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General => General Music Discussion => Topic started by: Ruba on July 23, 2019, 09:32:15 AM
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Alright, this is the thing I was talking about in the 80s album topic earlier. The thing is, I love 90s rock/alternative music and want to be sharing some of that love. In this topic I'll be presenting popular songs from the 90s, from different genres. Depending on the song I might talking about the band themselves, origins of the song, music video etc. I'll try to have at least three write-ups per week. Oh, and I do take requests but won't guarantee whenever I'll get to 'em. If it's an artist/song I was planning to cover, I'll bump it up on the shortlist.
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MINISTRY
JESUS BUILT MY HOTROD
1991
(https://img.discogs.com/yczBHm_N3lx1yDR2_8A9j5f31-U=/fit-in/600x536/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-44320-1462071664-7881.jpeg.jpg)
Today’s song is really weird and it is really baffling to me it actually was a hit. According to Al Jourgensen (remember, he’s not the most reliable narrator given the amount of drugs he’s done during his lifetime), Ministry was given a hefty budget by their record label Warner Bros for recording a follow-up to their 1990 record The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste. The problem was, most of the money went up the band members’ arms and noses. The band had nothing to show for the money and the record company was getting understandably antsy. Al did have one demo however, but it had a really weird rhythm (6/4 guitars over 4/4 drum beat) and no vocals. One day Al had invited Butthole Surfers vocalist Gibby Haynes to the recording studio and when he showed up, he was drunk off his tits. Anyway, apparently Al wanted Gibby to try singing something over the demo. Gibby was so drunk he kept falling of his chair and the result was incomprehensible gibberish (Gibby was actually singing lyrics to an unrecorded Surfers’ song that went on the setlists under the name Watlo. Watlo was later released on their 1993 album Independent Worm Saloon, retitled as Some Dispute Over T-Shirt Sales (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxohROgPAU8). It’s a nice little song with some great guitar work by Paul Leary).
The record label was not to keen on the crazy hillbilly “ding ding dang dong”-song, but decided to release it anyway. Surprisingly, it became a decent-sized hit and their biggest so far, hitting no. 19 on the Billboard Alternative chart. Ministry got their act together and recorded Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs, which is their best-selling album and an industrial music classic.
It might sound like I am playing this song down, but that is not my intention. It is fucking odd yes, but it is AWESOME. The fast driving beat smells of burning rubber and gasoline, Gibby’s weirdo lyrics are whole lotta fun and the song has two of my all-time favourite guitar solos. While the album version is fine and dandy, I tend to think that the essential version of the song is the Red Line/White Line remix, featuring additional samples from movies Blue Velvet and Wise Blood and drag racing. Elements of this remix are used in the music video.
The music video itself is cool but not spectacular, featuring a lot of car and racing-related stock footage and the band with Gibby performing over it. One thing I don’t like about it is how the intro monologue is butchered (Jesus was the architect…).
Why did I feel like starting with this song? Well, I saw Ministry last Wednesday and this song has been a rarity in the live sets. Probably because only Gibby can sing it right. Last time I had checked it was played live in 2006. However, it had resurfaced this tour leg and to my complete surprise they started playing… the Red Line/White Line version. Damn the whole place went nuts when the song kicked in proper! Even though this is probably not one of my favourite Ministry songs and is hardly indicative of their overall sound of that era it’s still great fun. Rev that engine baby, we’re gonna ding dang my dang-a-ling-long!
One more little tidbit I find amusing/cool: promo copy of the single came with a quart of motor oil (https://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2006/09/this_week_on_eb_1.html). A brilliant piece of marketing dare I say. The can itself had the warning: Not to be used as sexual lubricant. Classy…
Music video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXCh9OhDiCI)
Jesus Built My Hotrod Red Line/White Line version on Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/track/6gQCNU1QSkOjivemxKbl5n)
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:corn :corn :corn
The 90s were... interesting. This will be fun to follow.
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Speaking of the 90's and the Butthole Surfers, I love that song "Pepper".
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I love this song and I loved that write-up. I never knew Gibby sang on it.
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I'll follow this but Ministry is one band I never got into. What I heard didn't interest me.
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I'll follow too, but if this is the start we've got, I'll likely not be participating much. The music that originated in the 90s never really much resonated with me.
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Speaking of the 90's and the Butthole Surfers, I love that song "Pepper".
That one might come up sooner or later. ;) In the meantime, Todd in the Shadows made an episode about Pepper in his One Hit Wonderland show and I think it did the band and the song justice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIjE8R_j5h4&t=872s
And thanks for everyone following. I know the 90s might not be the most popular topic around here, but I want to cover songs from many different genres and I'm quite sure there'll be something for everyone.
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GARBAGE
QUEER
1995
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b2/Garbagequeercd1.png/220px-Garbagequeercd1.png)
Garbage is an American alternative rock band, founded by Butch Vig, Steve Marker and Duke Erikson in 1993. Vig and Marker had been more successful as their careers as record producers and engineers than playing music. The three men had been making remixes together before deciding to form a band. They first had Vig on vocals but decided they wanted a female vocalist. Someone who isn’t too girly or aggressive, but more like low-key and seductive…
(https://cps-static.rovicorp.com/3/JPG_400/MI0001/393/MI0001393027.jpg?partner=allrovi.com)
Marker saw a music video for Suffocate Me (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO-YCm4GXw8) by Scottish alternative rock band Angelfish on MTV and convinced that their vocalist Shirley Manson could be just what they needed. They got in contact with Manson and when she first didn’t know who Vig was, she was urged to take her copy of Nirvana’s Nevermind and check the liner notes…
The band recorded their self-titled debut album in 1994-95, and initially wanted to be only a studio project. However, while they were filming a video for their first single Vow director Samuel Bayer asked them to actually play the song live, something they had never done before. The band liked the experience and decided to tour on the album.
The song I want to present here is the album’s third single, Queer. While the first two singles Vow and Only Happy When It Rains had more of a rock edge, Queer has a trip-hop beat and loungy keyboards. I think it showcases the band’s excellent production skills, especially with the more ominous second verse that leads into more aggressive version of the chorus. Actually, every chorus is more powerful than the last one. The bridge adds some abrasive guitar riffing to the mix and leads to the last chorus, a loud and chaotic climax for the song. I guess what I’m trying to say is that the song is a small journey and the band is doing masterful job in changing the dynamics. And a big part of it is Shirley’s performance, ranging from seductive to spiteful and taunting.
Also, I absolutely love the music video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ppiohVRZ0s). The video, shot from the first-person perspective of some rather dapper-looking young fellow shows him walking into Shirley on the street. Shirley gestures him to follow her (to be fair, I’d do the same) and leads him to an old mansion, shoves him upstairs and knocks him down and prepares to do something unspeakable while her bandmates perform around her… cutting his glorius mane with an electric razor. In the end she drags his unconscious body outside. I know this synopsis might sound silly, but to me it is one of the most intense videos ever. It really nails the ominous and darkly sexual vibe of the song. The video version also has a short break between the bridge and the last chorus, which I wish was on the studio recording. Oh, and there’s a stinger at the end showing that the guy was alright and apparently pretty happy with his makeover, so no harm done.
While Garbage had their biggest success in the 90s and has been on hiatus a few times, they are still releasing new music and touring. And I actually think they’re very good still, making some good music while not sounding like an 90s nostalgia act.
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Ok now this is my jam. I think Shirley has this sultry voice and sex appeal that goes on forever.
I love the modern sound with classic style writing. Short, but powerful.
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:corn :corn :corn
The 90s were... interesting. This will be fun to follow.
I'll follow this but Ministry is one band I never got into. What I heard didn't interest me.
Same goes for Garbage but I'm sure there's some records that I appreciate to come.
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Garbage was pretty hit or miss for me.
I loved Jesus Built My Hotrod, though. Definitely a hype song. Came out right after I started college, so there were a shitload of Ministry fans around all the time.
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I'll follow too, but if this is the start we've got, I'll likely not be participating much. The music that originated in the 90s never really much resonated with me.
At all.
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I love the 90s, I'll be following for sure and give these songs a listen :metal
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I love the 90s, I'll be following for sure and give these songs a listen :metal
:metal
And thanks everyone for the comments, I appreciate them. I'll put up another writeup in a couple of hours.
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PRIMUS
WYNONA'S BIG BROWN BEAVER
1995
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/23/Wynona%27s_Big_Brown_Beaver_%28Primus_single_-_cover_art%29.jpg)
Primus is an alternative/funk/rock/metal/something I don’t know man band, which most famous line-up consists of Tim Alexander (drums), Larry LaLonde (guitar) and Les Claypool (bass, vocals, bad haircuts). While the first incarnation of Primus came to be already in 1984, they released their first studio album Frizzle Fry six years later. Their virtuoso playing, Claypool’s nasal singing voice and weird lyrics about the cats, race car drivers and fishermen drew the attention of rock fans and by 1993 the band was pretty big, hitting the top ten of Billboard Hot 100 with their third record Pork Soda, getting regular airplay on MTV and headlining the Lollapalooza festival that year. Today’s song however comes from the follow-up album Tales from the Punchbowl (geez, why all the food-and-drink album titles, they’re almost like non-parody Weird Al).
Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver is their biggest hit, charting on both Alternative Songs and Mainstream Rock charts and receiving a Grammy nomination for the Best Hard Rock Song. While it is no less weird than general output (just look at that damn title!) it is weird in a delightful sense, with it’s bouncy upbeat drums and interweaving bass and guitar lines, being some sort of weird mix of Southern rock, funk and metal. But most importantly, it’s fun as heck. Lyrically it is one of those Claypool’s almost non-sensical stories, telling the tale of a woman and her… actually, I’ll come back to that later.
Because the biggest reason I picked this song ahead of some of their others is the music video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYDfwUJzYQg). It is simply glorious. Seriously, if you haven’t seen it yet, I recommend you to take five minutes of your time and watch it. (By the way, if you got any cool/cheesy 90s music videos in mind, hit me up. Great music videos might become bit of a pattern in this topic). It was inspired by old Duracell commercials (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_X25g_EmSE) featuring a family of porcelain-like looking toys. In the video, Primus play the role of three cowboys performing the song and doing some cowboy activities like riding (rocking) horses, shooting empty bottles and playing cards. The song’s verses are done as humorously animated karaoke video. The costumes used by the band were quite cumbersome, so the band played along a slowed down version of the song and the footage was sped up during editing.
I reckon one reason for the song’s popularity (at least initially), aside it being pretty great and having amazing video is simply the title. However, it is not an innuendo and the lyrics are not sexual at all. It is simply a story of a woman and her beloved pet beaver. Why she keeps a beaver, well you probably have to go ask Les Claypool that. It’s not like he hadn’t written quirky lyrics before. Also the titular woman is not based on anyone on particular, although some believed that it was supposed to be actress Winona Ryder (even though the names are spelled differently). One of those people were Winona’s then-boyfriend, Soul Asylum vocalist Dave Pirner who allegedly renamed one of his band’s songs as Les Claypool is a Fucking Asshole during concerts. Man, some people just don’t have a sense of humour…
Primus’s popularity dwindled towards the end of 90s and the band went on hiatus in 2000. After a couple of short comebacks, the band reunited in 2010 and are still making new music and touring, currently scheduled to appear on Slayer’s final tour next fall.
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I saw them on this tour. They were a band you left thinking I saw something unique. No one sounded like them. That 3 album Run of STSOC, Pork Soda and this album are a wild ride to one's ears.
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I imagine Hell is that music video, but with more fire. That is frightening.
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Punchbowl might be my least favorite Primus record. While I do like Wynona, my choice off this album would be Southbound Pachyderm. I love that song.
Funny about the genre thing too. In my digital library I have their genre as Unclassifiable. I have also seen some media programs that actually have a genre of Primus.
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I did buy Pork Soda.
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When I need a fix of ludicrous-hillbilly-funk-progressive-pop-metal I always reach for Primus...a genre unto themselves. While this song is great I prefer a lot of their other music over it. The video, though, is perfection!
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I've heard a lot of (mostly good) things about this band, and I've tried some songs here and there but nothing has convinced me yet that I should go deeper. Let's see if this one works for me.
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I imagine Hell is that music video, but with more fire. That is frightening.
:lol
Different strokes I guess. I think it's hilarious.
Funny about the genre thing too. In my digital library I have their genre as Unclassifiable. I have also seen some media programs that actually have a genre of Primus.
Yeah, their genre is quite hard to nail down, although I like Podaar's take.
ludicrous-hillbilly-funk-progressive-pop-metal
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I love Primus. Definitely not for everyone, but as I get older, I like craftsmanship and skill more than other things, and Claypool is nothing if not skilled.
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Garbage: "Only Happy When It Rains" is an underrated jewel. There are like four melodies in that song that could have been choruses on their own. I LOVE that song (and the band). Plus I have a thing for Shirley Manson. I think she's sexy as all get out.
Primus: LOVE them too. Sailing... and "Animals.." are my favorites (I'm partial to the Tim Alexander material). i saw them open for Rush and it was stellar. I also got to meet Les before the "Claypool Lennon Delirium" show in New Haven. He's a nice enough guy, but he walks to his own drummer, if you pardon the pun. I think if you hear "Primus" and aren't into it, there's not a lot of other places to go. Even the Les solo/collaboration stuff is still in that vein of weird vocals, weird lyrics, trippy music. Some of it is more jazz oriented (the stuff with Bernie Worrell and Buckethead) but it's not like Genesis or Floyd where there are distinct eras.
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FILTER
HEY MAN NICE SHOT
1995
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/3a/Hey_Man%2C_Nice_Shot_%28Filter_single_-_cover_art%29.jpg)
Filter is an American industrial rock band, formed by former Nine Inch Nails touring guitarist Richard Patrick and Brian Liesegang in 1993. While Trent Reznor was taking his band into more experimental direction, Patrick wanted to do something more guitar-heavy. The band released their debut Short Bus in 1995 and it spawned a surprising hit single Hey Man Nice Shot (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9mJ82x_l-E), which reached number 76 on Billboard Hot 100 and charted on both Alternative Songs and Mainstream rock charts.
HMNS is actually quite dark for a hit song. Driven by an ominous bass line, it explodes into a furious chorus with a barrage of power chords and Patrick’s trademark hoarse screaming. Lyrically the song is somewhat controversial. When it was released, some people thought it was written about Kurt Cobain’s suicide, but Patrick has always refuted this. In fact, it is inspired the public suicide of Pennsylvania State Treasurer R. Budd Dwyer. In 1987 Dwyer was accused of bribery and was facing a sentence of 55 years in prison. A day before his sentence was due, he held a press conference in which he was expected to resign from his position. During his speech, he produced a .357 pistol, assured the audience that he wasn’t going to hurt them and shot himself in the mouth. The incident was filmed by multiple news cameras and at least one station aired the footage unaltered. It is speculated that he was driven into his decision by the fact that if he was going to die, his family would receive a large death benefit which would grant them financial stability. Was he a crook who couldn’t face the life behind bars or a man of integrity who believed he was right and was not going to do time for a crime he didn’t commit? Answer is probably somewhere in between.
I’ve actually never seen the video and don’t want to, because I am squeamish about real world violence, but apparently the shot in the head did not deform his face. Patrick, who probably had seen the video on some tape being traded around, apparently thought the shot was “nice” for that reason, leading to rather darkly humorous title.
While I do like this song, it’s not really one of my favourites from the band. The next single Dose (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6xlWt0hiJw), which sadly didn’t gain any traction, is much better in my opinion. It’s a big middle finger towards people who try to convert other people into their faith. Next time someone asks me whether I have a minute to talk about Jesus Christ, I’ll probably quote the opening lines: “I believe in something else/Now go bother someone else.”
Liesegang left Filter in 1997 and Patrick assembled a full band around him. The band’s second album Title of Record (one of my all-time favourite album titles) featured the band’s biggest hit Take a Picture (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8MAHQhKe7Q), which became a bona fide pop hit. It’s more laid-back than most of their oeuvre, but lyrically it described an incident where Patrick got flat-out drunk on a plane and started stripping naked. Patrick had a serious drinking problem and it escalated so bad that in 2002, he had to cancel the band’s world tour and enter rehab. He’s been clean and sober since.
Patrick reassembled Filter in 2007 and they’ve been going ever since with a revolving door line-up. Couple of years ago he had reconciled with Liesegang and they started working on a stylistic follow-up to Short Bus album, but sadly the project was terminated because of the PledgeMusic debacle.
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I've always enjoyed this song. A lot.
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I have two Filter albums and I don't listen to them much, but I like them when I do. I love that song "Take A Picture".
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I'll assume everybody knows who Richard Patrick's brother is?
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I don't even know who Richard Patrick is..
Never heard of this band.
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I'll assume everybody knows who Richard Patrick's brother is?
T-1000
I don't even know who Richard Patrick is..
Never heard of this band.
Huh, who'd a thunk?
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:lol
Jesus H, Tim! Lol.
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:lol
Jesus H, Tim! Lol.
Totally serious. I have no clue.
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:lol
Jesus H, Tim! Lol.
Totally serious. I have no clue.
Tim,
If you read Ruba's write-up of the song we are discussing, you will know. :biggrin:
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I just noticed this thread today, but it seems I haven't missed much. If I've heard any song on any of the four albums mentioned thus far, I wouldn't know it, and I've never even heard of Filter.
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Tim,
If you read Ruba's write-up of the song we are discussing, you will know. :biggrin:
So I clicked on both songs. I have definitely never heard Hey Man Nice Shot, but I definitely recognize Take A Picture. I think that has been played on my work intercom over the years. I have definitely never heard of Filter.
WTF is up with the 90's? I mean you guys are more fogey-er than me. How do you even know this stuff?
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Honestly. We are open to other styles of music. So while you tuned out, we tuned in.
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I bought Short Bus on the strength of Hey Man, but for some reason this is one of the very few albums I sold. I had a brief streak during those years where if an album didn't grab me on the first listen I would abandon it and potentially pawn it. Unfortunately (or fortunately), I have ended up reacquiring many of them when I revisited them as an older person. This is one I still have not. I actually don't think I still have this song and I like this song.
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Honestly. We are open to other styles of music. So while you tuned out, we tuned in.
Let's just say that I was in a personal Ice Age in 1995.
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Right, and for me, I had no kids (our one regret) but you had greater responsibilities.
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Right, and for me, I had no kids (our one regret) but you had greater responsibilities.
It wasn't that. My life was upside fucking down. My kids weren't born until '01 and '03.
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Well. You were cryogenically frozen then.
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TAC livestream:
(https://media2.giphy.com/media/eJLXXjN1ZGS4g/giphy.gif)
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That's a cool song but I never knew the background to it.
I came to know Filter because of the X-Files, One (Is The Lonliest Number) was featured in the movie. I really like the first three records, with Title Of Record being my favorite. Never really followed them after their hiatus.
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About the 90's and being "fogey-er": I traveled a lot for work, so I got forceably exposed to a lot of stuff that I'm not sure I would have otherwise. So there's that. Not a lot of it stuck, though, to be honest. If I named my top 25 bands (though I don't really think that way, so that would be hard) I'm not sure one of them started and had their best decade in the 90's. MAYBE Pearl Jam, but I doubt it very very highly, since I think they only have two and a half great records.
As for Filter, it's worth seeking out the "Army Of Anyone" record. It's basically Richard Patrick and the DeLeo brothers from Stone Temple Pilots (with Ray Luzier - DLR and I think Korn, don't quote me on that because the only Korn I like is in my stool - in on drums). It probably won't rock your world or anything, but it's a good record.
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Yes, Korn now for Ray. That's an awesome album Stadler.
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I'm waiting for 90s power metal to show up. :neverusethis:
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I'm waiting for 90s power metal to show up. :neverusethis:
Can't we go to your thread for that? :neverusethis:
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:lol
Bosk posted Rust In Peace in the 80’s thread. That’s a 90’s album!
Ruba, where’s the metal??
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Ruba, where’s the metal??
Like I joke with my old man all the time... if it was up your ass you'd know! "Maybe not!" :lol
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Ruba, where’s the metal??
Like I joke with my old man all the time... if it was up your ass you'd know! "Maybe not!" :lol
Just like a Progressive Insurance commercial, you're turning into your parents.
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Ruba, where’s the metal??
I do have some metal bands planned, but I'll be mostly focusing on songs that got airplay on MTV (or at least I assume did, since I wasn't really watching it before early 00s). At least for now.
I'm waiting for 90s power metal to show up. :neverusethis:
:lol
You might have to wait for a while. Although I might leave the keys to this thread under the doormat, if i.e. my studying schedule gets too hectic during the winter. ;D
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Ruba, where’s the metal??
Like I joke with my old man all the time... if it was up your ass you'd know! "Maybe not!" :lol
Just like a Progressive Insurance commercial, you're turning into your parents.
Why should I get a new phone? This one works perfectly fine. <flip>
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Ruba, where’s the metal??
Filter is metal, just not the metal you listen to. ;)
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Ruba, where’s the metal??
Filter is metal, just not the metal you listen to. ;)
And so is Ministry. :lol
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Tim's metal is in a time capsule folks. :lol
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I just noticed this thread today, but it seems I haven't missed much. If I've heard any song on any of the four albums mentioned thus far, I wouldn't know it, and I've never even heard of Filter.
I just realized that the stuff that's been posted thus far are songs, not albums. Oops...
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Hey Man Nice Shot was definitely one of my favorite songs of this era. However, I was never able to get into any of Filter's other stuff.
I've seen the Dwyer suicide, but I didn't make the association at the time I first heard the song.
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I think this is the first time I've heard HMNS. I've read about it but never heard it. Not what I expected. Definitely sounds 90s. The word I'd use to describe it is 'grimey.' I like the riff.
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I always loved this song from Filter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxLflgI3A1U
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I always loved this song from Filter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxLflgI3A1U
Yeah, that's a good one :metal
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SHAKEPEARS SISTER
STAY
1992
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c5/Shakespears_Sister_Stay.jpg)
Shakespears Sister is an Irish/American pop duo, that started as a solo project of former Bananarama (yeah, that one (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4-1ASpdT1Y)) member Sioban Fahey. The group’s name comes from The Smith’s song Shakespeare’s Sister (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrN__75lajY) and the misspelling was first accidental, but Fahey decided to run with it. Shakespears Sister started gaining steam after American vocalist Marcy Levy (going with a stage name Marcella Detroit) joined forces with Fahey. The duo’s biggest moment of glory was the second single from their second album Hormonally Yours, called Stay.
The two women have drastically different voices, with Fahey having deep, husky and low-key style of vocals while Detroit’s vocal stylings are clearly influenced by soul music, she can hit very high notes and generally sings with a lot of flair. In Stay Detroit is singing the lead vocals for most of the song, professing her undying love to a man in verses over delicate string and synth backing. In the song’s video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCYaALgW80c), she sings the song to her lover who lies comatose in a bed. Fahey joins in in the bridge, where the song takes more sinister vibe with an industrial-esque beat, distorted guitar and Siobhan singing in rather threatening tone. In the music video she appears as some sort of angel of death coming to claim the poor man’s soul. The two women tussle over the man’s life and in the end, he wakes up and embraces Detroit, while Fahey walks away from the scene.
Sounds dramatic, innit? Well. Two things make the video ridiculously campy. Fahey is dressed in a golden glittery one-piece that would’ve been tacky in the eighties, never mind in 1992. Also, her acting is very hammy. For what could’ve been very dark and threatening scene, it becomes pretty silly. But maybe that was the idea all along.
Stay was a smash hit in UK, staying eight weeks at number one and also hit number four in Billboard Hot 100. But the band’s moment at the top was fleeting. The two women were falling out and eventually in 1993 Fahey ended their partnership during an acceptance speech at Ivor Novello awards (which was delivered by publisher, she didn’t attend the show). Consquently, women did not speak to each other for 25 years. Fahey did later revive Shakespears Sister moniker for little to no fanfare.
However, they finally spoke with each other and made up their differences in 2018, releasing a compilation album with two new songs. The music video to All the Queen’s Horses (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fg8mVXmmmFs) actually references the music video to Stay multiple times.
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First one that I don't know. It's funny, I did recently read the story on them and their breakup and reconciliation.
Checked out some samples and nothing rings a bell. Also, doesn't really sound like something that would have grabbed me back then, as it didn't now.
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I know that song, it is okay when it comes on the radio, but nothing that I actively reach for. Haven't heard other songs from them.
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Even though I grew up through the 90's, everything so far I have no real connections with. Haven't even heard of the last one.
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I know that song, it is okay when it comes on the radio, but nothing that I actively reach for. Haven't heard other songs from them.
To be fair, I'm not too big on them either. I wanted to include this basically because I like cheesy/cool music videos and the story of them breaking up at the peak of their popularity and doing the silent treatment for decades until finally reconciliating is interesting.
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As for Filter, it's worth seeking out the "Army Of Anyone" record. It's basically Richard Patrick and the DeLeo brothers from Stone Temple Pilots (with Ray Luzier - DLR and I think Korn, don't quote me on that because the only Korn I like is in my stool - in on drums). It probably won't rock your world or anything, but it's a good record.
I've been aware of them, but even though It Doesn't Seem to Matter is a real banger have never really ventured further. Listening to their only album now and yeah, it's solid mid-00s alternative rock.
I'm going to cover Stone Temple Pilots at some point too. I very rarely listen to them but I like what I've heard and would certainly want to give them a fair shot.
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Nope, I got nothing.
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Even though I grew up through the 90's, everything so far I have no real connections with. Haven't even heard of the last one.
Never heard of the song or the band....
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that video got a fair amount of play on MTV/VH1. I remember being creeped right the f out by her look/facial expressions.
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I'll check the video out later and see if it rings a bell.
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I watched the video. That was absolutely awful in pretty much every way.
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I never heard of them until I saw them on the Graham Norton show. One of those not popular in one continent but popular in another bands.
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MEGADETH
A TOUT LE MONDE
1994
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/16/Megadeth_-_A_Tout_Le_Monde.jpg)
After Dave Mustaine was kicked out of Metallica, he seemed to have been fuelled to one-up Metallica with his new band Megadeth any way he could. Their debut Killing Is My Business… And Business Is Good! was Mustaine’s attempt to make the fastest, heaviest and meanest music out there by the time. When Metallica made their proggiest record …And Justice for All, Megadeth countered with Rust in Peace. And when Metallica found mainstream popularity with their self-titled record and hit the number one on Album Charts, Dave did not want to be left eating dust. In the end, their answer to The Black Album, Countdown to Extinction was held back from the top spot by Billy Ray Cyrus. What a shame. I used to hold CTE in a pariah status because it was part of those streamlined early 90s record by bands that used to rule the world in late 80s (Metallica, Empire). But to be fair, it is a fine album and much better than Metallica’s Black Album. But I’ll get back to that sometime later.
Because today’s song is from their follow-up effort, Youthanasia. Unfortunately for Dave, metal was out of fashion in 1994 and the album peaked at only #4 and neither of the singles had notable chart success. In two years’ time, Metallica would have another #1 album in Load and a top 10 single, so this was a battle Dave lost. Musically the album was darker than its predecessor and heavy, in a chugging mid-tempo way. It’s also probably my favourite Deth album.
While Youthanasia is somewhat divisive album, the second single from the album, A Tout le Monde (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vucEwLHm_VY) has shown enduring power and become a fan favourite. Unlike almost every Megadeth song up to that point, it shuns heavy riffing and instead focuses more on the vocals and mournful yet slightly hopeful atmosphere. And to my mind, it might have the best chorus of their whole discography. I’ll never get tired to that arpeggiated lead guitar. The lyrics were slightly controversial, since they can be read as a suicide letter but I believe they are about a dying man’s last words. MTV banned the video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aU-dKoFZT0A) anyway, probably because it shows people jumping into their graves. Also, I haven’t really thought this before, but if this song was released two years earlier it might’ve been a hit. It has sort of similar vibe than Alice in Chains’ Dirt album.
There’s also two alternate versions of the song released. Youthanasia’s 2004 remaster has an old demo (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8K5ajNXQjk) as a bonus track, with different lyrics for chorus. Apparently Dave’s French wasn’t spot on and a friend of his helped to shape the lyrics to their final form. There’s also a complete re-recording on their 2007 album United Abominations called A Tout le Monde (Set Me Free), with Cristina Scabbia of Lacuna Coil on co-lead vocals. Personally I think it’s well, an abomination :neverusethis:, lacking the somber mood of the original.
Megadeth released three more albums with mixed (Cryptic Writings) to negative (The World Needs a Hero) to only bosk and I have ever liked it (Risk) reviews until Dave injured his arm and was forced to quit playing guitar in 2002 and that was the end of Megadeth. However, after rigorous rehabilitation he gained his playing ability back and was first going to release a solo album in 2004 but his record label insisted it should carry the name of Megadeth. The resulting album The System Has Failed was a return to their metal form and reformed Megadeth has been going on strong ever since. Also, Dave became a born again Christian and a conspiracy theory nut which has made him even more insufferable than he used to be so I’m not really following what’s going on with Deth these days. Aside from the fact that he has come down with throat cancer, but the prognosis looks good and I wish him a speedy and complete recovery.
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I always liked the mood of this song and really admired that Dave stretched out some to explore a different sound for Megadeth. The execution never quite did it for me though. IMO, it's an unrealized dream.
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A Tout le Monde is a great song, one of my favorite Megadeth tunes. :corn
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Youthanasia is a very good record and probably my favorite Megadeth album. It's not really thrash metal anymore and because of that more accessible than it's predecessors but I quite like that style, and I think Marty Friedman really shines here.
And I saw them on that tour (on a big festival) and they kicked serious major ass live. :metal :metal :metal
A Tout Le Monde is a good example of the more accessible style, this is as close to a ballad as Megadeth have come up until the and. I quite like that song. The 2007 version isn't an abomination imo but can't reach the original.
But their comeback record after the hiatus was The System Has Failed not The World Needs A Hero.
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But their comeback record after the hiatus was The System Has Failed not The World Needs A Hero.
Whoops! Fixed.
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At least I've heard of this one, but I've not heard anything by Megadeth that I didn't think sucked.
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THE PRODIGY
SMACK MY BITCH UP
1997
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/56/Smack_My_Bitch_Up.jpg)
British rave/big beat band The Prodigy had became a big name in their home country with their second album Music for the Jilted Generation (1994), but were still relatively unknown in the U.S. However, their 1996 smash hits Firestarter and Breathe made the band one of the biggest names in the music world with their heavy yet infectious beats and dancer-turned-vocalist Keith Flint’s wild looks and fiery delivery. Consequently, their 1997 album Fat of the Land topped the charts around the globe.
However, today’s song is neither of the big singles but the controversial opening track of the album, Smack My Bitch Up (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIMVbL1rq5c). Unlike the two first singles from the album, it features no vocals by Flint (actually he sings on only four songs on the album, even though he is the most well-known member of the group). Smack My Bitch Up has only two lines of lyrics that are repeated (Change my pitch up/Smack my bitch up) that are sampled from American hip hop group Ultramagnetic MCs’ song Give the Drummer Some (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NSf1A5RuP4). The song is quite peculiar choice for a single, with beats heavy enough to knock on your back, abrasive synth leads and a lengthy wordless vocal solo in the middle, performed by Shahin Badar. What I like the most about this song (and Breathe too) is how the band knows how when to take the foot of the gas for a minute and chill things down, making the times when they nail it to the floor all the more powerful. Feels like popular electronic music artists lack that kind of sense of dynamics.
The reasons for the song’s controversiality are twofold. First, simply the title and the sampled lyrics evoke unfortunate implications of violence towards women. The band has insisted that they song title means doing something with great intensity and energy, however. I listened the song it was sampled from to (it’s pretty good although I don’t really listen to that genre) and in its context it seems to be some kind of gangsta-playa-pimp-whatever bragging and yeah, kinda misogynist. Still, it’s very much possible The Prodigy had different intentions and I find their explanation reasonable. Radio and TV stations were iffy about the title nevertheless.
The second controversy was towards the music video. The video (https://vimeo.com/31482159) (highly NSFW, although if it would be SFW at where you work, let me know when they’re hiring) was certainly not meant to be shown on major music stations, at least on daytime. It follows a young party-goer in first-person perspective doing drugs, drinking excessively, starting fights, groping women etc. until ending up on a strip club and picking up one of the strippers, whom they end up having sex with. There’s a nice twist at the end, although I don’t blame you if you get nauseous before that. One small thing I find funny: The name of the brunette stripper in the video is Teresa May. Before Donald Trump’s and then-British PM Theresa May’s meeting in Washington in January 2017, Trump’s press office actually released a memo that misspelled Theresa’s name. Three times. (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/01/27/white-house-spells-theresa-mays-name-wrong-three-times-memo/) Maybe the other May would’ve get Brexit done…
The Prodigy went on hiatus in 1999, returned in 2002 and kept sporadically releasing albums while being one of the biggest dance music artists. However, Keith Flint committed suicide earlier this year and the band’s future is up in the air.
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Well, the beat isn't bad! :lol
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And we're back to stuff I've never heard of.
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I know this song and a couple of others from them. Not really my style but it had a certain appeal when played loud in a club.
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One of the greatest albums of the 90's. I was huge into this band at the time of this album.
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I've occasionally been thinking back to this thread. I had fun researching and writing these pieces. I don't know if I will begin doing regular write-ups again, but there's one thing that had been bugging me a little, call it unfinished business maybe, but there was this exchange on the first page:
Speaking of the 90's and the Butthole Surfers, I love that song "Pepper".
That one might come up sooner or later. ;)
How about later? :lol I was going through Butthole Surfers discography recently and this one sort of wrote itself for a large part. Most of it will be admittedly about their early days, but they have had fittingly weird career arc from bad taste noisemakers to hip hit artist and hopefully this write-up is an entertaining, albeit brief look into their story.
Here we go:
BUTTHOLE SURFERS
PEPPER
1996
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/02/Pepper_Butthole_Surfers.jpg)
Butthole Surfers was formed in San Antonio in 1981 by vocalist Gibby Haynes and guitarist Paul Leary. Despite the bands crazy reputation, both of the men had actually academic background, Haynes having a degree in accounting and working in an accounting firm at the time and Leary being close to completing his MBA as well. Instead of white-collar careers they ended up serving the world some of the noisiest and freakiest rock music ever put on tape, and later getting signed on a major label, having an album produced by Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones and making the biggest alternative hit of the year 1996.
The band did not initially have a set name and they changed it from show to show, with titles as imaginative as Vodka Family Winstons, Nine Foot Worm Makes Own Food and The Inalienable Right to Eat Fred Astaire’s Asshole. The name Butthole Surfers stuck kind of accidentally; Butthole Surfer was one of their song titles and at one of their early shows they were introduced as Butthole Surfers. The name caused some issues after the band was signed to Capitol Records and at least one of their album was issued with alternative cover with the band name altered to B***H*** Surfers.
The band has had some lineup changes, but Haynes and Leary have been constant members, and drummer King Coffey, who joined around the recording of their 1983 self-titled EP (sometimes also known as Brown Reason to Live and Pee-Pee the Sailor) has also been in the band since.
Aside from their music, perhaps even more than that, the band was famous for two things: their unquenchable appetite for psychedelic drugs and their intense live shows. The band was pretty much constantly high on LSD for the duration of 1980s and it is reflected on their music and weird antics.
At their peak the live shows were an assault on senses. Crazy music blaring way over the healthy decibel parameters, heavy strobe lighting, two drummers (King and Teresa Nervosa) banging standing up and on unison on see-through drumkits filled with lights, bald naked woman (Kathleen Turner) dancing with the music, Gibby Haynes screaming on megaphone or through various effects known as Gibbytronix and on top of that band projecting video material behind the stage that ranged from gruesome images from drivers education films and penis reconstruction surgeries to completely random like episode of Charlie’s Angels shown in color negative (I remember reading from some source it was upside down and backwards, who knows when it comes to Butthole Surfers). I recently read a quote by famous English radio DJ John Peel that probably summarises the live experience quite well:
“Perfectly extraordinary. I mean, excellent. But if you said you enjoyed it, I should be seriously concerned about you as a human being. But very well worth seeing and hearing.”
Their eighties music is delightfully weird. Their sound changes a little from record to record, but it is generally defined by thumping repetitive drum beats, Leary’s guitar work which is oftentimes noisy, chaotic and effect-laden but occasionally catchy and even beautiful and Gibby’s vocals, which many times are run through effects so heavily that any lyrics are indistinguishable. Whenever you can make sense of the lyrics, they are often dadaistic stream-of-consciousness rants with sexual and scatological references. They are definitely not everyone’s thing and certainly require a certain level of interest in absurd and a sense of humour. As I said, each of their 1980s albums have bit of a distinct feel to them, from synth-heavy Rembrandt Pussyhorse on which they discovered the joys of tape editing to Hairway to Steven which is based more on 1960s and 70s psychedelic rock and has Leary playing acoustic guitar for the first time in their discography. But I personally recommend their debut EP which shows their punky beginnings and 1987s Locust Abortion Technician, which is their noisiest and heaviest album, very experimental and unconventional, even disturbing, completely bonkers record.
While the band spent 1980s touring America, deeply underground with no hopes of mainstream success, they steadily gained following and respect. One of the disciples of the Surfers was Kurt Cobain, and Nirvana’s overnight success might have opened major label doors for them and bunch of other bands while the big companies were tripping over themselves trying to sign the next indie rock hit band. While some bands stuck firm to their indie cred, Butthole Surfers did not share the idealism say, Fugazi, and accepted Capitol’s record deal. They didn’t come completely out of nowhere; the video of their cover version of Donovan’s Hurdy Gurdy Man (in which the original’s Leslie effect is turned to the max) had had some exposure on MTV already.
Their first album on major label, 1993’s Independent Worm Saloon, was a minor success, with Who Was in My Room Last Night? gaining airplay on MTV and the album charting at 154 in Billboard 200. The album was co-produced by John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin fame. The band toned down their experimentation in their 1990s and reimagined themselves as mildly psychedelic alternative/hard rock band. While not all fans of their old material do not approve them ‘selling-out’, I do think they still remained quite good. Especially Paul Leary had grown into a legitimately good songwriter and I do enjoy Haynes’s drawled baritone singing even without all the effects.
Come 1996 however and the band suddenly struck gold. The first single of their 1996 album Electriclarryland, named Pepper, became a surprise hit, topping the Modern Tracks chart and even reaching 26 on the Hot 100 singles.
Pepper is quite unique song in their oeuvre, I’d say it does not really remind anything they’ve done before. They had incorporated electronic beats very scarcely before this chilled and restrained jam that’s based mostly on one guitar chord. Gone are the screamed and looped vocals, here Gibby basically narrates the verses spoken word-style, backed mostly by a drum beat. Paul’s guitar doesn’t do wild feedback screeches or fast blues licks but mostly plays one psychedelic melody. While the song was undoubtedly a hit, I think it was also another example of their experimental nature which was getting less focus during the 1990s. The lyrics are fairly abstract but nowhere near as cryptic as in the past, telling short tales of unfortunate fates of some people who “were in love with dying and doing it in Texas”. The chorus, although quite catchy and memorable, doesn’t seem to have much to do with the rest of the song. Anybody buying the album on the back of the song would probably be surprised, since it has very little electronic music influence and is mostly hard rocking alt rock with tinges of psychedelia and even southern/country rock. I personally think it is one of their best albums, it’s not as weird as their older material but it is just a good solid rock record.
The title “Pepper” makes no sense either, since the word does not appear in the lyrics at all. That is not unusual for the band however, most of their song titles are nonsense. In fact, the original pressing of the album Hairway to Steven had no song titles at all! Each track was instead represented by absurd illustration. The commonly used names for those songs come from how they were written in setlists.
The music video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRXty8lDUW0) features black and white footage that I suppose is made to resemble some kind of TV coverage of a hostage situation, alternating with the band performing in colour in a gaudy 1960/70s style set. They are three piece in the video since long-time bassist Jeff Pinkus left the band after the tour for Independent Worm Saloon finished. I personally like how the spoken word in verses is sometimes incorporated in the video as Gibby talking on a microphone to a TV journalist. It’s not quite as wonderfully chaotic as the video for Who Was in My Room Last Night? (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNAkbbKycCM), but they are very different songs in nature and a slower paced video works better on Pepper’s case.
Why was it a such a hit then? I am not sure. What I have figured is that it falls into a certain era of rock music, between grunge and nu metal. If you look at alternative hits from 1996 to 1999, there doesn’t seem to be such a unifying thread, other than rock hits were getting lighter, more positive sounding and major key after all the doom and gloom of the grunge era. Such unlikely genres as ska punk, swing revival and jam band rock were having their day in the sun. One reason that has been thrown around is that the song is somewhat reminiscent in tone to Beck’s 1994 hit Loser, both incorporating programmed percussion and spoken word delivery, but according to King Coffey the band was more inspired by trip hop acts such as Massive Attack and Tricky. Another hit song from the same era that’s a little similar in style is Primitive Radio Gods’ brilliantly named Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money in My Hand (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTz88cmXie4). I don’t particularly care for that one, but it also seems to be fairly fondly remembered when it comes to 90s one hit wonders.
The rest of the 1990s weren’t as rosy for the band. Their follow-up album, tentatively titled After the Astronaut, went unreleased, the band was dropped by Capitol and was mired in legal trouble for a while. In 2001 they released Weird Revolution, which was mostly based on material meant for After the Astronaut. On it the band has lost most of their identity and sound mostly like Kid Rock or Smash Mouth, in fact Kid Rock wrote the hook to the lead single The Shame of Life. It has been the last Butthole Surfers album so far, with the band playing only sporadic shows since, last time in 2017. Paul Leary has gone on record to say he hates touring so it is unlikely the band ever reunites for a longer period of time. However, they have left a weird and wonderful legacy and have had one of the oddest career arcs in the history of rock music. If you are interested to learn more about them, I recommend Michael Azerrad’s book Our Band Could Be Your Life, which profiles various American indie bands from the 1980s, not only for Butthole Surfers, but it covers many interesting bands of that era and paints the picture of the DIY nature and unending touring cycles of the underground rock scene.
One funny extra: at the height of their success, they even got referenced in The Simpsons. In the eighth season episode Hurricane Neddy, first aired in December 1996 (side note: IMO one of the best episodes of the show) Ned Flanders’ house gets destroyed by a hurricane. While his family temporarily resides at the church, the family sons proudly come presenting the new second-hand clothes they have got from the church (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-R5s4eSmdHM). Todd Flanders gleely exclaims: “I’m a surfer!” while wearing a Butthole Surfers tee. This gag got caught by Fox censors, who did not allow the full band name to be broadcast, so the shirt is shown from an angle that makes it read “Buttho Surfers”. Now I don’t know about you, but to my mind that is not any less vulgar.
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The Devil was seen at Target the other day buying a winter jacket.