Motorhead - "Ace of Spades" (spotlight)

Let's keep the Motorhead theme going... Rik Mayall died just over a month ago.  Rik, of course, played "Rick" on The Young Ones.  I'm not even going to attempt to explain The Young Ones, other than to say it was one of the many BBC shows that PBS and MTV imported in the mid-80s that were a breath of fresh air to teenagers, like myself, marooned in an otherwise dull suburbia.

I remember, like it was yesterday, being at Terry's house sometime in high school when this episode came on and Mike looked at the camera and simply said "Music!"  I was already a Motorhead fan, and "Ace of Spades" is probably their most enduring song, but The Young Ones version is especially fun.

Ace of Spades: The Young Ones version, official video

Motorhead - "R.A.M.O.N.E.S." (spotlight)

Tommy Ramone, the last of the original Ramones, died yesterday.  Tommy was originally their manager & producer but drummed on the first three LPs because they couldn't find anyone else. That is the very essence of punk.   I've only reviewed the Ramones once so far, but that has been more of an oversight rather than a conscious decision because their impact and influence cannot be easily overstated.  I remember when Danette and I first learned that Joey Ramone died in 2001 (we were still in Chapel Hill), followed quickly by Dee Dee (2002) and Johnny (2004).

How influential were the Ramones?  So influential that Motorhead wrote a tribute song for them, "R.A.M.O.N.E.S.", which appears on their 1991 LP "1916":

New York City, N.Y.C.,
Pretty mean when it wants to be,
Black leather, knee-hole pants,
Can't play no high school dance,
Fuzz tone, hear 'em go,
Hear 'em on the radio,

Misfits, twilight zone,
R-A-M-O-N-E-S
R-A-M-O-N-E-S
RAMONES

Bad boy rock, bad boy roll,
Gabba gabba, see them go,
C.J. now hit the gas,
Hear Marky kick some ass,
Go Johnny, go, go, go
Go Tommy o-way-o,

Bad boys then, bad boys now,
Good buddies, mau-mau-mau
Keep it up, rock'n'roll,
Good music save your soul,
Dee Dee, he left home,
Joey call me on the phone.

If Motorhead namechecks you... well, I'm hard pressed to think of a higher honor. 

Motorhead: "R.A.M.O.N.E.S." (live), studio
Ramones + Lemmy: "R.A.M.O.N.E.S" (live)
Ramones: "R.A.M.O.N.E.S" (studio)

We Were Promised Jetpacks - "Live in Nashville, 2012-03-29" (concert)

Following on from the previous review of "These Four Walls", I wanted to share this excellent hour-long concert video of We Were Promised Jetpacks.  There is no shortage of live videos of WWPJ on Youtube, but I especially like this one camera shoot of their March 29, 2012 show in Nashville.  With only minimal panning or zooming, it nicely complements the "jeans & t-shirt" lo-fi sound of the band. 

The band itself is in fine form, reworking many of the songs with a different sound from the LP versions while still sounding crisp.  For example, they offer a completely different and extended version of "A Half Built House", this time serving as an intro to "Keeping Warm" (starting at about 17:10).  There is even a nice bit of (nearly) a capella singing at about 38:10 (I'm not sure of the song (edit: it's "Sore Thumb" from "In the Pit of the Stomach").



Thanks to palabra17 and exitin for sharing this.

We Were Promised Jetpacks - "These Four Walls" (LP Review)

I wish I had a better story of my discovery of We Were Promised Jetpacks...  Perhaps a recommendation from one of my well-connected friends (Butch, Terry, Herbert, Johan, Joy, Scott, etc.), or hearing them at a small club while on travel, or some connection to The Cribs, or something equally cool.  Instead, I first heard them in the soundtrack of "Hall Pass", which featured the song "Quiet Little Voices" as the otherwise bland film's most memorable moment.  From the little snippet of lyrics I heard ("I'm young again..."), it took me a while to determine the artist and song, but afterwards I quickly sampled some of their other music and then ordered their debut 2009 LP "These Four Walls".

I haven't been disappointed.  WWPJ works the Pixies loud-soft-loud formula to perfection, and their Scottish burr makes it sound all the better (e.g., "beh-her star-ah naow" --> "better start now").  I think there is a rule that all reviews of WWPJ must compare them to fellow Scotts & label mates "Frightened Rabbit" (e.g., the Allmusic review).  I realize I discovered WWPJ first, but after several listenings of "The Midnight Organ Fight", I can say WWPJ rawks much harder than FR.  In fact, that might be what I like best about this LP: this is basically a metal LP for grown ups.  And I don't mean that in an alt-metal, later Queensryche Pink-Floyd-wannabe kind of way, but rather in a more Pixies or Weezer kind of way, but without the wry humor.  For example, when Frank Black sings "Got me a movie / I want you to know/ Slicin' up eyeballs / I want you to know", its playful and mischievous.  But it is just disturbing when Adam Thompson sings:

Somethings happened in the attic,  
There's no way I am going up there,                                                                    
Somethings happened in the attic,                                                                      
We both know I'm not going up there,                                                                   
Somethings happened in the attic,                                                                      
This is my house, This is my home 

Lyrically, many of the songs have a creepy ambiguity between the victim and antagonist.  Musically, it is more like metal (albeit with a melodic pop sensibility), with an almost martial, heavily structured and almost formal progression from segment to segment.  Listen to "It's Thunder and It's Lightning" and how the tension builds from 1:20-3:10 on the way to the chorus.  That's not how punk songs are structured (the Pixies would never take two minutes to reach their destination); that's pure metal.  Weezer occasionally does that with songs like "Only In Dreams". 

I suppose an unkind review could say WWPJ has just written the same song 11 times.  Sure, there is a formula here but who cares when the formula is this good.

Standout songs: "It's Thunder and It's Lightning" (live), "Ships With Holes Will Sink" (live), "A Half Built House" / "This Is My House, This Is My Home" (live), "Quiet Little Voices" (live), "Short Bursts" (live), "Keeping Warm" (live)

Skip 'em songs: none

Final score: 9/10.  I considered giving it an "8", but the best songs just don't wear out.  

Bonus link: KEXP has a link to an MP3 of "Quiet Little Voices" (this is either the EP version or a live version, I'm not sure).

Gratuitous "OK Computer" link: In my book, "A Half-Built House" sounds like the guitar version of "Fitter Happier". 

Camera Obscura - "My Maudlin Career" (LP Review)

My fascination with Camera Obscura continues; they're still perhaps the biggest cult band that you've never heard of.  2009 saw the release of their fourth studio LP, "My Maudlin Career".  I have to confess that I was disappointed at first, especially considering how much I loved their prior LP "Let's Get Out Of This Country".  The lead single and the LP's opening song, "French Navy", might be their strongest song ever, but after that the LP treads water.  While none of the songs are bad -- some are even quite good -- it just doesn't come together as well as their prior LPs even though all the standard Camera Obscura motifs are present.

Having said that, Camera Obscura treading water is still better than most bands and after repeated listening my opinion of this LP has improved.  In prior reviews I've struggled to describe their sound with terms like "NPR indie rock" and "pop songs for adults", so I won't try further here.  Even though it might be their weakest LP to date, it should still be in your collection.

Standout songs: "French Navy" (if you listen to only one Camera Obscura song in your life, make it "French Navy"), "Sweetest Thing", "Swans", "James", "My Maudlin Career", "Honey in the Sun"

Skip 'em songs: none

Final rating: 7/10.  On a good day I'd give it an 8/10, but I sure would like at least one more song with a hook as strong as "French Navy". 

Bonus live links (incomplete, there are many more):

• French Navy: Craig Ferguson, Morning Becomes Eclectic
• The Sweetest Thing: Baebel
• Swans: Morning Becomes Eclectic, acoustic in the CO tour bus
• James: Morning Becomes Eclectic
• My Maudlin Career: The Glass House
• Honey in the Sun: Morning Becomes Eclectic

Ultravox - "Vienna" (forgotten song)

I helped Danette pick up a rental car yesterday and it had satellite radio (her favorite car feature and one we don't have on our daily drivers).  As I bounced around the stations, Ultravox's 1981 single "Vienna", the title track from their 1980 LP, came on 1st wave which is one of our favorite satellite radio stations because it features alternative 80s songs.

I have only the vaguest memory of "Vienna" from the early MTV period and I'm almost certain it did not receive radio airplay.  I can't remember the last time I heard this song -- it must have been 30+ years.  It sounds just a bit dated (sort of a synth pop version of Joy Division's "Atmosphere"), but altogether has held up surprisingly well.  I don't really know that much about Ultravox other than 1) they exist and 2) their European success never really crossed over to the US like their contemporaries such as The Furs and Modern English.

"This means nothing to me..."

Ultravox - "Vienna" (studio, live)

Queen & David Bowie - "Under Pressure" (the song remains the same)

With arguably the world's most recognizable bass line (somewhat unfortunately), the 1981 David Bowie & Queen collaboration "Under Pressure" might be my personal favorite song from Queen or David Bowie.  Although I respect both, I've never been a huge fan of either, and on this song I think the balance each other out and the result works, musically and lyrically.  Even the video was a welcome break from de rigueur lip synced, faux-concert videos of the time.

So imagine my surprise when I stumbled across this 2011 version by The Cribs, live in the studio.  To the best of my knowledge, it isn't on any of their official releases and is just a knockabout version they did for a music web site.  There is no shortage of cover versions of this song, but it does seem like a bit of a departure for The Cribs, who favor more obscure covers by cult bands like The Replacements, The Kaiser Chiefs, Comet Gain, etc.

Queen & David Bowie: "Under Pressure" (a cappella version)
The Cribs: "Under Pressure"

2020-11-01 update: Karen O and Willie Nelson have just released a beautiful duet: "Under Pressure"