The Feelies – Crazy Rhythms (1980)

This week’s album was an interesting discovery for myself considering how I actually stumble on this fine little nugget of an album. I was watching Jonathan Demme’s 1986 film Something Wild a while back when I noticed this offbeat little band playing in the background of a scene between Jeff Daniels and Melanie Griffith. So just for a lark I looked the band up and what a surprise, they weren’t half bad. In fact their debut album was and still is lauded as one of the best albums of 1980 and why not? In an era dominated by new wave and other relatively gimmicky sub-genres it’s amazing to see there were bands that just inhabited their own little world. The Feelies are often considered to be “Post-Punk” but if you ask me this is a definite precursor to modern indie guitar rock.

When I first listened to “The Boy with the Perpetual Nervousness” I was amazed that this was a track that was recorded over 30 years ago. Someone could of told me this was from 2011 and I would of believed them. The production, supported by a wall of lush guitars and energetic rhythms creates an impenetrable wall of music that never fails to impress. Really The Feelies don’t write songs as much as they write grooves that just build and build, sucking you further in. Though what really adds that extra “kick” is the frenetic percussion parts. In my opinion they couldn’t of picked a better title for the album than “Crazy Rhythms”.

My interest in The Feelies is stilly fairly new so I won’t pretend to know anything about this band other than what I’ve heard on this record. Though if you’re a fan of jangley guitar rock and beats to keep your head bobbin’ then check out Crazy Rhythms.

Favorite Tracks: “Crazy Rhythms”, “Fa Ce-La”, “Loveless Love”

The Specials – The Specials (1979)

It seems that in most of rock’s more notable subgenres you’re always bound to find at least one or two albums that stand out as transcendent of their genre, and are really accessible to anyone.  The Specials’ 1979 debut strikes me as one of those albums considering I’m not really a fan of ska at all, but the songs on this album are just so good that it doesn’t matter at all.

I guess the reason I’ve always been fairly indifferent to ska is that it just seems to me that in general the genre is just punk with some horns and reggae thrown in, and it usually lacks punk’s intensity or grittiness.  Well on The Specials, the music obviously has that prominent reggae element to it, but it has an undeniable grittiness that you rarely find in later ska revival groups.  Much of it has to do with the way The Specials and producer Elvis Costello delve into a no-nonsense sound, but also the way the songs deal with the racial and political tensions of late-70’s Britain.

Still, despite the fact that the album does have elements of punk’s grittiness, there are still plenty of songs like “Nite Klub” and “Monkey Man” that are just a lot of fun, and embody the easy skankin’, pork-pie hat wearin’  imagery that comes to mind when you think of ska.  I think it’s that combination of militant disaffection as well as the attention to pop songcraft that makes an album like The Specials feel so potent, even when it’s part of a genre that might seem a little too breezy and monotonous for outsiders like myself.

Hmm, seems this is the fourth week in a row we’ve done a debut album.  I wonder how long we can keep that up.

Favorite Tracks: “A Message To You Rudy”, “Concrete Jungle”, “(Dawning Of A) New Era”

Van Halen – Van Halen (1978)

For me this summer has been all about the rocking! I don’t know if it’s playing in the band Poon or simply the fact that it’s been awhile since I’ve revisited some of my old rock albums, but it’s been awesome. Twice a week when I’m puling freight shifts at Petco I’ve been going through the same classic rock albums over and over again and I’m yet to tire of it. I usually rotate around; Deep Purple’s Machine Head, Cheap Trick at Budokan, a Kiss greatest hits album, Queen’s A Night at the Opera and of course the classic debut from Van Halen. The last one fits in nicely with this week’s honoring of 1978, so let’s “jump” in.

Van Halen is one of those stellar debuts that’s so good that almost everything following it is a slight disappointment. Sure 1984 is a great rock record, but these guys just opened with bang, a big bang. You look at the track listing and it’s just classic after classic, even the less memorable songs still have fantastic musicianship, led by virtuoso Eddie Van Halen. I’ve always thought that even if you don’t like Van Halen you have to respect the talents of Eddie. He is really one of those guys that just reinvented guitar playing (if that was even fathomable) I can’t even explain it’s just sheer madness yet so refined at the same time, pure rock ecstasy.

I’m always amazed by groups that can create such a full sound with just three instruments and a singer, but Van Halen takes it to new levels. You have three very talented musicians all behind a charismatic vocalist oozing with swagger… What’s not to like? It’s just a perfectly energetic album that never fails to pump me up, I can’t wait till my next freight night.

Favorite Tracks: “Ain’t Talkin’ bout Love”, “Jaimie’s Cryin'” “Runnin’ with the Devil”

Wire – Pink Flag (1977)

By 1977, the punk zeitgeist was reaching it’s peak as The Clash’s debut infiltrated the top 20 of the UK album charts, while The Sex Pistols’ debut went to number 1.  Now I was considering talking about either of those albums for this week’s CAT, but I figured I’d go for something that went a little more under the radar when it was released in late 1977.  Plus, it’s an album I’ve just been getting in to recently, which seems to always make writing about an album a little more fun.

It seems a little weird to me that Wire’s Pink Flag is considered to be the earliest example of post-punk, when the album came out before punk had really lost any noticeable steam, but I guess that just goes to show how fast trends in music are always changing.  Wire’s aesthetic approach certainly owed much to the other punk bands of the time, as Pink Flag doesn’t feature much more than throbbing bass, pounding drums, and fuzz-drenched guitar, topped off with Colin Newman’s high-pitched shouts.  However, unlike The Sex Pistols or The Clash, there’s less of an anti-establishment feel to the songs, as the lyrics tend to be on the obscure side, and often the songs feel like the band is just trying to release pent-up emotions rather than make any sort of ideological statement.

Another thing that probably gives Pink Flag such a potent feeling has to do with the lengths of the songs, which usually clock in under a minute and a half, making for a 35-minute album featuring 21 tracks.  It adds to the immediacy of the songs, making them feel as if the intensity of the band members playing off each other is almost too intense to maintain for more than a minute or two.  However there are a few slower songs, such as the lurching “Strange”, which R.E.M. would cover on their seminal 1987 album Document.

These slower songs also point the way to the more experimental electronic influences that would make their way in to Wire’s subsequent releases, which would earn the band a reputation as one of the more adventurous bands to come out of the punk rock movement.  But on Pink Flag, it’s refreshing to hear these guys prior to their persistence on branching out artistically and just bashing out a bunch of guitar jams.

Favorite Tracks: “Lion Tamer”, “Mannequin”, “1 2 X U”

The Ramones – Ramones (1976)

The 4th of July weekend has once again come to a close, but now let me indulge you with what could easily be declared the great American punk album.  The Ramones’ debut is one of those albums that I’m sure a lot of people haven’t even bothered listening to because they figure every Ramones song sounds exactly the same, so what’s the point?  Well when the songs are brimming with such a potent combination of bubble gum pop and hard-edged guitar punk, is that really such a bad thing?

I guess what makes this the ultimate Ramones album is that it’s just bursting with the kind of giddy abrasiveness that was the cornerstone of the band’s sound for over twenty years.  Johnny Ramone might very well have been the best punk rock guitarist that ever lived, mainly because he was able to create the perfect antithesis of what the overblown arena-rock guitarist were doing at the time, employing an undying mantra of three chords and no solos.  And on this debut, you’ve got some of Dee Dee Ramone’s most amusing odes to teenage angst, all delivered in Joey’s signature faux-British wail.

Considering The Ramones have such a distinct sound, it’s easy to take them for granted, but I can’t image what an overwhelming breath of fresh air this debut would have been in 1976.  And really, you have to admire the craft that’s put into such a compact package, as the album runs just under a half hour, but features an overabundance of memorable moments with songs like “Beat On The Brat” and “Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue”.  Hell, you could even say that The Ramones managed to sum up the entire aesthetic of American punk rock in the album’s lead-off track, the legendary “Blitzkrieg Bop”.

Favorite Tracks: “Beat On The Brat”, “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend”, “Listen To My Heart”

Brian Eno – Another Green World (1975)

Seems like it was only a couple weeks back that I mentioned this album in my review for the latest Death Cab release, so it makes sense for me to give you my two cents on Brian Eno’s electro pop pioneering third album. Descending into stripped down, almost robotic arrangements, Brian Eno dabbles with fresh ideas without compromising any of his accessibility as a solo artist. As a matter of fact many critics have noted Another Green World as his most accessible with poppy cuts like “St. Elmo’s Fire” and “I’ll Come Running”. Fewer tracks feature Eno’s very english vocal delivery but personally I favor most of the instrumental tracks over the ones with vocals.

Though the bulk of Another Green World seems optimistic it certainly has it’s darker moments. “In Dark Tree” still gives me chills bordering on the lines of industrial, I’m sure Trent Reznor likes that track. Some tracks I can’t even describe, take the album opener for instance “Sky Saw” sounds like Can on some weird drug trip, but it’s nonetheless a trip I want to take as a listener. Eno goes to bold new places but he’s never dicking around or alienating his listeners. This is still a competent and organized album for eager listening audience.

The instrumental “The Big Ship” is easily my favorite track as it is without a doubt the most beautiful track on the album. It has that majestic keyboard progression that slowly builds and builds, accompanied by that great, choppy kind of percussion, I love it. Sometimes I wonder if this would’ve been a better album if it was just entirely instrumental, but even though some of the vocal tracks are a little cheesy sounding they really balance everything out. It’s hard for me to think of many albums that so seamlessly blend instrumental and non-instrumental tracks, this one somehow pulls it off.

Favorite Tracks: “The Big Ship”, “Golden Hours”, “In Dark Trees”