I considered a number of albums for my choices, some more difficult and esoteric, some more familiar and accessible. Ultimately my choices fell somewhere in the middle, so here are two great albums from my favorite period in rock music, the post-punk, pre-Nirvana 80's underground.
The Dream Syndicate - 'The Days of Wine and Roses' (1982)
A band out of time, The Dream Syndicate courted massive success but never connected. More accessible than New York contemporaries like Sonic Youth and The Swans and more musical than their peers in the LA hardcore scene, the band produced several critically acclaimed albums and toured with the likes of REM and U2 before disbanding in 1989. Though they would produce consistently excellent guitar driven rock throughout their career and a series of lineup changes, they would never top this 1982 debut.
Opening with the anthemic 'Tell Me When It's Over', the band immediately makes clear its debt to The Velvet Underground and Television particularly in the dual guitar interplay of Karl Precoda and Steve Wynn (also vocals). The band continues to rock confidently over the next three tracks ("Definitely Clean ', 'That's What You Always Say' and 'Then She Remembers'), White Light/White Heat inspired guitar leads bleeding into simple, heavily distorted chord progressions, anchored by bassist Kendra Smith and drummer Dennis Duck. But the albums centerpiece is the majestic, haunting six minute and ten second 'Halloween'. The next few tracks are slower, more atmospheric, with Smith taking lead vocals on 'Too Little Too Late' before the album closes with the raucous title track.
My Bloody Valentine - 'Isn't Anything'
'Loveless' is undoubtedly the bands masterpiece, at least until they release the third album that Kevin Shields is still promising. Their full length debut 'Isn't Anything' is merely excellent. From a band known for their intensely stoned atmospherics, this is a surprisingly hard driving, song oriented album. The influence of Sonic Youth and The Jesus and Mary Chain is particularly evident here. Though best known for Shields' guitar experiments, it's Colm Ó Cíosóig's drum heroics that elevate this album. Opening with the surprisingly funky 'Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside)' Ó Cíosóig pounds with fury and precision (although not every track features drums). 'Lose My Breath' and 'All I Need' hint at the direction the band would take next, with other standout songs including 'Feed Me With Your Kiss' and 'sueisfine'. My personal favorite is 'Several Girls Galore', with a vocal by guitarist Bilinda Butcher that recalls a young Marianne Faithfull.
I'm gonna wrap up now. Hope you all enjoy these albums. That was much harder than I'd anticipated.
The Dream Syndicate - 'The Days of Wine and Roses' (1982)
A band out of time, The Dream Syndicate courted massive success but never connected. More accessible than New York contemporaries like Sonic Youth and The Swans and more musical than their peers in the LA hardcore scene, the band produced several critically acclaimed albums and toured with the likes of REM and U2 before disbanding in 1989. Though they would produce consistently excellent guitar driven rock throughout their career and a series of lineup changes, they would never top this 1982 debut.
Opening with the anthemic 'Tell Me When It's Over', the band immediately makes clear its debt to The Velvet Underground and Television particularly in the dual guitar interplay of Karl Precoda and Steve Wynn (also vocals). The band continues to rock confidently over the next three tracks ("Definitely Clean ', 'That's What You Always Say' and 'Then She Remembers'), White Light/White Heat inspired guitar leads bleeding into simple, heavily distorted chord progressions, anchored by bassist Kendra Smith and drummer Dennis Duck. But the albums centerpiece is the majestic, haunting six minute and ten second 'Halloween'. The next few tracks are slower, more atmospheric, with Smith taking lead vocals on 'Too Little Too Late' before the album closes with the raucous title track.
My Bloody Valentine - 'Isn't Anything'
'Loveless' is undoubtedly the bands masterpiece, at least until they release the third album that Kevin Shields is still promising. Their full length debut 'Isn't Anything' is merely excellent. From a band known for their intensely stoned atmospherics, this is a surprisingly hard driving, song oriented album. The influence of Sonic Youth and The Jesus and Mary Chain is particularly evident here. Though best known for Shields' guitar experiments, it's Colm Ó Cíosóig's drum heroics that elevate this album. Opening with the surprisingly funky 'Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside)' Ó Cíosóig pounds with fury and precision (although not every track features drums). 'Lose My Breath' and 'All I Need' hint at the direction the band would take next, with other standout songs including 'Feed Me With Your Kiss' and 'sueisfine'. My personal favorite is 'Several Girls Galore', with a vocal by guitarist Bilinda Butcher that recalls a young Marianne Faithfull.
I'm gonna wrap up now. Hope you all enjoy these albums. That was much harder than I'd anticipated.
