Mike
Bennett
Reviews:
Part II: November,
2001

Scroll down for reviews of the latest releases from Receiver and Dave Rave.

Click here for reviews of the latest from The Steamkings, Gripweeds, Orange Alabaster Mushroom, Garbage and Fugu.

Click here for reviews of the latest from Sloan, The Knack, Paper Airplane Company, Elton John as well as an Ian Dury tribute.

Wipers
Box Set: Is This Real?/Youth Of America/Over The Edge

(Zeno)

zenorecords.com

As a Chicago area high schooler, Class of '82, my exposure to punk rock was fairly limited to the few names that actually got national attention - The Clash, The Sex Pistols, The Vibrators, The Dead Kennedys. Even groups like Buzzcocks and The Damned did not cross my radar until my freshman year at SIU-Carbondale, when I DJ'ed at my college radio station. I then became more aware of the punk underground, including the Chicago scene (Effigies, Big Black, Naked Raygun) that was exploding while I was scheming to escape suburbia. Record distribution and the press being what it was in those days, I was pretty much ignorant of the noise being made by Wipers out in Portland, Oregon.

My college exposure was limited to a spin of their live album, which, for whatever reason, didn't grab me. Thankfully, many others did hear them, clamored for them (especially in Europe), and were inspired by them. So 21 years after Wipers released its debut record, I'm finally laying my ears on their first three platters, which have been appended with bonus tracks, remastered and lovingly packaged by frontman Greg Sage. All for $15!

My first impression upon hearing these discs was dumbfounded amazement. How could I have ignored all the praise (especially from The Big Takeover's Jack Rabid)? If you think you have a complete collection of seminal punk rock and don't have these albums, you're thinking wrong, bub. If you're looking for music that is rooted in passion and fury, but suffused with intelligence and wit, this is 3 hours worth. And if you're a Nirvana fan who'd like to trace Cobain and company's roots, Wipers were clearly as big of, if not bigger, an influence on the big N as Husker Du, Pixies and The Melvins.

Sage is the focal point. Though the concept of punk rock guitar hero in 1980 would have been decried as oxymoronic, that's what he was, a six-string slasher who could overwhelm with thick chords or slice you up with sharp leads that could be tense, angry, melodic - sometimes all three at once. His songwriting was terse and economical - even when exceeding the punk three minute standard, there was no wasted effort. And his vocals perfectly conveyed his concerns - Sage could be a trenchant observer, and sometimes provocative, but there was always a personal aspect - he could be the guy standing next to you - he could be you.

The crown jewel of the set is LP #2, Youth Of America. A searing six-song statement, one can make a strong connection between this well constructed fury and Chicago punk bands like Naked Raygun and Effigies. Like both of those bands, Wipers bridged a gap between the strum-and-clang of classic '77 punk, with the more supple rhythms and pricklier edges of post-punk. The 10-minute title track is one of the greatest songs in American punk history, building on the advances The Ruts made incorporating dub sounds in punk, though this is a steamrolling rock tune. Other nifty touches include the Byrdsy lead guitar on the moody "Taking Too Long" and the playful rumble of "Can This Be" - Sage could be fun when he set his mind to it.

The debut, Is This Real? is more four square punk, but still shows tons more sophistication than many of Wipers' contemporaries down the way in San Francisico and L.A. "Let's Go Away" sounds a bit like Ramones slowed down, "Mystery" and the title cut display a melodic gift beyond the grasp of a lot of powerpoppers, while the foreboding "D-7" shows a flair for drama. "Don't Know What I Am" foreshadows a lot of Sage trademarks, with an explosive vocal and some incredible lead guitar work.

LP #3, "Over The Edge" is relatively smoother than its predecessor, but otherwise follows form. "Romeo" is a Wipers classic, with an insistent rhythm, mantra-like lyrics (characteristic on a few other tunes), and more great lead guitar work - this sounds like a precursor to Mattoon, Illinois's legendary Didjits. The key difference between this album and Youth Of America is that the latter was expansive, while the former was short and sharp. This album is nearly as great.
The bonus tracks are a mix of demos, alternate takes, and non-LP songs. There is not a duff track in the bunch. Trying to put these discs in the context of when they were released, these are all stunners. Perhaps it's even more impressive that they have not lost one ounce of their power today. I've only scratched the surface of the collective brilliance in these grooves - these are must own discs for any fans of true punk rock.

_____________________________________________________

Receiver
Inspiration Overload

(Not Lame)

notlame.com

receiveronline.com

You ever make friends with someone and wonder where they have been all your life? You find out that you share the same views, have the same tastes, laugh at the same jokes - you make an instant connection. The way Ken West writes songs and Receiver performs them, the effect is similar. West clearly has a broad knowledge of great pop-rock from the '60s, '70s and '80s, and creates strummy, jangly packages that touch a chord. The best songs instantly sound like tunes you've known and loved your whole life.

Stretching this analogy to a near breaking point, much like a true friend knows that the little things are special, Receiver subtly throws elements into these songs that make this album grow with multiple spins. It would be easy just to compare Receiver to the brigade of bands that follow the Big Star/Byrds/Teenage Fanclub path and be done with it. But there is so much more here.

The band sounds terrific - West and Wil O'Brien (The Andersons) have a guitar sound that is robust and spacious at the same time, crackling with happy energy. Lisa Mychols keeps a steady beat and adds a real special dimension with her backing vocals. (John Borack, the prominent music critic and fine drummer, is taking over for Mychols). And Kerry Chicoine is a bass player in the tradition of Paul McCartney and Colin Moulding.

The title track is aptly named, chock full of nifty bits: the lead guitar figure in the verses that sounds like Buzzcocks' Pete Shelley trying to ape Roger McGuinn; Chicoine's splendid ascending and descending bass work; the nifty coda near the end of the tune; Mychols and Chicoine in full harmony mode; and West's spirited vocal on sentiments like: "all the things that are so special in your life/were inspired by somebody that you like."

The bounce of "Everykind" will get a positive reaction from fans of Tim-era Replacements and You Am I, but the way the genially rocking verses segue into the tender swoon inducing melody of the chorus gives this tune a distinctive feel. "Oleander" is a more muscular version of some of the great powerpop of the late-'70s, with an initial lead guitar part that evokes Shoes, the tune then edging into 20/20 territory. The guitar solo, accompanied by ripping rhythm guitar action, adds a Plimsouls touch.

"Wind Up Girl" is a prime example of the little things I mentioned earlier adding up. Starting with a blissful lead guitar part that swirls a bit like some of Paul Weller's leads in The Jam, Chicoine's bass navigating its way between the lead and rhythm guitars, a nifty, out-of-nowhere blast of backing vocals during the second verse, a nice cool down bass/drum/vocal verse before heating up in the final chorus - this is how one takes a good song and makes a great record.
This is perfect top-down-on-the-convertible driving music. Or if you live in Chicago in November, like me, it helps you pretend you are driving on a coastal freeway in a '65 convertible Mustang. Unless you can afford the Mustang, the disc will more than do for now.

_____________________________________________________

Dave Rave and Mark McCarron
Another Side Of Love

(Bongo Beat)

bongobeat.com

daveravemusic.com

Much like the farmer and the cowman, jazz and rock can be friends. It's just that sometimes an alleged rock artist comes along who apparently feels that rock isn't cool or arty enough, and manages to create music that is neither jazz nor rock, just pretentious piffle (Exhibit A - Sting, Exhibit B - 90% of all jazz fusion). Thankfully, there have been artists like Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, Joe Jackson and others, who don't act like the two forms are aliens who must be transmogrified into a whole, but see the common virtues to make cool music. And Dave Rave, partnered up with tasteful jazz guitarist Mark McCarron, is right there with 'em.

The former latter day head Teenage Head brilliantly evokes a lonely romanticism - the swing and miss bachelor, all dressed up in his Friday night duds, exhausting his phone numbers, smoking Lucky Strikes, sipping whiskey and lamenting while Ramsey Lewis and Wes Montgomery platters spin on the changer on the hi-fi. Rave is singing songs for mood-swingin' lovers on one of the more insinuating discs of the year.

And the singing is excellent. Rave has a great voice, particularly when he gets into the upper part of his range. But unlike so many modern singers, Rave interprets the lyrics rather than showing off what he can do - never let it be said that he does not emotionally connect with his material; in fact, he does that as well as anyone. Moreover, on a few of the jazziest (I know there's a better word for it…) tracks, he shows how rhythm can be as important as pitch, key and volume - he doesn't just feel the words, he feels the groove.

Groove is supplied in bucketfuls by a great band, keyed, literally, by Jason Frederick, who provides some delicious organ work and generally stellar keyboard services. With the supple rhythm section of Ray Grappone (drums) and Joe Fitzgerald (string bass), Mark McCarron has freedom to add all the color necessary to these tunes.

There are three spectacular tracks on the second half of the disc. The breezy "Fantasy" is boppy and a little funky, with McCarron playing some super smooth guitar licks. The song is energetic without breaking a sweat. Fans of Margo Guryan will appreciate the pithy "Inspiration", which has the type of melody that rides well on a bossa nova groove, though the song is played in more of an early-'60s jazz manner. But neither of these can hold a candle to the standard-worthy "Beginner's Style", a song that so perfectly encapsulates yearning, both in the lyrics and the melody. The instrumental break after the second chorus is breathtaking. The song suddenly downshifts, leading to a minor key middle eight which then picks right back up into the main tune. Very impressive.

Another max jazz tune is the Tom Waits-ish "Close The Book", while numbers like "Fast Talker" will please fans of the material Joe Jackson and The Style Council did in this vein. "Silence" fits within the concept of this disc, but would be a good cover selection for a smart pop or psych band.

Rave and McCarron are a winning combo. I hope this is merely the first chapter in a spate of future collaborations.

___________________________________________________

To reach any other page contained in this month's update on Fufkin.com, read the home page for the appropriate link and click on it. You can also search the site from any page using the search box located at the top of each page. Merely type in the word, phrase, name of the band, recording, name of the Fufkin writer that you are looking for or Whatever in the search box, and then click on "Search". If you would like to e-mail us, go to the About Us page for a list of e-mail addresses.

Go back to the home page by clicking here

____________________________________________________