With a name like White Wolf you’d almost expect this band to come from the forests of Northern Ontario or Quebec. No so; they hail from provincial capital of Edmonton Alberta (pop: 800,000). So we’ll forgive that the music video for “Shadows in the Night” (from 1984’s Standing Alone) made them looks like outdoors winter survivalists. Long-haired sidekicks of Les Stroud? No; they look much more indoors-y on Endangered Species, their second album before disbanding. The album cover is notable for being a Hugh Syme work, though obviously a lesser one.
They earned some minor video play with “She”, indicating a more keyboardy direction than album #1. Mushy sounding drums distract from the killer Don Wolf (Don Wilk) chorus. Akin to Dokken’s “Breaking the Chains”, “She” will appeal to hard rockers who like melody with their guitars. It’s all about that chorus though, the kind that makes you hit “repeat” and go right back to the start.
White Wolf has a weird 80s metal thud and that combined with harsh production values make Endangered Species sound terribly dated. Techy keyboard flairs sound lifted from David Bryan’s Slippery When Wet sound library. Anyone craving mid-tempo 80s hard rock will find enjoyable music on Endangered Species, but few songs have the same impact as “She”. Dull verses, bland choruses and generic song titles keep things from sticking. Sub-Jovi with none of Jon’s then-irresistible innocence is a narrow niche.
“Just Like an Arrow” comes close, but the keyboards weigh it down when it should be flying. Too many bands (Quiet Riot, Stryper, etc.) really let the keys have too much space around this time. “Cryin to the Wind” has an excellent acoustic intro but not enough of a song to go with it. The drum samples are obtrusive because they don’t sound natural. It sounds like a lot of time was taken in the studio but the technology wasn’t up to the task, and everything came out tinny and powerless. “Holding Back” doesn’t have enough hooks. “Snake Charmer” steals a title and a hook from Ritchie Blackmore, and appeals as a Rainbow-like understudy. The only other track besides “She” and “Snake Charmer” that hits the spot is “One More Time”.
Not a terrible album, not a flaming turd…but not a winner either.
RIK EMMETT & RESolution9 – RES 9(2016 Mascot Music)
Rik Emmett had a long productive career as 1/3rd of Triumph, but he has rarely looked back. Post-Triumph he has released a steady stream of jazz, rock, blues and acoustic music, sometimes revisiting Triumph songs in re-arranged form. Finally the ice thawed and Triumph successfully conquered Sweden Rock. In 2016 Rik released RES 9, a new rock album with his new band RESolution 9.
RES 9 is in fact a time machine. Dial up track 1. You will be transported back to 1990 with the rock boogie of “Stand Still”. This is a spiritual sequel to “Drive Time” from Rik’s first solo album Absolutely. Then punch track 2. “Human Race” (not a Red Rider cover) could have been a single from 1986’s The Sport of Kings. With Alex Lifeson guesting on guitar, Rik and the band tapped into the hookiness of 80’s Triumph, but with a modern integrity. When you hit up track 3, you will find yourself in the future. Accompanied by fellow Canadian James LaBrie (Dream Theater), Rik turns in a modern rock anthem with “I Sing”. Big and uplifting choruses preceded by mellow verses are built for radio. LaBrie’s vocals are the perfect compliment. Without a shred of hyperbole, “I Sing” is absolutely one of the best songs Rik’s ever recorded.
The bluesy soul ballad “My Cathedral” gives Rik a chance to show off his impeccable chops. His tone — unbelievable! Moving on to “The Ghost of Shadow Town” effectively dials up 1976 in the time machine, with a dark heavy Zepp-ish blues. “When You Were My Baby” continues down smoove blues street, throwing in some jazz licks. “Sweet Tooth” is turn down a brightly lit side avenue, a sweet treat indeed.
A hard Triumph-like vibe permeates “Heads Up”, another fine hard rocker for the radio. “Rest of My Life” adds the jangle of acoustic guitars to the rock and roll mixture, creating another fine concoction just begging to be a hit. Things toughen up with the pure rock power of “End of the Line”, featuring the returns of LaBrie and Lifeson. The sheer star power of all these Canucks in one studio must have driven the temperatures well below freezing. Still the track smokes, and if you’ve ever wanted to hear Emmett and Lifeson go head to head, then wish no more.
But it is not the end of the line. Back to the future, we have a bonafide Triumph reunion featuring the full trio of Emmett, Gil Moore and Mike Levine. This long awaited reunion happens on the bonus track “Grand Parade”. The genuine surprise here is that it’s not a hard old time hard rocker, but a thoughtful and musically deep blues ballad. It strikes me as appropriate that this much anticipated track sounds nothing like old Triumph. That was, after all, a long time ago.
With RES 9, Rik has re-established his rock credentials. Whether he does another album like this is beside the point. RES 9 is the point; a damn fine album indeed.
“I don’t care ’bout the weather, the band’s here to play.”– Jon Harvey
MONSTER TRUCK – Sittin’ Heavy (2016 Dine Alone 2 LP edition)
Why are you not rocking? This is the question that Monster Truck ask to open their 2016 release Sittin’ Heavy, easily the best record the quartet have released to date. “Rock and roll might save your life, it might save your life tonight.” Perhaps this is the Truck’s modus operandi, because judging by Sittin’ Heavy they are interested in delivering the rock and doing it right.
From the short blitz of an opener, Truck go right into the first single “Don’t Tell Me How to Live”. The track has been a radio staple in Canada for most of 2016, and it’s easy to see why. The slow riffy groove is easily digestible by rock fans craving that sound, backed by a searing chorus about eagles and lions. Some have compared this band to another Nickelback, but on Sittin’ Heavy they have moved far beyond those measures. Nickelback has never delivered anything this classic sounding. Track three, “She’s a Witch” has a modern swampy vibe that Chad Kroeger couldn’t hope to taint. Three songs in, Monster Truck delivered three completely different tunes, though all with the rock solid Truck groove. One ingredient that separates the Truck from the crowd is the soulful organ provided by keyboardist Brandon Bliss. “She’s a Witch” is one track with a bizarrely heavy soul-metal vibe. That vibe culminates with “For the People”, an uplifting track that closes side one of the vinyl. The soul-rock vibe is obvious and augmented by Ian Thornley of Big Wreck who lays down some of his trademark wicked slide guitar. The Wreck-ifying of the track unites the two bands in a cool, celebratory way.
Flip the vinyl, and take a moment. “Black Forest” is a organ based track, slow and mournful, and very different from any of the four on side one. When a band like Monster Truck turn down the volume, they risk revealing that there is little substance beneath the howling distortion. This is certainly not the case here. “Black Forest” has a more subtle touch, and the band allow it to breath. As a result it’s one of the most stand-out tracks.
“Another Man’s Shoes” walks us back into familiar territory. The Truck don’t make things complicated, and guitarist Jeremy Widerman’s Frehley-like solos are just what the doctor ordered for these musical bruisings. They take a left turn down Abbey Road next by adding some Beatles-like piano vibes to “Things Get Better”, an outstanding track. “I got a feelin’ thing’ll get worse before they get better,” sings Jon Harvey but he couldn’t be more wrong. Sittin’ Heavy keeps getting better the more you play it, and “Things Get Better” is a high water mark. Side two blasts its way to a finish on “The Enforcer”, which races home with plenty of the Truck’s trademark “woah-woah-woah” gang vocals.
The third and final side (we’ll talk about that shortly) begins darkly with a Sabbath-like “To the Flame”. Widerman and Harvey seemed to study at the feet of Iommi and Osbourne when composing this menacing crawl. “Midnight” takes the tempo back up to cruising speed. Going in at low altitude, the Truck bomb your senses with a vinyl-only bonus track. Considering the price you pay for a record vs. a CD, it is nice to get something like a bonus track for your dollars. In the 80s, it was common to put a bonus track on the CD, since it was the most expensive format at that time. Now the situation is reversed.
A choppy riff introduces “New Soul”, a purely enjoyable return to the church of soul-rock. It’s a head-bangin’ good time. Clap your hands for a good time (unless you’re listening to this while driving, in which case, keep ’em steady on the wheel). Then the final track is appropriately the ballad “Enjoy the Time” which sounds like a natural way to end a soulful rock album like Sittin’ Heavy. Its Supertramp-like keyboard tones lend it a unique sound over the rest of the album. It also sums up the vibe of the whole album: “Enjoy the time we have, before they’re gone away.”
But what about the fourth side? What’s on that? Check out the etched vinyl, baby!
If you are looking for a new rock album that sounds classic, then you have found one. Those who like a rock record to be a journey of highs and lows and with a satisfying conclusion, then Sittin’ Heavy is the one. With little doubt, this one is going to be on a few best of 2016 lists at the end of the year.
To promote their new album Rock It Science, Helix released this set of five custom guitar picks. It is available at their site for only $10, and they feature the excellent album art (by Brent Doerner) on the front. On the back, each pick has a photo of a band member: Brian Vollmer, Daryl Gray, Greg “Fritz” Hinz, Kaleb “Duckman” Duck and Chris Julke.
Guitar picks are great to collect and here at LeBrain HQ, we can always appreciate a cool set of custom plectrums. They’re fun, they don’t take up a lot of space (I’ll be storing mine inside the CD case) and they just look cool. Feast your eyes upon these beauties and if you decide to go for a set, don’t forget to order the Rock It Science CD to go with ’em!
Helix just don’t stop! Never have, never will. They have been an ongoing property since 1974, steadily releasing albums with only minor gaps between. They keep playing live, year after year. They keep recording new music, ensuring there is always fresh product for fans to pick up at one of their unflagging shows. The latest is a new “greatest hits” CD called Rock It Science, featuring a smattering of tracks from all over their career and one new song.
Bands and record labels are often guilty of exploiting their fans for one or two new tracks and a whole bunch of stuff they already own. Helix fans generally don’t feel that way. They want to support the band (“the hardest working band in Canada”), and it’s worth noting that most past Helix “hits” CDs are out of print now, and there is very little overlap in songs. What overlap exists is usually limited to the “big hits” – songs like “Rock You” and “Heavy Metal Love”. Incidentally, the hits from the Capitol years included here are the re-recorded versions from Best Of 1983-2012. Fear not, they are very authentic remakes. You gotta do what you gotta do to get paid!
Brian Vollmer has been good about including deeper cuts on his compilations. “Billy Oxygen” and “You’re a Woman Now” from the first album are brilliant. These are two of their best songs, period, and they commence Rock It Science brilliantly. Any Helix CD that includes “Billy Oxygen” is better for it. This jazzy little rocker is one of their more complex arrangements, written and sung by the “Doctor” Brent Doerner. Speaking of Brent, he designed the artwork for the CD and directed the music video for “(Gene Simmons Says) Rock is Dead“. That’s the new track on this CD (click the link for a review of the song) and a damn fine one it is. Brian co-wrote it with his partner in crime, Sean Kelly, a brilliant musician in his own right.
A few other treasures worth mentioning are the lava-hot “Get Up!” from 2006, and the ballad “Good to the Last Drop” from 1990. This is the single remix version of the song, which tips the scales as the slightly superior (and more rare) mix. “Shock City Psycho Rock” (1998) is a pleasant surprise. This is a track written by bassist Mike Uzelac in the early 1980’s but not recorded until the 90’s. (When they recorded it, Uzelac was actually a missing person. He has since returned to the land of the living, but I can remember meeting his brother back in the Record Store days and that is when I first heard the story that Mike hadn’t been seen by family or friends in years.) Mike Uzelac was a talented writer and contributed lots of material to Helix. “Shock City” is one of the fastest and most destructive tracks in their catalogue. Finally, “Even Jesus (Wasn’t Loved in His Home Town)” is a favourite, notable for its biting lyrics and brain-searing chorus.
So go ahead and give them an R. The band is like an institution, a hard working gang of rockers that aim to please each and every time. Buy the CD direct from the band and you’ll get a signed copy with some great liner notes detailing some rare band history. Rock It Science would make a fine first Helix album for any collection.
Ending Movie Soundtrack Week #2 with a bang — here’s Hard Core Logo.
HARD CORE LOGO – Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1998 BMG)
Hard Core Logo are one of the greatest fictional bands of all time. Right up there with Spinal Tap, Strange Fruit and Wyld Stallions, Hard Core Logo are legendary. Fronted by Joe Dick (Hugh Dillon of the Headstones), Hard Core Logo are so fucking good that you only wish they were real. This soundtrack CD is the one to get. There is a much more common “Tribute” to Hard Core Logo CD out there, and it’s even included with the DVD of the film. For some reason, the actual songs from the movie as performed by Dillon (and Swamp Baby) were much harder to find. It was Aaron at the KMA who pointed me in the direction of this CD on the Discogs.
(By the way, there were two Hard Core Logo alumni who later moved on to Battlestar Galactica — Callum Keith Rennie, and John Pyper-Ferguson*.)
The guy on the far left is a Cylon.
Hard Core Logo’s material is a mixture of originals and covers. The monster riff of “Who the Hell Do You Think You Are?” commences the soundtrack with Hard Core Logo’s signature tune. Dillon’s snotty vocals perfectly nail the vibe of the movie. It’s dangerous sounding punk rock, pissed off but simultaneously fun. Equally dangerous is “Rock and Roll is Fat and Ugly”, and let’s not forget the Canadiana of “Edmonton Block Heater”. For some serious pain and heart, check out “China White”. Headstones fans are automatically going to want this whole soundtrack, because Dillon’s voice and the sound of Headstones are so closely associated. Dillon is 100% genuinely the real deal. Always has been.
While the original songs are all strong throughout, there are two tracks in particular that stand out. These are “Blue Tattoo” and a cover of the Dead Boys’ “Sonic Reducer”. I’ve heard the original, Pearl Jam’s version, and Hard Core Logo’s. It’s damn hard to pick a favourite. Dillon absolutely owns it. It’s like he put his foot down and said, “This one’s mine now, fuckers.” The anger is palpable. But it is “Blue Tattoo” that is forever inked on my brain. This punk ballad bleeds heart and soul. All the ingredients mix just so, and it becomes the consummate combination of sentiment and edginess.
Most people are going to buy this CD just for the Hard Core Logo tracks, but there is some excellent additional music after that. Swamp Baby without Hugh Dillon provide a cover of “Hawaii” by the Young Canadians. Short n’ sweet, and then on to some actual punk classics: Teenage Head (“Bonerack”), the Ramones (“Touring”), and Chris Spedding (“Wild Wild Women”). I can always go for some Teenage Head, and you can hear a lot of Teenage Head in Hard Core Logo’s tunes. As for the Ramones, Joey had a brief cameo in the film, lending it some extra authenticity sauce. Although I find many Ramones tunes to have a sound-alike quality, “Touring” just makes me smile.
It’s rare to find a soundtrack so perfectly composed of original music and classic tunage. It’s one of the things that made Hard Core Logo, the movie, such a triumph. See it, and get this CD.
4.5/5 stars
*Oh all right, I’ll go on. Rennie played guitarist Billy Tallent in Hard Core Logo, and Number Two in Galactica. Pyper-Ferguson nailed the role of John Oxenberger in Hard Core Logo, and played the asshole-ish Captain Cole ‘Stinger’ Taylor on Galactica. He returned to the franchise on the prequel series Caprica, playing the villain Tomas Vergis.
Holy craaap! It’s chapter 500 ofRecord Store Tales/Getting More Tale! Chapter one (“Run to the Hills“) was posted on March 9, 2012. Over four years and 500 chapters later, we are still rocking. If you’ve been here since day one, then you rule. If you’re new, then stay tuned because the stories are far from over!
GETTING MORE TALE #500: 500 Up
A little four-piece band from Halifax formed in 1991, at an art school. Hardly the kind of thing to make history, but they strove to make history just the same. Another art school band in the 1990’s? Who needed that?
They named themselves after a friend who had the nickname “Slow One”. Within a few months, the band known as “Sloan” had recorded and released their first EP,peppermint. Their debut single “Underwhelmed” began to make waves on MuchMusic and the buzz was building. Sloan’s secret weapon was the sheer talent of the four members. Not only were all four lead singers in their own right, but also multi-instrumentalists. Chris Murphy, Patrick Pentland, Andrew Scott and Jay Ferguson were more than capable of playing whatever music they envisioned. In 1992, Sloan signed to Geffen.
Sloan’s debut album Smeared boasted a couple hit singles: a re-recorded “Underwhelmed”, and a song called “500 Up” featuring lead vocals by Patrick Pentland and drummer Andrew Scott. A few album tracks such as “Sugartune” and “I am the Cancer” gave the album some depth, but it wasn’t until their crucial second LP that Sloan really broke some serious artistic ground.
“500 Up”
Unfortunately that second album, the brilliant Twice Removed, was engulfed in problems. Chart magazine called it “the best Canadian album of all time”, in 1996. Geffen however was unwilling to promote it. They would have preferred if the band remained an alterna-grunge darling, rather than explore the lush sounds of Twice Removed.
The band went on hiatus and somehow managed to extricate themselves from their contract with Geffen. A brilliant single (“Stood Up”/”Same Old Flame”) released on their own Murderecords let the die-hards know they weren’t dead, although the impression in mainstream circles was that the band had folded. They were actually hard at work, recording yet another album for just $10,000 in only two weeks.
That album, the critically hailed One Chord to Another, cemented Sloan as a force to be reckoned with in Canada. Three brilliant singles including the hard edged “The Good in Everyone” ensured Sloan lots of air play in 1996. But it was 1998’s Navy Blues that hooked me in.
There was a palpable buzz in the air. Customers were asking about the new Sloan song “Money City Maniacs”, a hard edged rocker often compared to “Firehouse” by Kiss. Some people know it as the “goat piss” song due to one of the commonly misheard lyrics in the song: “And the joke is, when he awoke his body was covered in Coke fizz.” Coke fizz, goat piss: Same difference right?
“Money City Maniacs”
Upon release, we gave Navy Blues daily store play. I can all but guarantee that album was played in one of our stores each and every day upon release in ’98. Although it was not as well received critically as the prior two Sloan albums, it did go gold and earned a Juno nomination for Best Rock Album.
Even though Navy Blues was the first Sloan album I bought, I didn’t become a full-fledged Sloan fanatic until they did the inevitable double live album. Sloan are Kiss fans and classic rock fans, so a double live was all but inevitable. It’s only appropriate that this is the album that cemented my fandom.
4 Nights at the Palais Royale was recorded in Toronto, and the full tally was 28 great all-original songs over the course of almost two hours. It is simply one of the greatest live albums I’ve ever heard: fun, very live sounding, with loads of audience participation. The band consider it representative of a typical Sloan show, and you can hear both their sloppy rock chops and lush pop vocalizing. It’s all there. The package was brilliant, stuffed with photos and liner notes from the band. If one can claim a single moment when Sloan “arrived”, I would argue for 4 Nights at the Palais Royale as that moment. Talk about being on a roll: the even managed to release another studio album that year! (My favourite one, Between the Bridges.)
Now completely addicted to Sloan, I bought all the albums, and then soon upgraded them. During a trip to Toronto in 1999, I headed over to the once-big HMV on Yonge and bought all the Japanese versions of the Sloan albums, with bonus B-sides added. It was quite a haul and a brilliant score. Like any good classic rock band, they have a number of B-sides that are as good as the hits. I still have these; it is hard to find Sloan singles, but worthwhile. Some of their most interesting material exist on B-sides, such as the aforementioned “Stood Up”/”Same Old Flame” and the impossible to find instrumental “Rhodes Jam”. (I’m still missing that one.)
Though the Sloan story continues on today with 11 albums and a 25th anniversary tour, my story peaks here. That double live album remains the high water mark for this fan. It’s a time machine. Upon hitting play I am instantly transported back in time. What a glorious summer that was. As it turned out, 4 Nights at the Palais Royale is the exact same length as a drive to the cottage. As such it got car play almost every single trip. Even my grandmother liked it.
On the occasion of this 500th instalment of Record Store Tales/Getting More Tale, I encourage everyone to check out some Sloan. Not only an incredible band, but Canadian, eh?
Selected Discography
1992 Peppermint (EP)
1992 Smeared
1994 Twice Removed
1996 One Chord to Another
1998 Navy Blues
1999 4 Nights at the Palais Royale (live)
1999 Between the Bridges
2001 Pretty Together
2003 Action Pact
2005 A Sides Win: Singles 1992-2005 (best of)
2006 Never Hear the End of It
2008 Parallel Play
2009 Hit & Run (download-only EP)
2010 B Sides Win: extras, bonus tracks and b-sides 1992-2008 (download-only compilation)
2011 The Double Cross
2014 Commonwealth
Happy Canada Day! Here is your Can-Con for this holiday: The Legendary Klopeks. According to bassist Mike Lukacs, “We used to always play Shannon [Larratt]’s Canada DayBMEBBQ every year. Always liked that.”
For a review of the Klopeks’ first album Homicidal Suicidal Klopekticidal by Aaron at the KMA,click here!
THE LEGENDARY KLOPEKS – Straight to Hell(2002 Pink Skull)
Once upon a time, in Niagara Falls Ontario, there was a band. This was a band unlike any other. They were fronted by future Guinness’ World Record holder Sweet Pepper Klopek. Sayeth the Huffington Post, “Sweet Pepper Klopek…has set many Guinness World Records [and] managed it again by lifting a 5.4 kilogram, or 12-pound, sledgehammer suspended from two huge fish hooks plunged through his cheeks.” Mixing punk rock, wrestling and humour, their best album is the 24 track Straight to Hell.
Every song ends with the words “fuck you!” and almost all are under three minutes. There are also several tracks only a few seconds in length, and yes, even they end with “fuck you”! Some sample song lyrics:
“Where’s my soup? Fuck you!” (“Where’s My Soup”, 10 seconds)
“Touch my dink in the ditch. Fuck you!” (“Touch My Dink in the Ditch”, 12 seconds)
“Turtlenecks and armpits. Fuck you!” (“Turtlenecks and Armpits”, 20 seconds)
For the record, “Where’s My Soup” has long been this writer’s favourite Klopeks tune. For a while I considered getting a “Where’s My Soup” tattoo. A tattoo shop in St. Catharines Ontario used to offer free tats to anyone getting Klopek ink. And I did consider it, but ultimately decided against. After all, how did I know that in 10 years time, my favourite song wouldn’t be “Terry and the Ass Pirates”? Or “Bush Party Hand Job”? Or “She Fell Off the Couch” which has an actual guitar solo?
The fact of the matter is, every song is fast, brittle, vulgar and incredibly fun. The lyrics are fuck-laden beyond conception. The Big Lebowski himself has never dropped so many F-bombs in just 33 minutes. Nothing is taken seriously. Most songs start with bass noodling via Lemon Kurri, moving on to Sweet Pepper screaming like a man possessed. Regardless, these are actually really good punk songs! There is nothing polite or safe on this CD — that’s why they called it Straight to Hell! No apologies. “When it’s all said and done and I’m dead and gone, life’s a fuckin’ game, and fuck you I won!”
Tea Party fans are often split on Transmission. There is little doubt that the previous Edges of Twilight album was a high water mark. With over an hour of exotic and varied folks-blues-rock hybrids, it’s a favourite for many. The band took a stark turn on Transmission, embracing electronics. Jeff Martin produced the album himself, and you could not expect a more opposite album to Twilight. Thanks to the opening single “Temptation”, the album was another hit. Most fans seemed OK with the changes.
At first, it doesn’t seem like anything is unusual in Tea Party land. “Temptation” (the album version anyway) opens with a fair bit of exotic strumming on some sort of stringed instrument, as the Tea Party often do. Then the samples and looped drums kick in, and they are huge! Middle Eastern exotics, radio noise, keyboards and a killer riff all combine with loops to create a new kind of Tea Party. So far so good — the experiment paid off.
Martin had a penchant for odd song titles on this album, like “Army Ants”. Vocals furiously distorted, this makes for a heavier Tea Party. Jeff Burrows is providing some excellent drum backbeats, but at times they are buried under other sounds. The title track “Transmission” is way better though, burning like electronic incense. Static, loops and acoustics return for “Psychopomp”, one of the five singles they released. While it takes a while to get there, “Psychopomp” boasts a powerfully melodramatic chorus, Martin roaring as he does. “Gyroscope” has a spinning sound, one of the more hypnotic tracks (and also a single). One of the more impressive singles was the ballad “Release”. This was eventually given an EP of its own which we’ll look at another time. A basic keyboard/drum ballad, it is simple and bleak but hard to forget. It almost reminds of early 80’s Robert Plant.
There isn’t a lot of variety and distinction between the songs. “Alarum” repeats the formula: Electronic effects, exotic sounds, roared-out chorus. This was the disappointing factor with Transmission. The band had established themselves with a diverse sound, but that sound is narrowed on Transmission. All the same ingredients are there, but they are focused by the electronic lens, which sharpens them but also bleaches them to all one colour. “Babylon” is one of the exceptions, with drum & bass elements, and off-kilter song structure. It was appropriately given a very bizarre music video. An interesting experiment, but not as affective a song as something simpler like “Release”.
The Tea Party had some fun in other ways too. They like hidden bonus tracks, but this time they didn’t stick one at the end. They stuck an instrumental (dubbed “Embryo”) at the end of track 8 (“Babylon”). It’s actually a cool little piece of music.
Since the Tea Party are an ever-evolving band, it was safe to assume they would not stay in the electronics lab forever. Their next album, Triptych, was different again. Transmission remains their most loop-heavy album to date. At least they did it at the right time — The Prodigy’s massive mainstream album The Fat of the Land was released mere months before. The public were ready and hungry for computer-precise beats and samples, and the Tea Party delivered a unique hybrid with their own brand of rock. For the most part, it worked.
THE TRAGICALLY HIP – Man Machine Poem (2016 Universal)
The title Man Machine Poem reveals something about the new Tragically Hip. The first song is entitled “Man”, and the last one “Machine”. This album is an epic poem — the “Man Machine” poem. It has a flow like a singular body of work, even though it is made up of individual songs. Like most Hip albums of late, it is a brooding work thick with power in its quiet grooves.
Sounding a bit like like classic Radiohead, “Man” opens the CD on a suitably weird note. Droning piano, strange echoey vocals…and I’m hypnotised immediately. Granted, the subconscious mind keeps trying to find meaning in the music. Now we all know the terrible news. That in mind, we’re not going to treat this album like a funeral. Brain cancer be damned, Gord Downie is doing that final tour, you know the one? The one that nobody has been able to buy tickets for except on StubHub for many times their original value. In other words, it’s a heavy atmosphere and you keep searching for hints and clues that are not there. “Man” is a brilliant track, showing that the Hip were continuing to push their own limits.
Just about every track on Man Machine Poem is brilliant. The first single “In A World Possessed by the Human Mind” sounds like something Bono wishes he had written. The fuse smoulders, but the song blasts open brightly on the chorus. Each song has its own character, but hard to define. “What Blue” is simply lovely, a summery track that is hard to forget. “In Sarnia” sounds more like “in the country”, but friends from back that way say that’s not too far from the mark. Passion turned up to 10, Gord lets it all out. The song is slow and quiet; all but Gord.
The days of “Little Bones” and “New Orleans is Sinking” are long behind now. The Hip don’t write albums like that anymore, but what they do create still has innate power. Listen to the acoustics and the slides blending with the electric guitars and steady beat of Johnny Fay. The Hip run like a well oiled…gotta say it…Man Machine. The older, wiser, and less loud Tragically Hip still rock, cranking it up when necessary. “Here, in the Dark” is a fine example of placing the explosive charges in the exact right spots. So is the growling “Hot Mic.” The energy is palpable. Even on a song called “Tired as Fuck”, there is energy in the air.
Man Machine Poem has an epic feel to it, from the strange start to the drawn out dramatic ending. It’s temping to say something like “best Hip album in years!” but they’ve never stopped making great albums.
WHITE WOLF – Endangered Species (1986 BMG Japan)
mikeladano.com 