I think Even Worse may have been my first Weird Al tape. I have vivid memories of purchasing the tape at a store and they didn't take off the security tag so we had to use my dad's pocket knife to bust it out. I think there was a crack in the tape case because of it. I made a music video with my friend for "Fat" where we put pillows under our shirts and basically acted out as many parts as we could. "(This Song's Just) Six Words Long" has always been a favorite. And all the puns on "I Think I'm A Clone Now" are just too much great to handle. He has a lot of great puns on the album as a whole but "Clone" takes it to the next level with such gems as "I guess you could say I'm really beside myself," and "Born in a science lab late one night without a mother or a father, just a test tube and a womb with a view."
Ok just had to get that out of the way. Even Worse is probably in my top 3 Weird Al albums after all!
Hip hop took something of a turn around this time, didn't it? Not that BDP was all innocent and peaceful and clean, but the dirty got dirtier based on what I have. Ice-T with his sex jams (at least he clarifies "Safe sex that is...but that's another song"). Slick Rick was very clever on The Great Adventures of Slick Rick.
But who really owned it was Public Enemy. It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back is one of those statement albums. Chuck D with his righteous anger and intelligence, Flava Flav still being somewhat tolerable, Terminator X just driving everything hard. Something about the angry intelligence makes it much more terrifying for white America because assuming we're paying attention we know he's right.
Public Enemy "Prophets of Rage"
Similarly, NWA's Straight Outta Compton had a good angry feel to it and Dr. Dre made some great beats early on for sure. The anger towards the man is a little more directed at cops than the overall system but effective regardless. Ultramagnetic MCs' Critical Beatdown is a good one but it seems to be laid out much more simply than the people really pushing things forward. Great rhymes and styles but in an old school simplicity that makes it seem a little behind in context.
Punk rock. Last year it was The Descendents and this year it's All. I have an appreciation for All that they did, particularly for the Fort Collins, CO scene, but the first actual All album I bought in high school was Allroy For Prez. Which was an EP. I didn't particularly care for just how darn soft it was at the time. Now I'm ok with it though.
The Pogues' If I Should Fall From Grace With God is one that coincidentally enough came up St. Patrick's Day weekend. It touches on a lot more different styles than Red Roses For Me, the other Pogues album I have. It pulls in influences to a point where some of the songs aren't even all that perfect for St. Patrick's Day! There's my favorite Christmas song ("Fairytale of New York"), ballads like "Lullaby Of London," and one of my favorites, a Spanish influenced drinking/partying song called "Fiesta."
Is this the place to place Big Black? I guess for now at least I'll put Touch & Go and Dischord stuff under punk rock. I'd wanted to get this album for years and finally did eventually (I think shortly before I got to see their big reunion show at that Touch & Go Anniversary Block Party thing I flew out to Chicago for). I feel like they got even harder and angrier as they went on and wrapped things up. Their whole discography is this pure rage, pre-NIN industrial with the crunchiest attainable guitar sound by the best guitar rock sound engineer in the biz.
Big Black "L Dopa"
Fugazi has begun! Of course I have their first two EPs in the form of the 13 Songs CD, but I set the years correctly and got to hear the Fugazi EP as originally released (the first 7 of 13 songs). So we have "Waiting Room," one of their best known songs. We have the earliest example (in my collection at least) of the hardcore scene tackling the problem of sexism in "Suggestion." We have basically some very seasoned veterans joining forces to form a band with seemingly no learning curve. Playing organically together to create something amazing on their very first EP.
Fugazi "Bad Mouth"
I also hit my first actual album by The Ex, that great underrated Dutch punk/chaos band that has been around since the 70s (and still going strong today!). Aural Guerilla is the sound of a great political punk band evolving for a decade and not sitting still. I just love the high distortion on the guitar and vocals and the swirling chaotic (sorry for using that again but it's the most apt description I've got!) drumming going on here.
College rock!
What I said in the intro about seeing the first hints of the popularity of alternative rock showing up was mostly because of R.E.M.'s Green. Kind of a breakthrough for them (they would later become one of the biggest bands of the 90s). And it has the song "Stand" which would later receive the "Weird Al" parody treatment and while "Weird Al" is very hip to the new sounds, he probably wouldn't have parodied a song that wasn't a gigantic hit. That's my frame of reference right now.
Besides that, the underground that would remain somewhat underground was reaching new highs.
I seem to be responding a lot more personally to Dinosaur Jr's 1988 album Bug more than 1987's You're Living All Over Me. Not sure why. But I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Bug. It seemed more passionate or something. Maybe it was just the circumstances of how it came up or something. Or maybe it's actually better.
Sonic Youth put out their most highly regarded album that has since entered the library of congress, and that was Daydream Nation. I don't know what I can say about this but I feel like I need to say a lot about it. They were young then. Creating something impossibly mature but in a really playful way. Putting mature skills to use in creating something that just sounds fresh and fun and somewhat loose. The authoritative vocals from Kim & Thurston, the way their guitars interplayed, the noise noise noise, the LOUD, the quiet, the uneasiness and scream and distortion! Every song a shove but also a suite, it's everything.
Sonic Youth "Candle"
I honestly cannot reach a final decision about my favorite Pixies album. Doolittle was my first and holds a dear place in my heart, but Surfer Rosa has always been hot on its heels and a part of me seems to think/know it is the superior of the two. Maybe. Something about it feels a bit rawer. Probably songs like "Something Against You." The screaming is powerful here. And Joey Santiago's guitar is a bit more vicious on this album, such as on "Vamos" when he comes up with so many different squawks to make his guitar make on a very forward moving beat (I remember being blown away when I saw them on their initial reunion tour by how much of the Pixies' uniqueness could be attributed to Santiago's inventiveness on the guitar). And it has a Kim Deal song! And the songs that are softer, acoustic style? Two of the greatest songs they ever recorded. There's the ever popular "Where Is My Mind?" and then there's my favorite track, one that has guided me through long distance relationship hatred (not hatred but obsession and anger and hell):
Pixies "Cactus"
I'll call it right there. Done.
In other comments...
- Thomas Dolby. Aliens Ate My Buick. A nerd of nerds, one of the last great new wave albums maybe? Mostly it's nerdy funk.
- I feel like I'm past talking about classic rock and that's kind of how I place The Traveling Wilburys. So I'll put this here. Roy Orbison is very missed. So is George Harrison now. That Vol. 1 is a good album. It just kind of sounds like a bunch of legends having a great time.
- I dig Camper Van Beethoven.
- Leonard Cohen's I'm Your Man actually sounds ok in the context of other late 80s music. Meaning the over-production I noticed when I first listened to it out of context is less noticeable when lots of the surrounding music is also over-produced. And "Take This Waltz" is another damn gem from this genius songwriter.
- The debut from My Bloody Valentine is pretty astonishing for a debut.
- Operation Ivy's Hectic EP is a part of the version of Energy I have on CD so it's kind of like it's here. I think I'll hold off and write about them in full when I hit Energy though.
- Lincoln is probably one of They Might Be Giants' stronger efforts.
- Fishbone album! Truth and Soul shows a band that is clearly in the minority of black bands in punk rock fighting against the pressures that come from that.
So what's next?
1989. We wrap up the 80s. But I have a lot to chew through so this may take a while (473, my highest song count yet!)
Hip Hop: Beastie Boys return. De La Soul shows up. So does Young MC! (looks much more positive this year)
College/Whatever: Disintegration is the best album ever! Depeche Mode keeps new wave alive a little bit longer. Early Nirvana! The other greatest Pixies album! My only Public Image Ltd album! Stone Roses. More Yo La Tengo.
Old People: Bob Dylan returns with a great album! So does Elvis Costello! And Lou Reed! Queen.
Punk: Crimpshrine! Fugazi delivers the second half of 13 songs with the Margin Walker EP. The Mr. T. Experience. Operation Ivy for real this time. Slint means math rock is a thing! Vandals go country.
Popular: Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814.
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