Mesopotamia
The B-52's
Warner Bros. MINI 3641
1982
I was at a Key Losers show in January and at the end of the set, Katy Davidson plugged her Ipod into her amplifier and started blasting "Mesopotamia" while dancing and singing along with it. That was a lot of fun. I hadn't heard the song in many years and had forgotten how good it was. I don't really listen to any of my B-52's albums much any more, but there was a time when they were one of my favorite bands. When I was at Cal, you couldn't go to a party without hearing them at some point on the stereo. There was even an elaborately stupid dance that was created for "Rock Lobster." They always were a great dance band, but I mostly dug them for their twangy guitar sound, vocal harmonies and sense of humor. I don't recall anyone ever playing this album at a party though and I even remember some of my acquaintances complaining about it. I never understood that because I thought it was wonderful, as good as anything they had ever done. It was produced by David Byrne and reportedly the band clashed with him over the direction of the album which is why it is a mini-album rather than a full length. Despite the friction, I think the collaboration is a big success, the surf/retro dance music of the group is augmented by an emphasis on percussion and funkiness with stunning results. The driving beat of "Loveland" with its powerful rhythm section anchoring Cindy Wilson's soaring vocal gets me hopping. "Deep Sleep" goes exotica even featuring a sample from Martin Denny. Kate Pierson delivers the dreamy lyrics over a hypnotic beat. Side one ends with the title track where Fred Schneider finally makes his appearance at the mike. It is classic B-52's with its hilarious lyrics, Schneider's mannered vocal supported by some creative background singing from Pierson and Wilson, and a relentless dance groove. One of my all time favorite B-52's songs. Side two starts with "Cake," another classic. The ladies lasciviously croon about making cakes while the horns and rhythm section deliver another funky foundation for their verbal hijinks. It is great fun and more than a little sexy. "Throw That Beat In The Garbage Can" is about an irresistible beat that is driving Schneider crazy. I can see why as the music backs him up with another powerful dance groove driven by some great bass riffs. I just can't sit still while it is playing. The album ends all too soon with Cindy Wilson belting out "Nip It In the Bud" over more kinetic funk. It is another hyper-propulsive song that gets me twitching and shaking like I'm having a seizure. It is really a shame that this project was cut short. Judging from the six outstanding songs it produced, it had the potential to be the best B-52's album ever. Despite it's brevity it is among my favorites of all their albums. Recommended to people whose favorite Talking Heads album is "Remain In Light."
Call of the West
Wall of Voodoo
IRS SP70023
1982
I saw a Stan Ridgway show over the summer. I was actually going to see Michelle Shocked who was opening for him but I stuck around to check out his act. I've never been a fan, in fact I used to find him kind of irritating so I was pleasantly surprised to find that I really enjoyed the show. He is an entertaining, even compelling performer. So I dug out this record and gave it a spin. Basically the only reason I have it is that I was a big fan of IRS Records back in the New Wave days and I would buy practically any record they put out. I bought this but didn't like it all that much, mostly because I was annoyed by Stan, or as he called himself back then Stanard, Ridgway's voice which I would describe as a cross between David Byrne and Fred Schneider filtered through Ian Curtis. I find as he has gotten older the voice suits him or maybe I'm just more open to his mannered style of singing. This record appeals to me now, I have a bigger problem with the 80s synth pop sound on it than I do Ridgway's singing. The best song on the album is the most famous song in his repertoire, the New Wave classic "Mexican Radio." Like many of the songs on this album, it has a bit of a film noir feel to it which has been a popular motif with Ridgway throughout his career. This song is insanely catchy, hear it once and you will hear it forever. The film noir influence is very pronounced on "Lost Weekend" which sounds better live where Ridgway gives it a more dramatic interpretation than on this album. Like a lot of Ridgway's best songs it has a strong narrative, his music has a cinematic feel to it. This is particularly true of the excellent closing song, "Call of the West." This epic song is influenced by westerns and also captures the desolation of the Southern California desert were Ridgway was born. It features one of Ridgway's best vocals. The western influence is very strong on the instrumental "On Interstate 15" which is the road that goes from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. It sounds like a psychedelic western soundtrack. "Factory" opens with a howling harmonica reminiscent of a Morricone spaghetti western soundtrack, but the song that follows is a dark tale of modern life, part film noir and part suburban nightmare. "Hands of Love" reminds me of the Talking Heads, a bouncy observation of ordinary everyday weirdness. "Tomorrow," "Look at their Way," "Spy World" and "They Don't Want Me" are lively tunes with that big New Wave beat but full of atmosphere and sardonic lyrics, intelligent music you can dance to. This record sounds better than a lot of records from that era and I think Ridgway deserves credit for that. He has so much enthusiasm and drama in his singing style, it gives feeling and resonance to his synth pop. The band is strong as well, they play with taste and restraint, virtues in short supply in the pop music scene in the early 1980s. Recommended for Talking Heads fans who dig Sergio Leone.
Chronic Town
R.E.M.
I.R.S. SP 70502
1982
Discovering college radio was a big deal for me. Even in the relatively hip San Francisco Bay Area, the commercial radio stations were not playing a lot of New Wave music. You'd hear an occasional track by the Clash or Blondie, but you'd have to hear a bunch of songs by the likes of the Eagles or the Doobie Brothers too. College radio stations not only played cutting edge New Wave stuff but well-curated oldies as well, you'd hear the 13th Floor Elevators or the Chocolate Watchband just as much as the Damned or the Ramones on some stations. I heard a lot of new music this way, that hasn't changed - I still mostly listen to college radio stations even though I'm long out of college. It was through a college radio station that I discovered R.E.M., my favorite 1980s band. I heard "Wolves, Lower" and it floored me. It sounded like the perfect song, the jangly guitar, the relentless hooks, the evocative yet mysterious vocals, the driving beat. I loved it, but I missed who the artist was. I heard it again a few weeks later and again I missed who it was or maybe I just didn't understand the name - what kind of band names themselves R.E.M.? The song stuck with me and I would look through new records looking for a song called "I'm Sailing Over" which is how I misheard "House in order" from the song's chorus. A few months later I heard "Radio Free Europe" which blew me away and this time I heard that the artist was R.E.M.. I bought "Murmur" the next time I went to the record store and loved it. I kept buying the I.R.S. albums as they came out but ignored the funny EP with the gargoyle on the cover because I didn't buy EPs or singles, I just wanted full length albums. Finally I broke down and bought it when I saw a used copy. I put it on the turntable and was flabbergasted to hear that great song I never forgot about. "Wolves, Lower" thrilled me then and it thrills me now. I still consider it my favorite R.E.M. song. Spinning the rest of the EP I realized that I had heard "Gardening at Night" and "1,000,000" before on the radio as well. After that I lost my prejudice about EPs. The early R.E.M. were often criticized for their inscrutable or incomprehensible lyrics not to mention Michael Stipe's disinterest in enunciation, but I considered that a virtue. Among the five tracks on this record, there is not a single song that I really know the meaning of, heck there isn't even one I can understand without a lyric sheet. There are no love songs, there are no obvious statements of any sort. I just pick up stray sentences and phrases, all of which I find striking and compelling. As befits the band's name, I view the end result as dreamlike and poetic. There are thousands of pop albums full of silly love songs, it is nice to have one that is different. Just looking at the titles of the early R.E.M. songs is more like looking at a filmography for an experimental filmmaker than a discography. How many other records before 1982 would have titles like "Wolves, Lower" or "Carnival of Sorts (Boxcars)." I can only imagine what your typical AOR radio station programmer of that era would say if someone asked him to start playing a song called "Gardening at Night." I greatly admire Stipe's unusual vision and use of language. I play this record all the time and I never get tired of it. All five songs are terrific. I consider R.E.M.'s period of time at I.R.S. records to represent one of the most significant bodies of work in the history of American rock and this is an essential part of it. It is the sound that launched countless other college rock bands - the chiming guitars, obscure lyrics, moaned vocals, straight ahead rhythms, and lack of solos and other rock star posturing - they basically invented a whole school of alternative rock. Recommended for Byrds fans who dig surrealism.
