ALICE IN CHAINS – The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here (2013 Capitol Records)
You know how in offices they have those phones with the little speaker in them, that plays the local radio station? That’s how I first heard “Hollow” by Alice in Chains. Not the greatest way to hear it. I couldn’t hear the harmonies or the bass guitar. The song came off as a dull drone and I didn’t like it. However Mandy Grant on 107.5 Dave FM said the album was lined up to be her album of the summer. Then Tricky Nick gave it 5/5 and praised its genius!
Now it’s my turn to throw my hat in the ring. I had no problem with Black Gives Way to Blue; yes it’s a sad album and we know why. If anything I found some of the songs to be not memorable. On the other hand, I found some of the softer material to be among Chains’ best. Here, William DuVall does a great job. I don’t get the sense that he’s trying to sound a certain way, but when he sings with Jerry it’s Alice in Chains.
Onto The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here. Love the title, love the artwork, love the packaging, but we’ll get to that in a few moments. It’s an album that reveals more and more as you listen to it. It’s really well produced for one. Sonically, this is the best album Alice in Chains have ever made. But musically, it peels like an onion: brief guitar interludes, dual guitar harmonies, bass hooks, vocal flare, all of this stuff and more comes through when you spend some time with it.
I think I’d like to invent a new genre here and declare this record to be “Progressive Grunge Rock”. It has elements of both, which really isn’t too much of a leap as Chains have always comprised some great musicians. Mike Inez was one of my favourite bass players from his Ozzy days, and Sean Kinney is very creative with his symbol work and weird time signatures. Only 2 of the 12 songs are under 5 minutes; the album clocks in well over an hour. Unbelievably, it doesn’t drag. This is accomplished with a combination of well written memorable hooks, and a variety of song styles. Some moments recall mellow things like Jar of Flies, others the “Dog” album. There’s also a lot of riffing and soloing that is pure traditional heavy metal.
Many reviewers have mentioned that this album seems a lot brighter than Black Give Way to Blue and I’m in agreement with that. Keep in mind this is Alice in Chains and they’re not turning in a sunny-happy-joy-joy album at any time. There is however a certain jubilant quality to this album that is quite infectious.
I keep waffling between favourite songs. All of these are contenders:
“Stone”
“Voices”
“The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here”
“Breath On a Window”
“Scalpel”
“Phantom Limb”
“Choke”
There aren’t any weak songs, but for me those 7 are all really exceptional. I really love “Phanton Limb”. It’s one of the most “metal” in some respects but it’s also one of the most unique. Its riff is just mechanically punishing. “Voices” is like Jar of Flies meets Cheap Trick or something.
The packaging is really cool but fragile. Mine arrived with a slight crack on it. It’s a coloured red jewel case, but with a function. Remember how G1 Transformers used to come with those “Tech Spec Decoders”? You had to use this red plastic “decoder” to read the stats on the robot’s packaging. You could still sorta read it without the decoder, but Alice in Chains took it a step further. You can only read the lyrics by inserting the appropriate page into the jewel case. There are big red XXXXX‘s over most of the words making them very difficult to read. When you put the page under the jewel case, it’s easy!
Having lived with the album for a week now, I concur with Mandy: I think the love will grow, and this will be one of my albums for the summer, too. The most important thing about The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here is that it sounds like Alice in Chains. There is nobody else out there that sounds like this.
I’m not a big fan of early Sloan. I rarely listen to the first album Smeared (haven’t played it in years despite having two great singles on it). I don’t really get into Sloan until their second album, the magnum opus Twice Removed. I didn’t like them back then in 1992 at all; Sloan were the enemy. A bunch of glasses-wearing short-hairs who pouted and didn’t play a lot of solos. The antithesis to what I liked; and the Canadian embodiment of the kind of thing that was killing off my kind of music like a cancer!
So there’s that. Listening to the peppermint EP today (I even hate that the title is all lowercase) still doesn’t do much for me. “Underwhelmed” is an outstanding song, but this early slower version is just a patch on what it would later become. I do like its lyrics, even though it contains these lines:
She skips her classes and gets good grades, I go to my courses rain or shine, She’s passin’ her classes, While I attend mine.
Taken out of context, kind of lame; but the song is actually quite clever lyrically and one of their finer achievements.
Patrick Pentland’s “Sugartune” is catchy but not outstanding. “Pretty Voice”, sung by Jay Ferguson is also one of the better tunes. This one did not make the album Smeared for whatever reason. It’s the first really fast upbeat song, and it has a bit of a tasty guitar riff to it. It’s just recorded so damn muddy, as is all of peppermint. And that’s my biggest obstacle to liking this EP. It boils down to the sound.
Even though the band themselves are noisy and enjoy guitar squeals and feedback at this early stage, it’s not captured on tape. Instead there’s this dull roar of 90’s sounding guitars, without a lot of distinction. I can hear bits and pieces of coolness and even genius, but only buried under the morass of the mix.
Finally, Aaron actually found me a CD copy of this album, only the second one I’ve ever encountered. He asked me to do a “package opening” video when this surprise arrived, so I did. The unintentionally funny results are below:
Needless to say I have some history with this album. Before too long, T-Rev would start incorporating lyrics from this album into our daily dialogue. For example:
“Hey Trevor, how’re you doing?”
“Back in the Tracksuit!”
I have a hard time describing this album. It has a snearing punky vibe, hilarious shrieky lead vocals and lyrics to match, topped with an Irish accent and guitars! “Back in the Tracksuit” is a perfect example of this; a blast of punk guitars & drums with the bizarrely catchy lead vocals of Niall O’Flaherty. Half the time we couldn’t figure out what he was singing. “Indeed You Are” sounds like he’s singing “Konichiwa!”
“Veronica” is a cute serenade with strings and harmonica. Maybe it’s a take on early period Beatles, filtered through their own bedraggled lenses. “2 Pints of Rasa” is in a similar spirit: a stroll through the park on a sunny Saturday afternoon “drinking with the guys”…and with strings! In the lyrics, O’Flaherty proclaims to his girl of interest, “but I still like you, you are my ice cream.”
A broadside shot of breakneck guitars kick off “Stupid Kid”. T-Rev and the rest of us loved this refrain. The chorus was infectious! “You’re stupid, S-T-U-P-I-D kid!” I don’t think I’ve ever heard a more entertaining combination of snark and melody. One of the best tunes on the album. “You Talk Too Much” is a twin brother, shrieks and surf-rock drums notwithstanding.
A rollicky bass intro kicks off “Give Him a Ball (And a Yard of Grass)”, and the body surfing begins! I have no idea what O’Flaherty is singing for most of it, but it hardly matters. You can sing along as if you do, and nobody will notice.
“Karaoke Queen” is OK, a little slack, but it is quickly followed by “Let’s Go Shopping”. It’s another one of those sentimental Sultans numbers about, well, going shopping. We always found the jubilant lyrics quite mirthful:
Put on your flip-flops and we’ll go shopping, dear
Put on your flip-flops, we’ll go flip-flopping, dear
You can buy crisps and I can buy jam,
You push the trolley, I’ll push the pram.
The sentiment stops there, since the next song is entitled “Kick Me With Your Leather Boots”! That means you can count on brisk, boisterous shenanigans. “Clitus Clarke” approaches being skip-worthy, but who cares since the final song is our favourite, “Where’s Me Jumper?”
My brother knows Karl Marx He met him eating mushrooms in the public park He said ‘What do you think of my manifesto?’ I like your manifesto, put it to the testo.
It’s just great fun. You can’t help but move to it. To me this album would be worth buying just for the one song.
Thankfully, this collection has an assortment of really great songs and some pretty good ones too. All of them are gladdening and memorable, so for that reason Casual Sex in the Cineplex has a permanent spot in my car’s MP3 player.
Trevor told me about Warren first. “He’s a big guy,” he said, “With big, blonde Sammy Hagar hair and glasses. Nice though. He was friends with my mom when I was growing up. I used to call him Wookiee!”
Warren was bringing in some promo CDs to sell, and Trevor was giving me a heads up and asked me to treat him right. Warren is a fan of a lot of the same musicians I am (guys like Ritchie Blackmore and Steve Morse) but his passion was bass. His favourite bassist was Chris Squire of Yes. So obviously Warren and I were going to get along. We did, and he frequently came to me as his first stop for selling music, buying music, and making conversation.
Warren was trying to do a few music magazines. He originally worked on a country music mag, but that wasn’t his thing and soon he started up Global Bass Online. Warren needed help with some of the interviews. He was really excited to be speaking to Victor Wooten, but he needed someone to interview Eddie Jackson, from Queensryche. Queensryche were promoting their new CD and DVD, Live Evolution. Warren gave me copies of each, and asked if I wanted to write the Jackson piece.
“Are you kidding?” I said, stunned. “You want me to talk to Edbass?”
A pause from Warren. “Who?”
“Edbass,” I replied. “That’s how Eddie Jackson credits himself on the album.”
“Oh!” said Warren. “Yes, Eddie Jackson. I know you can do it. Here’s a cassette deck you can plug into your phone. And here’s Eddie’s cell phone number. He’s expecting your call, he knows what’s going on.”
Wow. Eddie Jackson was expecting my call. Cool.
Warren and I collaborated on some initial bass-related questions, but he left the rest up to me. He gave me tips, but told me that I was a good conversationalist and that I would be fine.
I called up Eddie that night, keeping in mind that Seattle was 3 hours behind us. Eddie answered, we had a brief chat and set up an hour the following day to do the interview.
Warren ended up following his dream and moving to paradise (Switzerland). And we still keep in touch. And maybe I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing now if it wasn’t for his confidence.
TWISTED SISTER – “We’re Not Gonna Take It” (1984 Atlantic single)
I’ll skip the formalities, and I won’t be discussing the single A-side. What is understood need not be discussed. On the off chance that you spent your youth in Antarctica, here’s the very clever and original music video (later ripped off by Michael Jackson for his own “Black or White”).
The B-sides are three of Twisted’s all time best, recorded live, and unreleased on CD to date. All three are classics from YouCan’t Stop Rock ‘N’ Roll: “The Kids are Back”, “We’re Gonna Make It”, and the album’s title track. These were recorded live in Poughkeepsie, New York. Although it seems odd, Dee’s usual spoken opening, “We are Twisted fuckin’ Sister” skipped the expletive. I’m not sure if it’s edited out or not, for the release of this single.
As far as a single side of Twisted onslaught goes, I don’t know if you could have selected three better songs. The performances are typical live Sister; fast and reckless. In other words, perfect. The live tracks were co-produced by bassist Mark “The Animal” Mendoza so you know that the band at least had their hands in the mix, too.
Another cool fact: neither “The Kids are Back” nor “We’re Gonna Make It” are on the Live at the Marquee CD, minimizing overlap with that later release. They were recorded within the same time frame, so the band is in similar ferocious shape to that great live album.
FIGHT – Mutations (1994 Epic collector’s edition, 2008 Metal God Entertainment reissue)
Released in late 1994, Mutations (subtitled “collector’s edition“, which really means nothing) was a live/remix CD to follow War of Words. I seem to remember this being marketed as some sort of “extended EP” or some kind of not-album, which again is kind of meaningless. The original release was 45 minutes, a full length album by most measures.
Live Fight! Shame it was only four songs, as they absolutely kick ass. Rob Halford was still in peak voice in 1994, and every high scream is present on opener “Into the Pit”. Fight as a live band were less stiff than on the first album. They were no less precise, and each song is just as ferocious as its album counterpart. On “Nailed to the Gun”, bassist Jay Jay does the low death metal growls while Rob howls like a mad dog.
I was surprised that Rob put “Freewheel Burning” on the album, as he seemed to be trying to distance himself from his past at this time. Its the only Priest song and I don’t think they played many Priest songs on the tour at all (but I know they did cover Sabbath’s “Sweet Leaf”). Surprisingly it’s here that Rob’s voice falters, struggling with the demanding song. He redeems himself on the bluesy single “Little Crazy”.
I enjoy hearing live recordings from bands with two distinct lead guitar players trading off. Russ Parrish and Brian Tilse were both very different stylistically, and the contrast is awesome. The pace is aggressive, and these guys keep chugging on. (Note: Russ Parrish is not credited on this album. He had left the band by the time of release, but there is no question that he did play on all these tracks. Why he was not credited is a mystery, but he does appear on the remastered version cover art.)
I believe I am well on record as not being a fan of remixes in general. There are exceptions but so many remixes add techno-crapola that often serves to reduce the songs to repetitive mockeries of themselves. On a track like “War of Words” , they remove Scott Travis’ drums from sections, and replace him electronic beats. At the time I thought, “Why would you want to replace Scott Travis with a drum machine?” Today, it still bugs me. But hey, those who doubted the sincerity of Rob’s industrial work with Trent Reznor in Two should remember these remixes!
I’ll be honest, I struggle getting through the remix side in one sitting. There are some cool moments, such as the chance to hear isolated instruments and solos. “Vicious” is an example of a remix that works for me. It’s weird, it has an opera singer and dance beats added, but it’s pretty heavy and cool. But in general, the Fight songs were simple and repetitive to begin with. Making them simpler and more repetitive didn’t work for me. Sure, I own some Nine Inch Nails albums, but this sound isn’t where my heart lies.
Goodie-goodie-gosh, Mutations was reissued as part of the Into the Pit box set, with two bonus tracks. And these bonus tracks are (you guessed it) remixes. More versions of “Kill It” and “War of Words”. At least the “Culture of Corruption Mix” of “War of Words” is about half as long as the regular “Bloody Tongue Mix”.
Incidentally, why do remixes always have cliche sounding names? “Bloody Tongue Mix”! Raahhrr! Why not…”Toothpaste Mix”. Something original. I think remixers should strive to be more original in the naming of their work. Something nobody’s used yet. “I’m Rob Halford and I Endorsed This Mix Mix”.
This review dedicated to the greatUncle Meat. Part 1 of a 2 part series!
MARILLION – Early Stages (Official Bootleg Box Set 1982-1987) (EMI)
This is the first of two Marillion Official Bootleg box sets. The second covers the Hogarth years 1990-1994. Mine came with an autographed print!
I listened to this box again over the course of a week. I chose the car as the setting. I’ve spent a lot of time driving to Marillion in the past (lots of great memories) so this setting works for me. I enjoy loading long box sets onto my car MP3 player. I did that recently with the 12 CD Deep Purple Bootleg Series box set. As soon as I was done with that one, I dove into Early Stages.
I also acquired the recent compilation Early Stages: The Highlights. Why, you ask? Well, like many “highlights” packages, they usually stick on one exclusive song to get you to buy the same thing twice. The bait is “Market Square Heroes” Fife Aid 1988, the final song of the final show with Fish. OK, I’ll bite.
I don’t have a lot to say specifically about any of the concerts included in this box set. There are a lot of songs from periods before they were recorded on albums, and that’s cool. There are four different drummers on this set*, representing the rarely documented transitional periods in Marillion’s lineup. The discs are all of great sonic quality considering the years they were recorded. Fish is a great frontman, usually funny but occasionally serious, and always entertaining.
Here are some observations about some of the set’s highlights. From The Mayfair, Glasgow, 1982: “He Knows You Know” is not quite as slick as we’re used to, a little tentative, but no less powerful. An early version of “She Chameleon” is quite different musically from what it would become, although the lyrics are mostly in place.
When you get to the Marquee show (December of ’82), Fish is especially talkative and sentimental. The gem here is obviously “Grendel”, a song which never ceases to amaze me. Fish’s expressive voice has me hook, line and sinker. You’ll be treated to the complete workout of “Grendel” again in 1983 (Reading). The 1984 Hammersmith concert has emotional classics like “Jigsaw” and “Cinderella Search”. The real treat is an early version of the first track for the forthcoming album Misplaced Childhood; a track Fish calls “Side One”. It’s an early version, the lyrics still not all the way there, and it’s missing the entire “Lavender” section. But you can hear the shape of things to come.
Hey Uncle Meat! Who’s your favourite lyricist?
The box set closes with a late period show, and a big one: Wembley, 1987. A good chunk of Misplaced Childhood (all of Side One) and Clutching at Straws are presented. There are only a couple oldies: “Fugazi” and “Incubus”. This is a slicker, more commercial-sounding band, much more skilled at writing complicated yet catchy music.
Of note: there are a whopping 15 pages full of liners notes by one Derek W. Dick, aka Fish, and new cover art by Mark Wilkinson! If that doesn’t sell this set, then nothing will.
5/5 stars
* Mick Pointer, John Martyr, Andy Ward, and Ian Mosely. Only Jonathan Mover is not heard on this, although he is on the 6 CD Curtain Call box set.
RECORD STORE TALES Part 200: Just Another Annoying Day…
It was a Wednesday in May, 1997. Early afternoon. This big, big dude with a shaved head walked into my store. I greeted him, as I did all customers. By all appearances he was perfectly normal.
“Hi there,” I said a few moments after he walked in.
“Do you have any Metallica box sets?” he replied, skipping the formalities.
I didn’t need to check inventory to know the answer. The Metallica box set, Live Shit: Binge & Purge was huge. It housed three VHS video tapes, 3 CDs in one jumbo “fat” case, a nice booklet, a “backstage pass”, and a stencil.
Legend has it that Peter the Rocker stenciled the “Metallica Guy” on the hood of his car.
There were other things that you might have classified as a Metallica “box set” at the time, but it was 1997 and there weren’t many. The first Fan Can was out (1996), and there was the vinyl-only The Good, The Bad and The Live: 6½ Anniversary EP Box Set that we wouldn’t have carried (no vinyl in 1997).
“No, I don’t have any. I know for sure that one of our other stores had one a few days ago. Want me to check if it’s still there?”
“No. How much will you pay me for one?” he asked.
“Well, that depends on a lot of things. It’ll depend on if it’s complete, condition…”
Cutting me off, he abruptly said, “Yeah, yeah…it’s brand new. It’s my buddy’s. He has lots of Metallica box sets. What will you pay me for the rest of them? He has all of them.”
“All of them?” I queried. “What do you mean by all of them? Binge & Purge is the one most people are thinking off.”
“Yeah he has that, and all the others too,” he continued, “all sealed. Metallica have a lot of box sets. He has doubles of all of them.”
The dude smelled fishy, and it sounded to me like he was setting up a story in order to possibly go across the street to the mall, steal one or more, and sell them to me. At this point, my guard was up and I wasn’t interested. So, as diplomatically as possible, I addressed the big guy.
“Well dude, I can’t make any promises. I can’t give you any kind of quote or promise without knowing what I’m buying.”
Cutting me off again, he repeated, “They’re all brand new. Still in plastic. Yeah, my buddy, he collects them. But, uhh, he owes me money, and uhh…he said I could sell what I needed to get the money. Can you give me $400?”
If I was drinking something I probably would spat it up. “Umm, no man, listen, I really can’t help you out with that right now.”
“Are you hiring?” he replied, changing tack.
I paused, trying to keep up with the guy’s racing thoughts. Even if I was hiring, there was no way I was telling him that! I replied in the negative.
“No? Can you hire me just for this afternoon? I could lift stuff and help around the store,” he persisted.
“No. I got it covered. Thanks, I’m good.”
“I just need enough for the bus. I have to be in Hamilton on Friday. I’m going to Hamilton to work, but I don’t have a way of getting there yet. Can you just, you know, give me some money?” I couldn’t believe I was hearing this.
“Sorry man, I really can’t. Maybe someone else can help you if you go elsewhere,” I said, politely terminating the conversation.
“OK. I’m going to go get those Metallica box sets. My buddy lives really close. I’ll be back in 20 minutes,” he announced, as he left the store.
I knew a guy at the HMV store at the mall, so I gave him a call. I asked him to keep an eye on a big bald guy who might be eyeing the Metallica box set a little too closely. He called the other music stores at the mall and gave them a heads-up as well.
CRAZY HEART Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (2010 NewWest)
Produced by T Bone Burnett and Stephen Bruton
I grew up on this kind of music. I remember long drives to the cottage, singing away to the hits by Hank Jr., Hank Sr., Johnny, Willie, and Waylon…all those great artists. So to hear Jeff Bridges perform his character Bad Blake’s songs on this soundtrack is already in the ballpark of music I love. The great thing about this soundtrack is that it’s loaded with awesome original tunage such as “Fallin’ & Flying'” and “The Weary Kind”, but it also has great oldies by Townes, Buck and Waylon. There’s even a classic Lightnin’ Hopkins blues.
Buck Owens’ “Hello Trouble” (1964) is lyrically as apt as ever. Townes Van Zandt’s “If I Needed You” (1972) is laden with emotion within an inventive dual-track lead vocal. But it’s “Once A Gambler” by Hopkins that I am spellbound by. It’s shocking how vibrant this old recording is, and it’s gotta be 50 years old. Much like the singer’s name, the playing, singing and song itself are electrifying. You couldn’t record this better today with all the computers in the world.
Meanwhile, Jeff’s performance on “Somebody Else” is more rock n’ roll; this is an original tune by T Bone Burnett and Stephen Bruton. It has a live sound to it. Bridges’ lead vocal edges into nasal territory, but the dude was 61 years old at the time. Another new tune, “I Don’t Know” by Ryan Bingham is firmly in 80’s Steve Earle territory, and that’s fine by me.
I saw Crazy Heart and I thought they did a fairly credible job, but I very rarely like it when Hollywood types do these types of films. Leave the singing to the singers (I’m looking at you, Gwenyth Paltrow!). Still, this Bridges/Ferrell track is roadhouse-worthy.
Sure, in some cases I would agree with that. Nobody needed Eddie Murphy to make an album for example. In the case of “Fallin’ & Flyin'”, I really like this track. It was written to suit Jeff’s leathery but expressive singing voice. Jeff Bridges is no slouch; I’m sure Kris Kristofferson taught him a few tricks when they jammed behind the scenes during Heaven’s Gate. Jeff’s slant on “I Don’t Know” is more country than Bingham’s and features piano and squeezebox. I believe I am well on record for being a fan of the Dude in the first place.
There’s only one tune I didn’t like, which is “Reflecting Light” by Sam Phillips (2004). Sorry Sam. It’s not you; it’s me.
My only regret is picking up the single disc version before I knew there was a double disc with even more tunes. At some point in the future I’ll trade up. I got this used, at Encore Records, so not a huge expense (I paid $10) and I can always trade up.
I believe I am well on record as not being a fan of remixes in general. There 
I’ll be honest, I struggle getting through the remix side in one sitting. There are some cool moments, such as the chance to hear isolated instruments and solos. “Vicious” is an example of a remix that works for me. It’s weird, it has an opera singer and dance beats added, but it’s pretty heavy and cool. But in general, the Fight songs were simple and repetitive to begin with. Making them simpler and more repetitive didn’t work for me. Sure, I own some Nine Inch Nails albums, but this sound isn’t where my heart lies.
mikeladano.com 