beaster is well-titled. Source: [AMG]
Sugar - Tilted
Track Listing 1. Come Around 2. Tilted 3. Judas Cradle 4. JC Auto 5. Feeling Better 6. Walking Away
Part of the reason the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion is so distasteful to the legions of blues purists is that Spencer cherishes not the mythology of the blues or the songcraft, but the groove, the actual sound of classic blues records. He could care less about songwriting or technique; what's important is the feel and the grit of the performance, whether it's on-stage or on record. Often, that means that the Blues Explosion's records are better when they're playing than they are in memory, but there's no question that ever since Extra Width, the New York trio was exceptionally shrewd in crafting albums that pack real sonic force. They also were sharp enough to subtly explore new territory with each album, gradually moving from the Stonesy blooze of Extra Width through the funky Orange and gutbucket Now I Got Worry to Acme, where pure sound matters more than ever. Like the Stones, the Blues Explosion never abandon their signature sound, even when they're branching into new territory. No matter how many electronic bleeps, hip-hop loops, or cut-and-paste arrangements rear their heads on Acme, or how many producers or remixers are employed (including Calvin Johnson, Steve Albini, Suzanne Dyer, Alec Empire, Jim Dickinson, and the Automator), the primal, two-guitar racket remains at the center of the Blues Explosion's sound. But the electronica and hip-hop flourishes aren't folly, either -- they confirm Spencer's ultimate goal of sound over structure, force over sense. And while there are only a handful of songs to latch onto -- the slow, sexy "Magical Colors," the gonzoid rant "Talk About the Blues," the Jill Cunniff duet "Blue Green Olga" -- the dynamic explosions of sounds guarantee that Acme is a captivating listen, at least the first time through. While frequently exciting, the sonic experimentations sound cerebral instead of primal. Source: [AMG]
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - High Gear/Talk About The Blues
Track Listing 1. Calvin 2. Magical Colors (31 Flavors) 3. Do You Wanna Get Heavy? 4. High Gear 5. Talk About the Blues 6. I Wanna Make It All Right 7. Lovin' Machine 8. Bernie 9. Blue Green Olga 10. Give Me a Chance 11. Desperate 12. Torture 13. Attack
