It's near the end of African-American History month (AKA Black History Month), and I've realized that I haven't posted anything acknowledging it. I decided Gil Scott-Heron's 2010 LP "I'm New Here", his final LP before his death in 2011, was a good candidate. I reviewed his cover of "Me and the Devil Blues" in 2011 and said I'd review the LP "later", so I guess it's time to get around to it.
As I stated in 2011, prior to this LP I didn't know that much about GSH other than his "hits" ("The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" & "Whitey On The Moon"). "I'm New Here" was his first LP since 1994 ("Spirits"), and his prior LP to that was 1982 ("Moving Target"). This means that while he was dormant, a lot happened in music, and his 1970s experimental jazz sound would have sounded dated in 2010. Instead, his LP was produced by Richard Russell (of XL Recordings), who gave him a menacing and minimalist electronic soundtrack, arguably a "Witch house" sound (though that label is often disputed). The shrill saxophones have been replaced with thin, dark drone, which to my ears is a perfect complement to GSH's weathered and weary voice. On songs like "Me and the Devil", the combination is simply amazing.
How you feel about this LP will largely depend on how you feel about "songs" that are mostly spoken word with limited actual singing. On the other hand, if you like Lou Reed and songs like "Dirty Boulevard", well... you should revisit Gil Scott-Heron.
Terry recently turned me on to Australia's King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard. In their 10 years they've amassed an extensive discography, far more than with which I'm currently familiar. What I have gathered is that their sound has explored various genres and sub-genres. But based on Terry's recommendation, the first link I listened to was a KEXP concert from last summer while they were promoting their most recent LP, "Infest the Rat's Nest", which is apparently their foray into thrash metal, while retaining their space rock / psychedelic origins.
The best way I can explain their sound is to imagine if "In Search of Space"-era Hawkwind were cryogenically frozen, and after reanimation they asked "what did we miss in the last 48 years?", whereupon they quickly consumed the back catalogs of Iron Maiden and other NWOBHM luminaries, as well as the discographies of Metallica and friends, and then recorded "Infest the Rat's Nest".
It's certainly fun to listen to, and I'm about 99.99% sure it's not a well-executed parody.
Super Bowl LIV is in the books and it was a good game, especially since I won $100 off my friend Drew. Neither of us particularly cared who won, but the group of people we were with decided that a wager would make the game more entertaining. I chose Kansas City simply because VT alum Kendall Fuller plays there, and there's no way I could bet against a Hokie.
The halftime show, featuring a double bill of Shakira and Jennifer Lopez, was well received by most -- or at least those who aren't afraid of sexy, middle-aged Latin women making a number of political points: kids in cages, a reversible Puerto Rican / USA flag, and a snippet of Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA". Yes, that "Born in the USA". I was going to riff on the segment of "Kashmir" they cleverly snuck in, but I can't pass up the opportunity to address the point that "Born in the USA", while patriotic, is not a jingoistic anthem. Instead, it is a protest song, a bittersweet acknowledgement that for some the American Dream remains inaccessible.
First, borrowing the Wikipedia page, they managed to squeeze a lot into 14 minutes:
While the show was entertaining, outside of the hits I'm not really qualified to review most of their songs. But the inclusion (at 12:14), however brief, of "Born in the USA" was genius. The best way to understand the song is to remove the chorus and focus on the remaining stanzas:
Born down in a dead man's town
The first kick I took was when I hit the ground
End up like a dog that's been beat too much
'Til you spend half your life just covering up
I had a brother at Khe Sanh
Fighting off the Viet Cong They're still there, he's all gone
He had a woman he loved in Saigon
I got a picture of him in her arms, now
Puerto Rico is part of the United States, to the surprise and/or dismay of some, and referencing Bruce in Shakira's and JLo's celebration was a great way to tap into the powerful history of this song, as well as provide a hat tip to a great 2009 halftime show.
