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CHUD Album of the Month: Bedhead and Talking Heads

post #1 of 32
1/25/10 at 1:28pm
Thread Starter 
Narrowing this down to just two picks proved to be way harder than I thought it would. After much gnashing of teeth, I ultimately decided to just go with a couple of my favorite albums of all time. Though now I really want to start a “Album of The Month: The Alternates” thread where we can just dump our shortlists for anyone interested in a simple list/recommendation thread. Anyway, enough of that, here are my picks.


Bedhead - “WhatFunLifeWas” (1994)


Here’s a link to listen on Grooveshark. http://listen.grooveshark.com/#/albu...ife+Was/804891
I had a hard time finding it anywhere. Some tracks can be dug up on youtube if that link doesn’t work for anyone.

The proper tracklist is:

Liferaft
Haywire
Bedside Table
The Unpredictable Landlord
Crushing
Unfinished
Powder
Foaming Love
To The Ground
Living Well
Wind Down

Here’s the Wikipedia entry for Bedhead:
Quote:
Bedhead were a Texas-based indie rock band active in the 1990s (1991-1998). Bedhead's music was generally subdued, with a polyphonic sound based on the interlocking of single-line melodies played by three electric guitars and one electric bass guitar (often played with a capo), nearly always using clean (undistorted) tones, prompting comparisons to the Velvet Underground[1]. The group's vocals were often delivered in such a low key manner that they were quite difficult to decipher[2]. This unusual sound was dubbed by some critics as "slo-core," referring to the slow tempos of many of the band's songs, though the band's members objected to the labeling in interviews. In reality, many of the group's songs do not remain slow and quiet throughout, instead beginning very slowly and quietly and gradually building in intensity and volume. Bedhead also experimented with time signatures less commonly used in rock music, by playing some songs in 6/8 or 3/4 meter.
In 1999, a year after the breakup of Bedhead, Matt and Bubba Kadane went on to form a band called The New Year, whose style is similar to Bedhead's.
This album took a while to work its fingers into me. By about the 5th listen, I had been hooked. By the 10th listen and a live show, I was a fervent convert. It’s a sound that definitely won’t be for everyone (lyrics-first people: be prepared to strain to hear the mumble-singing. The lyrics, when you can hear them, are actually quite good), but for some of you it might become a lifelong favorite like it has for me.

The band’s songwriting matured through it’s next two albums, frequently eschewing the slow buildup/crescendo/release formula that they utilize through much of “WhatFunLifeWas”, finally culminating in the Steve Albini-produced mini-masterpiece “Transaction de Novo” which wound up being their final album as Bedhead. I had a real debate over picking that album instead, as I believe it’s probably more accessible and better recorded, but there’s something special about “WhatFunLifeWas” and its interlocking melodies and countermelodies, its OMGHUGEWALLOFSOUND crescendos, and its unified statement of purpose. It’s a deceptive album that really needs to be played LOUD to appreciate. If you find yourself liking elements of the sound on “WhatFunLifeWas” but you just can’t connect, I’d try “Transaction de Novo” before giving up. My wife hated Bedhead until she listened to “Transaction.”

Talking Heads - “Remain in Light” (1980)

http://www.lala.com/#album/360569445...emain_In_Light

Talking Heads shouldn’t need an introduction. They’re my favorite band of all time, and this is my favorite album of all time. It’s start-to-finish perfect. I prefer the studio versions of all of these songs to the “Name of This Band”/”Stop Making Sense” versions, though those are great too. There’s something about the way the production on this album creates atmosphere that’s almost otherworldly. Eno and Byrne were at the peak of their powers here. The grooves are infectious, Byrne’s singing is unhinged, his lyrics are opaque and personal, yet somehow universal at the same time, and the band is just unbelievably tight.

I love this album. So. Much.
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post #2 of 32
1/25/10 at 1:40pm
FUCK yes to Remain In Light. Fear of Music was so oppressive and bleak, and the richness and texture of this was a really great shift. They never topped this one. The song about the terrorist bomber (Listening Wind) is great.

Tracks 2 and 3 are made for me to drive like a maniac through the city. And the lyrics to Seen and Not Seen remind me of the more coherent side of the William S Burroughs spectrum:

Quote:
He would see faces in movies, on T.V., in magazines, and in books. He thought that some of these faces might be right for him. And through the years, by keeping an ideal facial structure fixed in his mind, or somewhere in the back of his mind, that he might, by force of will, cause his face to approach those of his ideal. The change would be very subtle; it might take ten years or so. Gradually his face would change its shape - a more hooked nose, wider, thinner lips, beady eyes, a larger forehead. He imagined that this was an ability he shared with most other people. They had also molded their faced according to some ideal. Maybe they imagined that their new face would better suit their personality. Or maybe they imagined that their personality would be forced to change to fit the new appearance. This is why first impressions are often correct. Although some people might have made mistakes. They may have arrived at an appearance that bears no relationship to them. They may have picked an ideal appearance based on some childish whim, or momentary impulse. Some may have gotten half-way there, and then changed their minds.

He wonders if he too might have made a similar mistake.
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post #3 of 32
1/25/10 at 2:39pm
Nice picks, EK. I must admit, I've never heard a Talking Heads album all the way through...I like the band well enough, but I never got into them enough to dive any deeper into their catalog or listen to any of albums. Time to remedy that!
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post #4 of 32
1/25/10 at 2:42pm
Remain In Light is one of the best album of the 80's.

Never heard of Bedhead.
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post #5 of 32
1/25/10 at 4:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Judas Booth View Post
Nice picks, EK. I must admit, I've never heard a Talking Heads album all the way through...I like the band well enough, but I never got into them enough to dive any deeper into their catalog or listen to any of albums. Time to remedy that!
I bet you'll find it a very different experience than hearing the songs individually. On Remain in Light, in particular, the band does a great job of using sounds that make the whole thing cohere, but if you hear them individually (for instance, "Once in a Lifetime," which is the track you most often hear out of context), you wouldn't necessarily be able to guess what the the rest of the album sounds like.
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post #6 of 32
1/25/10 at 4:49pm
Have to get round to Bedhead, but I can't do much but echo the praise for Remain In Light.* The album's secret weapon is Adrian Belew: the flexibility of his playing is a huge part of the opening up of the sound compared to Fear of Music.

And, yes, I saw the tour.

*1980 was one fucking amazing year for music, since we Yanks didn't get London Calling till January of that year. Throw in The River, Dirty Mind, Get Happy!!, Los Angeles, Truth Decay, I Just Can't Stop It, Doc At The Radar Station, Seconds of Pleasure, TWO albums from Gang of Four...
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post #7 of 32
1/25/10 at 4:55pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeb View Post
Adrian Belew
Had NO idea that he was on this album. OK, I'm all in.
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post #8 of 32
1/25/10 at 5:07pm
I didn't either and now it's so damn obvious.
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post #9 of 32
1/25/10 at 5:19pm
YES! I'm gonna pop in my vinyl copy of Remain in Light when I get home and crank up Crosseyes and Painless. Nice choice.

Never heard of Bedhead so I'm looking forward to give it a listen.
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post #10 of 32
1/25/10 at 5:24pm
Thread Starter 
Belew is all over the album, but really shines on Born Under Punches, The Great Curve, Houses in Motion, and Crosseyed and Painless.

I love the guy when he's part of an ensemble like he is here, adding texture and tasteful wankery. On his own, or dialed up higher in the mix...eh, it's usually too much for me.
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post #11 of 32
1/25/10 at 5:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eyeball Kid View Post
I love the guy when he's part of an ensemble like he is here, adding texture and tasteful wankery. On his own, or dialed up higher in the mix...eh, it's usually too much for me.
I like him on the early 80s King Crimson albums (particularly Discipline), which are equal parts wankery and pop. They're also pretty close in feel to Remain in Light, especially with Belew being a vocal ringer for Byrne.
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post #12 of 32
1/25/10 at 5:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DaveB View Post
I like him on the early 80s King Crimson albums (particularly Discipline), which are equal parts wankery and pop. They're also pretty close in feel to Remain in Light, especially with Belew being a vocal ringer for Byrne.
Supposedly, Weymouth and Frantz asked him to take over fronting the band when the split with Byrne became inevitable, but he declined.
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post #13 of 32
1/26/10 at 10:03am
I had never listened to a Talking Heads album all the way through before listening to Remain in Light last night and well Holy Shit what a great album. Funky, weird and just all around awesome. I had so much fun listening to it last night and on the way to work this morning. I actually went out of my way this morning to turn my computer on to burn it, because I woke up with "Born Under Punches" in my head and just wanted to listen to it again.

I started listening to the Bedhead album but didn't get all the way though it last night. I was enjoying it but I need to pay more attention to it.
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post #14 of 32
1/26/10 at 1:02pm
Thread Starter 
I'm so glad people are digging Remain in Light. And Phil, things like "Seen and Not Seen" are why David Byrne is - and always will be - my hero and my most admired artist.

While his post-Heads material isn't as consistent, there are many, many songs that stand with the best of those. He's about to release a new project he created in collaboration with Fatboy Slim that sounds batshit insane: a song cycle about Imelda Marcos called "Here Lies Love", with an impressive array of guest vocalists. http://www.davidbyrne.com/here_lies_love/index.php



Quote:
TRACK LIST:


CD 1
CD 2
1. HERE LIES LOVE
Vocal by Florence Welch (Florence +*The Machine)

2. EVERY DROP OF RAIN
Vocals by Candie Payne & St. Vincent

3. YOU’LL BE TAKEN CARE OF
Vocal by Tori Amos

4. THE ROSE OF TACLOBAN
Vocal by Martha Wainwright

5. HOW ARE YOU?
Vocal by Nellie McKay

6. A PERFECT HAND
Vocal by Steve Earle

7. ELEVEN DAYS
Vocal by Cyndi Lauper

8. WHEN SHE PASSED BY
Vocal by Allison Moorer

9. WALK LIKE A WOMAN
Vocal by Charmaine Clamor

10. DON’T YOU AGREE?
Vocal by Róisín Murphy

11. PRETTY FACE
Vocal by Camille

12. LADIES IN BLUE
Vocal by Theresa Andersson

1. DANCING TOGETHER
Vocal by Sharon Jones

2. MEN WILL DO ANYTHING
Vocal by Alice Russell

3. THE WHOLE MAN
Vocal by Kate Pierson

4. NEVER SO BIG
Vocal by Sia

5. PLEASE DON’T
Vocal by Santigold

6. AMERICAN TROGLODYTE
Vocal by David Byrne

7. SOLANO AVENUE
Vocal by Nicole Atkins

8. ORDER 1081
Vocal by Natalie Merchant

9. SEVEN YEARS
Vocals by David Byrne & Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond)

10. WHY DON'T YOU LOVE ME?
Vocals by Cyndi Lauper & Tori Amos
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post #15 of 32
1/27/10 at 9:10pm
Bedhead=WhatFunLifeWas

I got a definite Lou Reed vibe off this band, it was mostly in the vocals but it was also in the slow machine like groove of the songs. I actually liked this more than I thought I would, the gradual build of each song was quite good, it felt quite cinematic at times.

Talking Heads-Remain in Light
Like everyone else, i'd heard various TH singles over the years but never really delved in their catalogue. You could classify their sound as white funk but that wouldn't be fair, they certainly do incorporate definite funky rhythm's on this record, Weymouth's bass really does pop on the more uptempo tracks like Born Under Punches and Seen not Seen and The Great Curve, with Harrison's guitar they create quite the funky rhythm section. I really liked the album, there's definitely an afro-centric sound to it.
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post #16 of 32
2/2/10 at 3:46pm
I must admit, I'm really digging this Talking Heads album. I think that the only song that I've ever heard off of it is 'Once in a Lifetime', and that's probably my least favorite song on the album.

I'm on my 4th listen through, and I find myself wanting to explore their catalog a bit further. What would be a good next step?

Haven't done Bedhead yet; gonna try this afternoon.
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post #17 of 32
2/2/10 at 3:58pm
The closest in overall sound to Remain in Light is the next one, Speaking in Tongues, which was actually a fairly substantial hit. Fear of Music precedes Remain in Light and in some ways sounds like the rough sketches for it, notably the opener "I Zimbra" (though as others have mentioned, it's stiffer and less funky). If your favorite track is "Crosseyed and Painless" or "The Great Curve," go for Speaking in Tongues; if you incline more towards "Seen and Not Seen" or "Houses in Motion," try Fear of Music.

My one reservation about recommending Speaking in Tongues is that Jerry Harrison's synth replaces Belew's guitar as the signature instrument, and at this remove, might sound a bit more dated. But the rhythms are inescapable.

I'm a huge fan of most of their albums, particularly Talking Heads '77, More Songs About Buildings and Food, and Little Creatures besides the ones I mentioned; but again, for all their intelligence and pop craft, their sound is quite different from Remain in Light.

Slightly off the wall recommendation: Tom Tom Club, which was the side project of drummer Chris Frantz and bass player Tina Weymouth: good, goofy, danceable fun, though once you get past the hit single "Genius of Love," there's not a lot that sticks to the ribs.

Also, Byrne's score for the Twyla Tharp ballet The Catherine Wheel has some of the same vibe as Remain in Light.

By the way, Belew plays on both of these.

Also worth seeking out is David Byrne's project with Brian Eno, My Life In the Bush of Ghosts, with Eno's textures and Byrne's rhythms underlying "found" bits of dialogue and doggerell.
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post #18 of 32
2/2/10 at 4:04pm
Thanks for the input, Jeb. I seem to remember hearing that 'More Songs about Buildings and Food' topped a whole bunch of BEST ALBUM lists for the 80s.
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post #19 of 32
2/2/10 at 4:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Judas Booth View Post
Thanks for the input, Jeb. I seem to remember hearing that 'More Songs about Buildings and Food' topped a whole bunch of BEST ALBUM lists for the 80s.
Technically, 70's (came out in '78), but yeah it was right up there among the best.

When all is said and done, it might be my favorite Heads album; among other things, it vies with Costello's This Year's Model , Springsteen's Wild, Innocent, and Graham Parker's Heat Treatment as the best second album of the decade.

EDIT: I should probably mention the two live albums:

Stop Making Sense is such a great concert film that it's almost crazy to just listen to the audio, but the performance and sound are truly spectacular.

The Name of This Band is Talking Heads is a live set (originally on 2 LP's) that, instead of one set of shows (as in the case of Stop Making Sense) spans the band's career up to its release in 1982, with the attendant growth and shifts in focus; it has the hits, goes back to grab some obscure/unreleased early songs, and adds Belew for the Remain in Light material. I think my alltime favorite version of "Take Me To The River" (even more than Al Green's) is on this album.

There's obviously some material duplicated between the two live albums, but both are so good that you don't need to be an obsessive to own them both.
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post #20 of 32
2/2/10 at 5:01pm
Time for me to weigh in on Bedhead, I guess. While I can appreciate the Velvets influence, it puts me in mind of Philip Glass or Steve Reich, in that I've gotta be in a mood that really requires that kind of droning repetition to listen to it at all. It was OK as ambient music at work, but when I actually sat down and paid attention to it, it just didn't seem to be offering much more than it had when it was droning away in the background.

And while the lyrics might well be very good, the band's evident lack of interest in conveying them to me means that I was never much motivated to find out.

Still, always glad to have a reason to check out music that's new to me.
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post #21 of 32
2/2/10 at 5:23pm
Thread Starter 
Heh, I knew Bedhead wouldn't be for everyone. But I have to say, only a few songs on the album are really drone-y or minimalist. I mean, the second track, "Haywire" is just a flat out rock song. And "To The Ground" is just a honky-tonk country song. Did you make it all the way through the record?

One last track for you from their last record (before morphing into The New Year) to give a chance:
Extramundane: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cj0GbKs15z0

Okay, and one from The New Year: Newness Ends http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1zzGU5_nrA

Lyrics:
I don't need these things if I'll lose them again
This house looks like a bankrupt museum
But I'm not like you
I don't want to go zen
This is what happens when the newness ends
And in my defense you were the one
But there's no difference because I'm not done
I'm gonna clean my room and get me a friend
This is what happens when the newness ends

And you can't see that I won't be that way for you
again

We watched the rust get covered in frost
When you lose your lust you're never so lost
When the day's as long as this is wrong
There are things still here but everything's gone
Is this what happens when you have a friend
This is what happens when the newness ends

And you can't see that you won't be that way for me
again
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post #22 of 32
2/2/10 at 5:44pm
To be fair, I accidentally listened to Bedheaded twice before I realized it was the wrong album (the album covers are pretty similar), so when I got around to What Fun Life Was , I found it definitely the more lively of the two. And I did sit up and take notice when "To The Ground" came on. But then "Living Well" just started slogging away and I went back to work. I admit I'm generalizing, but my overall interest wasn't strong enough to make fine distinctions between stronger songs and lesser ones.

Having been through both albums (and Transaction de Novo) a couple times each, I think I've given them a fair shot. As I say, they work for me as a nice bit of background, with bits of tunes and melodies occasionally popping up, but don't really seem to reward my closer attention.

I'm not slagging them off, though: that actually sums up how I feel about most of Brian Eno's stuff, too.
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post #23 of 32
2/2/10 at 7:26pm
Anyone know a good source of Talking Heads guitar tabs? I want to learn Born Under Punches and I Zimbra especially.
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post #24 of 32
2/2/10 at 7:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kyle Reese View Post
Anyone know a good source of Talking Heads guitar tabs? I want to learn Born Under Punches and I Zimbra especially.
Almost four dozen Talking Heads tabs, but NOT the two you're looking for!

This place, for some reason, has only the bass tabs for both songs.

Some are just chords, some actual tabs. I'm sure there's more out there somewhere.
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post #25 of 32
2/3/10 at 4:27pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeb View Post
To be fair, I accidentally listened to Bedheaded twice before I realized it was the wrong album (the album covers are pretty similar), so when I got around to What Fun Life Was , I found it definitely the more lively of the two. And I did sit up and take notice when "To The Ground" came on. But then "Living Well" just started slogging away and I went back to work. I admit I'm generalizing, but my overall interest wasn't strong enough to make fine distinctions between stronger songs and lesser ones.

Having been through both albums (and Transaction de Novo) a couple times each, I think I've given them a fair shot. As I say, they work for me as a nice bit of background, with bits of tunes and melodies occasionally popping up, but don't really seem to reward my closer attention.

I'm not slagging them off, though: that actually sums up how I feel about most of Brian Eno's stuff, too.
No worries. And yeah, I'm not a big fan of "Beheaded" either, to be honest. That album is too slow and same-y, even as a huge fan.

It's funny that you point out "Living Well" because the crescendo in the last 1:20 or so of that is one of my favorite sections of the album.

If anyone's having trouble finding the Bedhead album, or if the Grooveshark link doesn't work, send me a PM and we can arrange something.
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post #26 of 32
2/4/10 at 2:34am
The Talking Bedheads? Sorry. Had to say it.

Remain in Light encompasses everything that's so great about Talking Heads---their nonconformity, the magnetism that's conveyed in odd time-signatures and funkified rhythms, unfathomable knack for amazingly bold pop hooks, and David Byrne's inventive and eccentric technique as a cutting-edge vocalist and performer. This is the very definition of pop perfection. Pop that bristles the senses, mind, and soul. Anyone that places them as their fave band can do no wrong in my book.

And I really, really enjoyed the Bedhead's disc. I love music that needs to be peeled layer to layer to get to that special burning point where everything just connects on an even level. This album is filled with enormous precision and melody, and the more I listen, the more its esoteric pleasures become something to treasure. It's a work that rewards after you put in the time and effort to get to know it. Ironically, if I had listened to this when it was first released, I probably would've chucked it right back into the bargain bin. My musical tastes weren't attuned to this type of sound back then. Would've dismissed it as boring and indecipherable.
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post #27 of 32
2/4/10 at 1:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ray Abed View Post
Would've dismissed it as boring and indecipherable.
Unfortunately, boring and indecipherable is pretty much my impression of it. It's just not grabbing me at all, sorry. I'll try again when I'm in a different frame of mind, but it's just not my thing right now.

Still loving the Talking Heads album, though.
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post #28 of 32
2/4/10 at 2:05pm
As a non-musician, maybe I'm coming at it from a way different place, but I'd recommend taking the journey chronologically. When I was devouring Talking Heads albums in the 80s, it was fun to listen to their sound evolve from one album to the next. I'd go in order, honestly.

Some singles/soundtrack contributions that only ended up in collections like Sand in the
Vaseline:

Love → Building on Fire - first single, predates the first album's release.

Sax and Violins - late period Talking Heads, maybe their last gasp? From the Until The End of The World soundtrack (probably my favorite album of the 90s, honestly.
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post #29 of 32
2/4/10 at 6:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeb View Post
Ah, thank you good sir.
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post #30 of 32
2/4/10 at 6:55pm
Thread Starter 
Until The End of the World is a great soundtrack. Sax and Violins was a "Naked"* outtake, I believe.

*I think "Naked" is a better album than it gets credit for. Johnny Marr's tone makes anything better, and "Nothing But Flowers" is in the upper echelon of anything recorded in the 80s.

David Byrne's first solo album, "Rei Momo", is great too. If you dig "Naked" you'll probably like "Rei Momo."
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post #31 of 32
2/5/10 at 12:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Judas Booth View Post
Unfortunately, boring and indecipherable is pretty much my impression of it. It's just not grabbing me at all, sorry. I'll try again when I'm in a different frame of mind, but it's just not my thing right now.
Yeah, it's not something I'd want to listen to constantly, but almost everything connected with me last nite when I gave it a whirl. Becoming familiar with the music on an introductory level should help you to appreciate the songs even more down the road.
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post #32 of 32
2/22/10 at 2:43pm
Thread Starter 
A pretty good, short new interview with Matt and Bubba Kadane, the founding members of Bedhead/current core of The New Year. For those of you who are interested. *cough* RAY *cough.

The introductory paragraph does a pretty good job of summing up what I like so much about the songs these guys write.

http://thedumbingofamerica.net/2010/...-the-new-year/
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