Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Cocks 'n' Asses

Great B-side I re-discovered while going through my listening preparations for Push the Sky Away. Reminds me a little bit of "Three" on Seventeen Seconds by The Cure. Has what I always think of as the "Vertigo Comics Vibe". I need to post a list of other stuff with that vibe and an explanation - I think it's an interesting theory.

Alice In Chains - Sea of Sorrow

The summer of '91 I attended my second concert ever: Operation Rock and Roll!!! Now I ask you, with a moniker like that, how could it be anything but awesome? It was, if I can do this from memory - Metal Church, Dangerous Toys, Motorhead, Judas Priest (Painkilllllllleeeeerrrrr tour no less) and Alice Fucking Cooper. Holy Old Crow, right? My buddy Zak lived a stone's throw from the (then) World Music Theatre in Tinley Park, IL. He had the obligatory cool uncle who chaperoned us because he himself was a fan of Mr. Cooper. So we had a good old time.

Anyway... On the way out that night they were handing out a casette. Just a simple thing in a cardboard slip-sleeve with a canon on the cover and one song by all the band's that had played the show and a bunch that hadn't. Alice In Chain's Sea of Sorrow was, I think, the third song on the first side. It was the first time I'd ever heard Alice In Chains. You may have noticed, I've been a fan ever since.

I've always liked this song because the use of the piano makes it stand slightly apart from the rest of their catalogue, but without really deviating from their "sound". That sound largely being made up of Cantrell's dark and lush songwriting and the unique harmonies that resulted from his voice with Layne Staley's. Even though Layne died I do believe Cantrell has cracked the code a second time and in a respectful way with what he has going now as Alice In Chains. I don't really care too much for the group's newer video, which I posted and talked a bit about here, but I love the song and can't wait for the record (which, as far as I've been able to ascertain, still does not have a definitive release date).

I also don't care for a lot of the elements of the above video for Sea of Sorrow. I've said before, videos where the band 'plays' irritate me. I get it, why it's done, but THEY'RE NOT PLAYING so it just seems dumb. Be that as it may, in the 90's you couldn't throw a frog without hitting a video with the band playing, unless maybe that frog was aimed at TOOL. Regardless, I love the song, love some of the B&W imagery, and LOVE seeing a young, healthy, LIVING Layne Staley.

DAYWALT HORROR: Jack

Kudos to my friend Tori for turning me on to this. Lots of cool stuff here from The Daywalt Fear Factory

Pulp - Seductive Barry

Probably the next most seductive song (of course, check the title mate). Both on the same album!

Pulp - This Is Hardcore

Apologies for the ad - the others I found were shit dubs. Is this not one of the most seductive songs ever?

Son Of Rogues Gallery - "Shenandoah"

Waits And Richards? Jesus...

Thanks again Mr. Brown.

Psychocandy - The Jesus and Mary Chain

A friend inspired a JAMC binge today. I'm fortunate enough to have a copy of Darklands on Vinyl (my wife's I believe) and The Peel Sessions on disc, but I had to go to youtube for this one.

There's something smoky and disturbing about JAMC. When I first heard the band's name, somewhere around the time of the first ever Lollapalooza concert,* I felt as though I had heard the name of a secret society. It seemed hush hush. Very occult. The band ended up not sounding anything like I thought they would (though I couldn't tell you what that was) but that was good, very good. Years later I'd have a slight interest in and then a small aversion to The Raveonettes based on a perceived imitation of JAMC's sound. And yeah - there are A LOT of similarities, but The Raveonettes have become one of my favorite bands EVER and have retroactively helped me realize even more of the pure sonic beauty of JAMC.


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*No - unfortunately I was not old enough or savvy enough to have attended the first Lollapalooza. Being in my early teens at the time this kind of thing was only slightly on my radar. The second one I think I probably didn't have the money for, so it wasn't until the third one that I attended a 'palooza, and then probably only after Mr. Brown prompted me to. It was the only one I ever did and ever will. It was great to see the bands I saw there but I am NOT a festival person. Unless it's in England. I'd go to ATP or Minehead in a freakin' second.