Songs About Fucking is clearly amazing...ESPECIALLY when placed in the context of what else was going on in popular music -- including hard rock/heavy metal -- in the late 1980's. Insane rhythms. Monstrous noises. Angst, boredom, overbearing hormone-fueled energy and discontent all spewing forth in spoken word and primal screams.
That being said, I personally think this album sucks. I had a tough time listening to it, and I can't imagine every thinking, "Man, I need to listen to some Big Black right now." There was nothing to distinguish any of the songs from each other, at least not to my untrained ear. And if I had to give this a genre, I'd call it "Garbage Metal." Not because it's garbage (derogatory), but it genuinely sounds like the sonic representation of a garbage heap. Just piles and piles of noise.
As I said before, clearly these guys know what they are doing. Sharp rhythms cut through the massive wall of guitar, making it clear that this is not sheer masturbation...these songs are all compositions. But there's nothing appealing about it to me. If I was 16 and this was my older brothers' friends' band, I would be at every show. But I'm damn near 30 and I can't really take much away from this album other than "these metal-heads were way ahead of their time."
i think this album is GREAT. steve albini portrays himself here as a really bitter intellectual, full of a biting style of venom and angst that one rarely hears. production wise its really 80s, with a drum machine and guitars seemingly without midrange. and i honestly just find all this noise and anger it to be comforting and relaxing. although the second track i find a little off-putting, its a cover of the kraftwerk song 'the model,' and i cant tell if they're making fun of kraftwerk or not. either way, i still really enjoy listening to it.
albini went on to open his own recording studio, and worked on some really famous albums, like the pixies first album and 'in utero.' as such, he wrote this famous article about how bands get completely screwed by major record labels, even breaking down the finances. (http://www.negativland.com/albini.html)
he also aparently wrote a lot of very opinionated articles about music and contemporary bands. i just had to copy and paste this from wikipedia, as it perfectly exemplifies his philosophies:
"I don't give two splats of an old negro junkie's vomit for your politico-philosophical treatises, kiddies. I like noise. I like big-ass vicious noise that makes my head spin. I wanna feel it whipping through me like a fucking jolt. We're so dilapidated and crushed by our pathetic existence we need it like a fix."
lastly, he's actually really funny. i've heard some hilarious interviews with him, when he was in big black and afterwards, and i'm always left with some amazing quote or audible laughter. as an example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLhx2q9vQro
sarge man, he reminds me of you in a lot of ways. the extreme attitudes, the bitterness, the humor, the glasses, the 'devil may care' attitude.
it's so funny, the difference between listening to an album for a couple of days, versus listening to it here and there over a period of months.
I remember really liking this album upon first listen. But there's just no substitute for when an album becomes a part of your background noise. In this case, this album has simply remained on my Walkman, and the songs would randomly come on during my workouts or commutes.
Then instead of scrutinizing the hell out of it, tearing it apart and shining the light of interrogation upon it, I just kind of leave the song on, because I've heard it eight or nine times already and it's reasonably familiar.
I think there is something to be said for both ways of encountering music. We get different kinds of satisfaction from familiarity as we do from focus. I wonder which is the more meaningful measure of the music's importance or longevity -- whether it holds up when we dissect it, or whether we leave it on a year later when it comes on our shuffle.
pitchfork's top 100 of the 70's + top 100 of the 80's, considered, scrutinized, explored, assailed, defended, appreciated and deprecated, fussed over, held up high, kicked to the curb and held back up again. education by fire and a middle finger to disdain. tea, anyone?
songs about fucking?
ReplyDeletemore like songs about FUCKING AWESOME
This album sounds like what dance music for anthropomorphic early 90s MS-Dos computers would sound like.
ReplyDeleteSongs About Fucking is clearly amazing...ESPECIALLY when placed in the context of what else was going on in popular music -- including hard rock/heavy metal -- in the late 1980's. Insane rhythms. Monstrous noises. Angst, boredom, overbearing hormone-fueled energy and discontent all spewing forth in spoken word and primal screams.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I personally think this album sucks. I had a tough time listening to it, and I can't imagine every thinking, "Man, I need to listen to some Big Black right now." There was nothing to distinguish any of the songs from each other, at least not to my untrained ear. And if I had to give this a genre, I'd call it "Garbage Metal." Not because it's garbage (derogatory), but it genuinely sounds like the sonic representation of a garbage heap. Just piles and piles of noise.
As I said before, clearly these guys know what they are doing. Sharp rhythms cut through the massive wall of guitar, making it clear that this is not sheer masturbation...these songs are all compositions. But there's nothing appealing about it to me. If I was 16 and this was my older brothers' friends' band, I would be at every show. But I'm damn near 30 and I can't really take much away from this album other than "these metal-heads were way ahead of their time."
wow. apologies for the delay.
ReplyDeletei think this album is GREAT. steve albini portrays himself here as a really bitter intellectual, full of a biting style of venom and angst that one rarely hears. production wise its really 80s, with a drum machine and guitars seemingly without midrange. and i honestly just find all this noise and anger it to be comforting and relaxing. although the second track i find a little off-putting, its a cover of the kraftwerk song 'the model,' and i cant tell if they're making fun of kraftwerk or not. either way, i still really enjoy listening to it.
albini went on to open his own recording studio, and worked on some really famous albums, like the pixies first album and 'in utero.' as such, he wrote this famous article about how bands get completely screwed by major record labels, even breaking down the finances. (http://www.negativland.com/albini.html)
he also aparently wrote a lot of very opinionated articles about music and contemporary bands. i just had to copy and paste this from wikipedia, as it perfectly exemplifies his philosophies:
"I don't give two splats of an old negro junkie's vomit for your politico-philosophical treatises, kiddies. I like noise. I like big-ass vicious noise that makes my head spin. I wanna feel it whipping through me like a fucking jolt. We're so dilapidated and crushed by our pathetic existence we need it like a fix."
lastly, he's actually really funny. i've heard some hilarious interviews with him, when he was in big black and afterwards, and i'm always left with some amazing quote or audible laughter. as an example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLhx2q9vQro
sarge man, he reminds me of you in a lot of ways. the extreme attitudes, the bitterness, the humor, the glasses, the 'devil may care' attitude.
it's so funny, the difference between listening to an album for a couple of days, versus listening to it here and there over a period of months.
ReplyDeleteI remember really liking this album upon first listen. But there's just no substitute for when an album becomes a part of your background noise. In this case, this album has simply remained on my Walkman, and the songs would randomly come on during my workouts or commutes.
Then instead of scrutinizing the hell out of it, tearing it apart and shining the light of interrogation upon it, I just kind of leave the song on, because I've heard it eight or nine times already and it's reasonably familiar.
I think there is something to be said for both ways of encountering music. We get different kinds of satisfaction from familiarity as we do from focus. I wonder which is the more meaningful measure of the music's importance or longevity -- whether it holds up when we dissect it, or whether we leave it on a year later when it comes on our shuffle.