90’s

Way Back Wednesdays: Massive Attack – ‘Karmacoma’

January 5, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Robert “3D” Del Naja, Grant “Daddy D” Marshall & Andrew “Mushroom” Vowles (Date n/a) (Photo via Classical Album Sundays)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke and, of course, it’s time for the return of ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on the blog as we remember some seminal (or simply hidden) gems of yore to help me fulfill my goal of writing up about a different piece of music every day! Massive Attack are recognised as one of the most important and influential acts in 90’s British Music history as the original Trip Hop trio of Bristol, and so they are a great choice to kick off our regular throwback fixture again. Having won two Q Awards, two MTV Europe Music Awards, a BRIT Award for Best British Dance Act, as well as placements on greatest-of-all-time lists compiled by NME and Rolling Stone, Massive Attack were also a really successful commercial crossover act having sold their way to over 13 million records worldwide. ‘Karmacoma’ is one of their signature closing tracks during live performances and it was originally issued as the final single off their second LP – ‘Protection’ – that earned critical acclaim in 1994. ‘Protection’ saw the group lean into the Dub and Trance aspects of their pre-established sound, as well as seeing Tricky joining 3D and Grant Marshall on their musical journey by joining their ranks. DJ Mad Professor created a remixed version of the album that was released one year later, and ‘Protection’ was included in the book ‘1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die’ in 2011. 3D and Tricky say that most of the lyrics for ‘Karmacoma’ were written while high on a drug trip while backstage at a music festival somewhere in England and the music video saw the debut of British film director Jonathan Glazer – who went on to direct 2013’s ‘Under The Skin’ as well as music videos for Radiohead and Jamiroquai. Let’s remember ‘Karmacoma’ below.

‘Karmacoma’ – known for a wild and experimental music video that probably freaked a few poor children out during the mid-90’s – was so popular that Tricky later recorded his own solo version of the track that he renamed as ‘Overcome’ for his debut solo album ‘Maxinquaye’ that he created in 1995. Full of bizzare cinematic references to ‘The Shining’ and ‘Reservoir Dogs’ among other titles, Massive Attack have also name-checked Patrick Swayze in the lyrics for the enigmatic track and they say it was dedicated to him. I find it difficult to believe that the bass-heavy, middle eastern Drum beat that runs throughout the track was entirely manufactured at the hands of the Bristolian group because it sounds so authentic, and yet, it creates a catchy but cerebral groove that understandably gained some mainstream attention for the band at the time. The lyrics are very discreet and give next to nothing away, but powerful lyrics like “I won’t lie and say this love is best, leave us in emotional peace” and “Your troubles must be seen to see through money” that seemingly form a social commentary comparing the interests of lovers to the authorities of the world in some way or another, to the best of my guesswork. Either way, the instrumentation was quite spellbinding as the thunderous snare sample sounds very realistic and the group keep introducing more elements, such as the alluring Bass melodies and the loping rhythm, that maintain an unpredictable feel to the record although the main loop gets very hypnotic as the duration progresses. The most alluring line of all comes when “I must be crazy/see I’m swazy” as the key cinematic reference comes to light. The lyrics, with hooks like “Karmacoma, Jamaican aroma” and “You’re sure you wanna be with me I’ve nothing to give/Take a walk, take a rest, taste the rest” are almost erratic at times, complementing the psychedelic oscillation of the unique pacing. The dynamic between Tricky and 3D, however, still feels new, as they recite their sequences with a mild Spoken Word feel that delves into a gently Poetic flair while the trippy instrumentals keep the proverbial room spinning. They form the important adhesive to the track that melds the laced looping of the relentlessly spiraling Drums and the adventurous songwriting, for the lack of a better term, together thematically. While reclusive and challenging, ‘Karmacoma’ was an off-kilter anthem that gives you just enough time to get used to the ongoing melodies before another strange, but key, element flips the switch halfway again. A chilling spectacle.

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Protection’ (LP) (Released on 26th September, 1994) (via Circa/Wild Bunch Records)

That’s all for now! Thank you for spending the beginnings of your new year with me, and I’ll be back again tomorrow for some more unique music from a Canadian Ethnotronica group who blend Instrumental Hip Hop, Reggaeton, post-00’s Dubstep and Moombahton together with elements of First Nations music for their own brand of “Stadium Pow-Wow” sounds. Their earlier name was a nod to A Tribe Called Quest.

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Scuzz Sundays: Green Day – ‘Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)’

January 2, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Nimrod’ (LP) (Released on October 14th, 1997) (via Reprise Records)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has arrived again for me to see find out if a series of Pop-Punk style hits from between the 90’s and 00’s can match up to quality in the modern times for ‘Scuzz Sundays’ – not forgetting that it’s always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! When thinking about the bands who popularized heavier variations of Rock in the mainstream of the US during the specified period of the Scuzz TV days – bands like Panic! At The Disco, Feeder, Bowling For Soup, Weezer, All American Rejects and The Bloodhound Gang call to my mind for various reasons. However, it feels shocking that we haven’t covered Green Day to any extent for my feature, a very famous 90’s/00’s East Bay native punk rock band who have sold over 75 million records worldwide and released a new album as recently as 2020, before. That’s mostly because I can’t stand ‘Wake Me Up When September Ends’ at all because I had to perform it SO MANY TIMES for a music class in secondary school. However, one of their other most famous recordings – ‘Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)’ – should subside in kicking off the new year with some solid familiarity. A single that showed a softer side to Billie Joe Armstrong, who was previously known for playing his edgy teen-angled music loud and proud, the band’s famous ballad of 1997 reached the top 20 of the charts in several countries including Australia, Iceland, the UK, Canada and the US. It has also been downloaded over 2.6 million times – and I should think it went some way in securing a Broadway stage musical spot related to the band’s other massive hit ‘American Idiot’ in sturdy fashion before the theatrical piece premiered in 2010. On that note – I hope you have the time of your life with ‘Good Riddance’ below.

You’ve probably heard ‘Good Riddance’ played in sentimental spaces like your wedding or a high-school prom night, but the original source of inspiration behind Armstrong’s anthem came from a heart of anger. He told Loudersound in 2016, “It’s about an ex-girlfriend who had moved to Ecuador. In the song, I tried to be level-headed about her leaving, even though I was completely p***ed off. So, I named it ‘Good Riddance’ just to express my anger”, before a late-night house party influenced him to write the material under an Acoustic music guise, a move that he told NME was stylistically different for the band and a risky choice at the time. On this record, Armstrong manages to be relatable and effective in this simplicity and, while seeing a band previously known for darker Punk material turn to a more reflective tone for a gentle ballad isn’t an unprecedented move and a fairly predictable deviation in the modern times, it’s still good to see that Green Day weren’t afraid to change their style up for the benefit of varied material to shape up their discography. Setting this scene with the opening of “Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road” and “Time grabs you by the wrist, directs you where to go” that trade raucous riffs for intimacy, the band are confident in backing up Armstrong’s restrained vocals with a fragile String section and a shifting series of warm vintage acoustic guitar strums. The memorable hook of “It’s something unpredictable, but in the end it’s right/I hope you had the time of your life” has an air of vengeance buried underneath the warmer delivery, but it comes across as heartfelt enough through the reflective vocals that refrain from auto-tune manipulation. While the song does sound very commercial, it was not over-produced. The vocals are a bit formulaic, but they are honest and packed with a small sense of genuine emotion and, really, Green Day are a decent band for being able to achieve these effects with such a radio-friendly recording. I think it’s the ubiquity of the sentimental value that transcends the immediate context of the songwriting that feels timeless and makes the song continually find new popularity with more passing generations and, really, that is still a solid achievement. Overall, this was an often misinterpreted little track that – while not revolutionary – has found a reason to be popular. Peaceful – if commercial – music with enough heart to stand the test of time.

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘American Idiot’ (LP) (Released on September 21st, 2004) (via Reprise Records)

‘Good Riddance’ may remain to be a frequent staple for the end of Green Day’s live performances, but the show must always go on here at One Track At A Time. Join me for the rest of a seemingly never-ending encore tomorrow with our first entirely regular track post in a short time. It comes from a now-solo English musician who was formerly a member of Spaceman 3 and, among line-up changes, his associated band won awards like NME’s Album Of The Year 1997 – beating Radiohead’s ‘OK Computer’.

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Santa’s Scuzz Sundays: The Smashing Pumpkins – ‘Christmas Time’

December 19, 2021 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Pictured: Billy Corgan (Lead Vocals/Writer/Producer), James Iha (Bass Guitar), Jeff Schroeder (Keyboard/Rhythm Guitar) & Jimmy Chamberlain (Drums/Percussion) in a press shot for ‘Cyr’ (2020) (Photo via PR)

Happy Ho-Ho-Holidays to you from me, Father Christmas, and – for a final time this year – I’ve got a new entry in my ‘Scuzz Sundays’ December takeover to give our regular writer Jacob Braybrooke (Who is almost the busiest man in the world, bar me) a little break, because it is his day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! My takeover has come and gone incredibly quickly, almost as quickly as the time it takes for one of my Elf’s to create a toy for the little children of the world, but it draws to a natural conclusion with a rare track from one of the most established alternative rock bands of the 1990’s, The Smashing Pumpkins. Best known for albums like ‘Melon Collie and The Infinite Sadness’ and ‘Siamese Dream’, the name of the group probably has more to do with Halloween than Christmas. However, their blend of soft metal, dream rock, shoegaze, electronica and gothic rock has persisted throughout the ages, and their ambitious frontman Billy Corgan, who was also once a promoter for Total Nonstop Action wrestling, has ensured the project has sold its way to over 30 million records worldwide. It is also a solid achievement that the band are still going, having released a new album as recently as their eleventh LP outing – ‘Cyr’ – in 2020. Our good friend Jacob tells me that he is quite fond of The Smashing Pumpkins himself and that although their discography can be a little hit-or-miss, particularly in their dwindling late-00’s period and with some of their most recent material garnering mixed-negative receptions from him, they make music that is never inherently uninteresting and he appreciates all of the visual work that Corgan puts into their art, and so he still likes to make it clear that even his least favourite releases of The Pumpkins are not without merit. Believed to have been released in 1997 originally, their creative rendition of ‘Christmas Time’ was an original Christmas song that was a rare recording to come across since it was never formally released on one of Corgan’s albums. Instead, it was found on the compilation ‘A Very Special Christmas 3’ that was produced by the usual trio of Bobby Shriver, Al Cafaro & Linda Feder to benefit the Special Olympics via A&M Records. Let’s check it out below.

‘Christmas Time’ can also be found on The Smashing Pumpkins’ 2005 compilation, ‘Rarities and B-Sides’, that just does what it says on the tin. The original source, as mentioned, was ‘A Very Special Christmas 3’, the third in the titular of Christmas box sets released for charity. This iteration of the series also featured some appearances from Mary J. Blige, Dave Matthews, No Doubt, Natalie Merchant, Sting, Enya, Hootie & The Blowfish and Steve Winwood, and the big release runs for over 66 minutes in its entirety. It reached #2 on the US Billboard Top Holiday Albums chart and it was certified as ‘Gold’ for shifting over 500,000 units by the RIAA. Keeping things short and sweet at a less daunting 3:17 however, was Corgan’s original track ‘Christmas Time’ which was second in the track listing, and it feels like a natural choice to warm you up for the more mellow or hard-hitting cuts later on. Reflecting on the fuzzy and kind-hearted memories of times gone by, Corgan uses nostalgic lyrics like “We watch the children playing, beside the Christmas tree/The presents are wrapped up, it’s beautiful and secretly” and “I remember dreaming, Wishing, hoping and praying for this day/Now I sit and watch them/The little ones I love” introduced a more mature theme of enjoying Christmas time as an adult, which feels like unique and relatively untapped subject matter in other yuletide anthems. There’s a delicate String section that dominates the backbeat, as well as some whimsical Horns that help to set the tone of a simple Christmas done right in the opening. The key hook of “Christmas time has come, toys for everyone” gets the simple message of ‘Christmas is finally here’ across in a sweet and pleasant way. Musically, this probably has the most in common with the band’s ‘infinite sadness’ era as it doesn’t really reflect harder rock archetypes, but it feels almost child-like in the way that it depicts Christmas in such an earnest way that is complemented by Corgan’s vulnerable vocals well. There’s a few Synth textures buried in here, but the track certainly has an eclectic air of rhyme and reason to it. As a complete package, this makes for a really gorgeous and subtle Dream-Pop release that wears its heart on its sleeve and conveys a basic message in a pleasant way. It plays to the softer side of The Smashing Pumpkins that is rarely seen, but is very appreciated when it does pull in an appearance, and it feels somewhat strange that it hasn’t really been given any cover versions or re-workings for John Lewis ads at Christmas in later years. At the time, it was a refreshing change of pace for a band who are known to release intimidating double albums and inter-connected albums to opt for something simpler and indulge in straightforward holiday cheer, and Corgan strikes a good balance between child-like joy and more adult-oriented nostalgia in his lyrics. I’m sure that Jacob would love for me to point out that Corgan could have easily just recorded a simple cover version of an already more established song for the record all of those years ago as it would have cost him nothing. However, he instead decided to write his own lyrics and chord sheets from scratch. This is testament to what makes Corgan’s project so appealing over the decades and why The Smashing Pumpkins have survived throughout the saturation of ‘Indie’ for so long. He never repeats himself and, as an artist, he always gives his all into everything what he does. That’s something that we can all deeply admire about Corgan. To conclude, this is an essential addition to your playlist as it has everything that you could want from a Christmas song since it feels traditionally festive as well as original.

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Mellan Collie and The Infinite Sadness’ (LP) (Released in 1985) (via Virgin/EMI Records)

Jacob has also informed me that Corgan and his co-horts have made two previous appearances on the site. You can catch up on their recent material with ‘Wyttch’ from 2020’s ‘Cyr’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/11/27/todays-track-the-smashing-pumpkins-wyttch/. Or, you can relive their ‘Melon Collie and The Infinite Sadness’ days with his take on ‘Tonight, Tonight’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/10/27/scuzz-sundays-the-smashing-pumpkins-tonight-tonight/

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Cyr’ (LP/Album) (Released on November 27th, 2020) (via Sumerian Records)

I’ve got to give Rudolph’s nose a wipe – and so I’ll leave it there for today! Thank you very much for having me throughout December, and I’ll leave you in the capable hands of Jacob Braybrooke again tomorrow, who will be having a brief reset before Christmas to help you catch up on some music that you may have missed in 2021. The next pick comes from a Black Metal-influenced Art Folk and Country singer songwriter who issued her tenth studio LP via Sacred Bones Records and Bella Union in October.

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Countdown To Christmas 2021: Fat Les – ‘Naughty Christmas (Goblin In The Office)’

December 18, 2021 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Alex James (Bass Guitar), Keith Allen (Vocals) & Damien Hirst (Artist) (1998) with Paul Haye (Photo by Rex)

Good Morning to you! This is, of course, Jacob Braybrooke – and it’s time for you to make some room in the fridge for your sprouts and carrots (and don’t forget those tasty Pigs In Blankets) shortly after reading your latest entry in my ‘Countdown To Christmas 2021’ catalogue, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! When researching some Christmas and winter-themed tracks to discuss on the site every year – I always opt for some of the straight-up strangest and most alternative offerings to include alongside the more serious suggestions. I believe that I may have just found one of the most weird-but-wonderful (Depending on how you feel about terrible novelty songs that you would not get away with making today) in the case of 1998’s ‘Naughty Christmas (Goblin In The Office)’. This was an attempt at comedy produced by the UK novelty super-group of Fat Les. They were not really a British band per-say, but more of a weird type of side project involving Blur’s bassist Alex James, actor Keith Allen and visual artist Damien Hirst among their most famous line-up. Other iterations of Fat Les, however, have involved the likes of producer Matt Eaton and Happy Mondays’ Rowetta joining and replacing their ranks in later years. The post-Britpop hangover project of Fat Les were probably best known for recording ‘Vindaloo’, the unofficial theme song for England’s team in the 1998 FIFA World Cup, a still reasonably well-liked serving of quirky Pop/Rock that reached #2 in the UK Singles Chart, and the music video was memorable for being a spoof of The Verve’s ‘Bitter Sweet Symphony’ and also Massive Attack’s ‘Unfinished Sympathy’ in its narrative, concept and structure. Released as their second single, the follow-up of ‘Naughty Christmas (Goblin In The Office)’ was not quite as successful, but it reached #21 in the UK Singles Chart and was notable for including additional vocals from a pre-fame Lily Allen and Kill City’s vocalist Lisa Moorish. The title of the bizzare yuletide anthem is also a bit of a misnomer, but the music video reveals what happens when an office Christmas party goes awry after drinking one too many cups of Eggnog at your works do. On that note, prepare yourself for the odd insanity below.

Fat Les also recorded tunes like ‘Who Invented Fish & Chips’ and ‘Jerusalem’ – their unofficial theme song for the England football team at Euro 2000 – with celebrities like Michael Barrymore, Ed Tudor-Pole, Andy Kane, the London Gay Men’s Chorus and the London Community Gospel Choir appearing in their music and videos as the usual suspects. You may have noticed already, but the music video that you’ve just seen for ‘Naughty Christmas (Goblin In The Office)’ featured an array of performers including Paul Kaye, Roland Rivron and Damien Hirst himself. If you were watching closely, you can have also spotted future Little Britain stars Matt Lucas and David Walliams at the office party, and I’m pretty certain that I spotted a young Mel Giedroyc during some of the background shots, but I may be wrong about that. The song itself is a really surreal one at best, with amusing hooks like “I am a naughty, naughty man/You are a naughty naughty woman” and “Cor blimey, You’re so slimey” that sees Moorish and Allen deliver some back-and-forth duelling in terms of the vocals. The songwriting isn’t exactly subtle or sophisticated then, with refrains such as “I’ll do anything/You’ll do anything too” that ensure the song isn’t likely to be played during a children’s stocking filling activity hour at a primary school. The sheer absurdity of the video and the song makes for some decent comedic value, however. Otherwise, I think I’ve already made it abundantly clear through my own implications that, from a technical musicianship perspective, this is fairly awful. The lyrics are not cohesive, the instrumentation lacks variety, and it’s not particularly catchy. However, in terms of fulfilling its main goal of making me crack a smile and simply enjoy myself for a few minutes, it succeeded. At a brief side note, who wears devil’s horns to an office party?

Pictured: Alex James (Bass Guitar/Vocals), Keith Allen (Writer/Actor) & Damien Hirst (2002) (Photo via IMDB.com)

That’s all for now! Thank you for attending my weekend-before-Christmas party, and although I won’t be back tomorrow since I’ll be at work, good old Saint Nick himself will be continuing his takeover of my ‘Scuzz Sundays’ feature instead. He’ll be talking about a festive track from a still well-liked 90’s rock band whose last release was the 2020 album ‘Cyr’ and they still record new music regularly today. The frontman and primary songwriter was also notably once a promoter for the TNA wrestling company.

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Countdown To Christmas 2021: Beck – ‘The Little Drum Machine Boy’

December 10, 2021 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Beck Hansen in a promotional photoshoot for ‘Mellow Gold’ (1994) (Photo via DGC/Bang Bang)

Good Morning to you! You are reading the words of Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time to pre-heat the oven and bake some Christmas Cookies as we continue our ‘Countdown To Christmas’ for the year with another daily upload on the blog, since it has always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! It has been a little while since we heard from Beck Hansen on the blog, but we have explored several snippets of his material on the site before. The 90’s Alternative Pop and Rock music icon has always been known for his exhaustive list of collaborations with fellow pop culture legends like Paul McCartney, Air and The Lonely Island, as well as his obscure and oblique lyricism, along with his wealth of eccentric recordings in the 90’s and 00’s that have found Beck scoring several Grammy Awards wins and a four-time platinum certification for his album sales, with some of his most popular albums being 1996’s ‘Odelay’ and 2002’s ‘Sea Change’, both of which were highly influential and earned spots on Rolling Stone’s list of ‘The 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time’ that was last revised in 2020. Although some of my favourites include 1999’s ‘Midnite Vultures’ and 2019’s ‘Hyperspace’, his rare Christmas track known as ‘The Little Drum Machine Boy’ came immediately off the back of ‘Odelay’ and ‘Mutations’, where Beck was very confident in his ability to pull together his absurdities on top of sly, freeform Hip-Hop beats. The single first appeared on KROQ’s annual Christmas tape in Los Angeles during 1996, before appearing on his label’s charity compilation titled ‘Just Say Noel’, and it can also be found on Kevin & Bean’s ‘Christmas Time In The LBC’ compilation released that same year. Beck recalled in an interview during 2008 that he actually recorded it during the summer time and nowhere near to the holidays in a studio found in Rochester, New York when he finished touring one year and that it was inspired by Outkast and Busta Rhymes’ early records. Even by Beck’s lofty experimental standards, this single is pretty bizzare. Give into the insanity below.

‘The Little Drum Machine Boy’ is a pretty obscure recording when all things have been considered, but two edits of Beck’s kooky festive anthem exist. The example above is the full-length seven minute recording which is drum machine-based, but there is also a three minute radio edit out there without the lengthy ending sequence. The problem is, with the latter version, you’re missing out on a lot of the humor and the twists on the Christmas-themed production formula. Beck was largely known for his quirky sample-based flair and his post-modern Pop Art collages of noise throughout the 90’s, and ‘The Little Drum Machine’ boy recalls this era of his discography with logical sense – building up some meticulous layers of soft-funk, wobbling bass and psychedelic guitar rhythms full of trippy and rhythmically deranged sounds with a wonky structure. It’s hard to even find a place to start with the lyrics, which rarely make any sense of a typically coherent fashion, as you’re likely to expect from the weird and wonderful palette of mid-90’s Beck. Hansen starts off with the words taken from the ancient christmas carol that his track’s title bears a clear resemblance to, before proclaiming to drop some ‘Hanukkah’ science to the mix and adds a robotic vocal to the mixture. The robotic samples act as a through-line for the wacky sonic palette, as he continues to twist and morph the tone of the universally known carol to be about the Jewish holiday of Hannukah and modernizes the melodies with the help of some eccentric synths and the consistent Drum Machine programming. The vocals feel hazy and hallucinogenic, but there’s a rhyme and a reason to a few of the lines sprinkled in here, as Beck’s near-indecipherable robot voice is actually reciting a Jewish blessing and he continues to slur some Jewish prayers throughout the song with his awkward vocals. The crazy concoction of his vocals and instrumentation bend and break the conventional Christmas tropes by transforming the vocals into being an ode to Hanukkah instead of our global end-of-the-year season. It contains some of the most abstract, on-the-nose and topically obscure Christmas lyrics ever to be issued, but Beck achieves his goal of dropping some “robot Hanukkah science” that he clearly states at the intro of the strange single, and so the ensuing collage of quirky music isn’t as hard to make out as it may first appear when you really think about it. The ending is festive and funny, while the playful lyrics throughout are dipping between hooks of different Christmas classics that you would recognize and his affection for the Jewish holiday that he depicts as equivalent. Overall, this is a strange and straight-up abnormal tune that only be 90’s Beck, and only he could only get away with making it work because he manages to make it supple enough to hold together and the unique, individual rhyme schemes of his musical blueprint saved it from diving into the pure novelty status it risks. Bonkers brilliance from the best Beck.

Pictured: Art Collage showing the many faces of Beck over the decades (2018) (Photo Credit: Sarita Schaffer)

Several sporadic entries regarding Beck have been made on the blog before, and so there’s plenty to keep you busy content-wise on this humble site if you’re an avid fan of his output. You can read all about 1999’s ‘Hollywood Freaks’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/09/02/22nd-birthday-special-edition-beck-hollywood-freaks/. There’s also my thoughts on ‘Uneventful Days’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/10/29/todays-track-beck-uneventful-days/ and you can see more of ‘Hyperspace’ with my review of ‘See Through’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/11/28/todays-track-beck-see-through/, and one of my earliest posts was written about ‘Tropicalia’ from ‘Mutations’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/08/20/todays-track-beck-tropicalia/

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Midnite Vultures’ (LP) (Released on November 23rd, 1999) (via DGC Records/Bang Bang)

It’s time for me to take a deep breath and leave you to enjoy the rest of your day! The festivities will keep going tomorrow, however, with another new installment in our ‘Countdown To Christmas’ for 2021. The next pick is much more recent and it comes from a 25-year-old Tennessae-born indie rock singer songwriter who was a member of the ‘Boygenius’ trio alongside similarly young solo breakouts Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus. Her latest LP, ‘Little Oblivions’, was released to great reviews in February.

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Scuzz Sundays: Skunk Anansie – ‘Hedonism (Just Because You Feel Good)’

November 28, 2021 — Leave a comment
Pictured: ‘Skin’ Deborah Dyer (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar/Theremin/Chief Songwriter), ‘Ace’ Martin Kent (Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals), Richard Lewis (Bass Guitar/Unclean Vocals) & Mark Richardson (Drums) (2020) (via PR)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke and, for a final time this year, the time has come for us to revisit some of the Pop-Punk ghosts of the decades past for ‘Scuzz Sundays’, not forgetting that it’s my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! This is the last installment of the trashy weekly feature because I have something special planned for December instead – which is still on-theme and on-brand – but I’ve been conspiring with a special guest who may (or may not) have some involvement with these plans. Therefore, we need to round off the latest year of ‘Scuzz Sundays’ on a high note and the multi platinum-selling 90’s Brit-Rock group Skunk Anansie are certainly a fit for the grand task. They were particularly significant for their own frontwoman, ‘Skin’ (aka Deborah Anne Dyer OBE), who was crucial to black music history because, sadly for the time, it was highly unusual for an androgynous black woman with a trademark bald look to front a well-known Punk Rock band in the mainstream. However, in 2004, they were ranked as one of the most successful UK chart acts between 1952 and 2003 by the Guinness Book Of British Hit Singles & Albums, having spent a total of 142 weeks on both the UK Singles and UK Albums chart. A single synonymous with Skunk Anansie was ‘Hedonism (Just Because You Feel Good)’ – a top 20 hit in several countries including the UK, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Germany and Iceland. Written about a tough breakup, the music video caused some controversy when shots included two girls kissing. Another sign that Skin and company were ahead of their time. Let’s revisit the similar sights below.

Often grouped as part of the 90’s Brit-Pop boom, Skunk Anansie were more precisely an Alternative Rock and Hard Rock outfit who were popular for numerous other hit singles like ‘Weak’ and ‘Charity’ that made a mark on the charts internationally. Their name of ‘Skunk Anansie’ also derives from the Akan folk tales of ‘Anansi’ who was the spider-woman of Ghana, and the band added the title of ‘Skunk’ at the front to, as they simply noted, “make the name nastier”, flowing with their signature sounds to give them a harsher Punk edge over their contemporary competition. ‘Hedonism’ has become a frequent favourite with their fans at live performances and Skin has often been known to perform the single at solo gigs too. Starting with a somber tone using lyrics like “I hope you’re feeling happy now” and “I wonder what you’re doing now/I wonder if you think of me at all” that establish Skin’s narrative who appears not to be ‘over’ their ex-lover despite their bad behaviour following a split, Skunk Anansie complement her shy and willowy vocals with some muted guitar beats, followed by mid-tempo Drums and a harsher bassline, in a fashion that feels reminiscent of a rock opera ballad. They still resemble a Pop band on the more alternative side, however, as the downtempo mood still resembles that of a more moderate Rock song. The focus, here, is on the vocals. Skin uses emotive lyrics like “Does laughter still discover you?/I see through all those smiles that look so right” that feel open and revealing to her character, which are contrasted by highly distorted guitars in a particularly memorable guitar solo in the middle. The drums and the bass are very tight and consistent, while the dynamics and subtleties are left intact because Skin’s vocals are never compromised by the heavier guitar melodies, which leaves plenty of wide space for the lyrics to come through nicely. Confrontational yet slightly tinged by vulnerability, Skin’s vocal performance is rich and well-recorded. In conclusion, ‘Hedonism’ is a solid single with crossover appeal between slightly different genres that still holds up today. Kept simple and effective, yet complex enough, it is a good testament to the credibility of the 4-piece despite their larger mainstream popularity.

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Stoosh’ (LP) (Released on October 7th, 1996) (via One Little Indian/Epic Records)

That brings us to the bottom of the page! Thank you for continuing to support my content every day, and I’ll be back tomorrow to kick off a new week’s worth of posts that includes a fairly strange mixture of Christmas recordings and new alternative favourites, but it’s that bizzare time of the year again. We kick off with new material from a wildly experimental duo who met each other at the Guildhall School Of Music and Drama. They have released a crop of singles and an EP on the forward-thinking Warp Records label, and their new single marks their signing to Rough Trade Records.

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Countdown To Christmas 2021: Cocteau Twins – “Frosty The Snowman”

November 24, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Snow” (EP) (Released in December, 1993) (via Fontana Records)

Good Morning to you! I am Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time to revisit a unique spin on a vintage Carol as we ‘Countdown To Christmas’ with another daily track on the blog, since it’s always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! ‘Frosty The Snowman’ really is a tale as old as time, but a lesser-known cover version of the track came from the 90’s Shoegaze legends Cocteau Twins back in 1993. Drawing influence from early alternative rock bands like Joy Division and Siouxsie and The Banshees, Cocteau Twins scored a UK top 30 hit with ‘Pearly Dewdrops Drops’ in 1984. They also produced critically acclaimed albums such as ‘Heaven Or Las Vegas’ and ‘Treasure’ on indie labels like 4AD and Fontana Records. However, the ‘Snow’ EP they released in December 1993 has become a rarity. A double single release featuring covers of ‘Winter Wonderland’ and ‘Frosty The Snowman’, the short-form release was only available in extremely limited quantities and Pitchfork have named their take on ‘Frosty The Snowman’ as the 36th best holiday song of all time. Another interesting fact about the record is that one story says Robin Guthrie, the trio’s bassist, was very reluctant to record any kind of true Christmas songs, and so Liz Frser and Simon Raymonde opted to record non-specific winter songs instead. Let’s hear their distinctive spin on ‘Frosty The Snowman’ below.

Although the ‘Snow’ extended play had received a pretty positive reception from the contemporary music press of the time, one expert suggested that fewer than 5,000 copies were ever put together. Nowadays, the record is out of print but the two songs later appeared on the ‘Lullabies To Volaine’ boxset compilation that 4AD released in October 2005. As for the cover of ‘Frosty The Snowman’ as an individual piece, Cocteau Twins strike an equal balance between familiar and ethereal. The lyrics are the same ones that we all know already, but the instrumentation adopts a darker daydream approach to the songwriting and this provides for a great contrast against the playful, child-like style of the overly joyous original track. Beginning with a radiant Piano riff, the band match the customary lyrics of the traditional anthem with a flood of vocal effects and distorted guitar riffs that create a chiming array of breezy bass guitar melodies and a dizzying bassline. In terms of the vocals, Liz Fraser almost replicates the vibe of the wind swooping all around the title character of Frosty as her multi-layered effects include some nice breaks where Fraser spaciously croons atop the programmed drum sequences alone, and it’s a highlight of the song. We have always known Cocteau Twins to be a group who were never focused on singing conventional lyrics, and so they fill their take on ‘Frosty The Snowman’ with their own gravitas here as you may expect. You could never properly hear any of their lyrics anyways in usual terms, but it is a common trope of the band that plays a decent role here. They are fairly easy to make out, but she really twists those words around with a variety of different shapes and, at times, these moulds are equally as unintelligible as the fascinating beats that swirl around her pitch. To conclude, the Scottish Alt-Rock icons did a pretty spectacular job with this rendition of ‘Frosty The Snowman’ as it brings some solid insight into the unique vocal style and diverse instrumentation of the associated band, while also sounding recognizable and warm by covering such a widely known carol, and so it fits the theme of the festive season without explicitly mentioning Christmas, so they succeed in making the beat sound as cheerful as ever.

  • Pictured: Elizabeth Fraser (Lead Vocals/Writer), Robin Guthrie (Lead Guitar/Producer/Drum Machine) and Simon Raymonde (Bass Guitar) in a press shoot for “Garlands” (1982) (Photo by Chris Garnham)

If you can’t get enough of this, why not check out my thoughts on ‘Lorelei’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/08/01/todays-track-the-cocteau-twins-lorelei/

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Treasure” (LP) (Released on 1st November, 1984) (via 4AD)

That’s all for now! Thank you for your continued support for the blog, and I’ll be back tomorrow to delve deeply into the highly anticipated return track from a London-based Electronic Afro-Jazz collective who last released ‘Doko Mien’ in 2019 on Merge Records. They performed at KEXP’s ‘International Clash Day’ concert of the same year.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Stereolab – ‘French Disko’

November 10, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Tim Gane (Lead Guitar/Keyboard), Lætitia Sadier (Lead Vocals/Percussion), Andy Ramsay (Drums), Joseph Watson (Synths) and Xavier Muñoz Guimera (Bass) (2021) (Photo by David Cowlard)

Good Afternoon to you! You are reading the words of Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to take you back to a much simpler time for another weekly entry of ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! A cult favourite and influential band who were one of the first bands to be dubbed as “Post-Rock” in the 1990’s, Stereolab have seen a few line-up modifications in their share of time since they formed between London and France, but they currently tour and record music together as a 5-piece. Known for combining some elements of Kraut-Rock, Lounge Jazz and Motorik music together, and realizing some philosophical and sociopolitical themes of Surrealist and Situationist themes within their lyrics, Stereolab were a key figure for renewing interest in older analogue equipment during the Synth-oriented times of the 90’s. Also drawing from Brazillian and Funk influences in their sound, Stereolab have been regarded as one of the world’s most important bands and have once managed their own record label, Duophonic. Despite achieving relatively little commercial impact in their 90’s heyday, the band have reunited as recently as 2019 and they have hopped between the likes of Warp Records and Elektra Records when releasing their material. 1993’s ‘French Disko’ is one of their most recognizable singles, and it had originally appeared on their EP, ‘Jenny Ondoline’, before finding a second life on their 1995 compilation, ‘Refried Ectoplasm (Switched On, Vol. 2’. As someone who’s been to a handful of gigs before as a young adult in Cambridge and Stoke-On-Trent, I can say that I often see a die-hard in the crowd with a Stereolab shirt. Give them a spin below.

‘French Disko’ has been covered by the likes of Editors, The Raveonettes and Cineplexx since Stereolab’s original release in 1993. Another very interesting fact about the track is that in the UK, due to ‘French Disko’ becoming a surprise commercial success due to unexpected commercial radio airplay, the ‘Jenny Ondioline’ EP had stickers that read “Includes French Disko” on the cover art, and so the EP was being sold on the strength of ‘French Disko’ as an unnofficial single at one point. Stereolab also gained attention with the live performance on TV above, which was broadcast on a programme called ‘The Word’ that was designed to replace ‘The Tube’ in Britain. The track itself, ‘French Disko’, isn’t really the soulful and funky disco tune that you may expect when reading the title, and it instead places an emphasis on driving 60’s Motorik beats and absurdist lyrics that act as a call to arms for action against a dominant socio-political force. Refrains like “Well, I say there are things worth fighting for”, often recited by Lætitia Sadier, feel conversational and catchy, bolstered by a wry delivery that plays on the absurdity of the overall themes of the songwriting. There’s some elements of the Grunge era led by Nirvana in the 90’s with the distorted bass guitar riffs, and there’s some slower sections of the recording that point towards a more Acid Rock-oriented sound. The vocals have an air of 70’s Jangle Rock about them, mainly in their upbeat and quick-witted delivery. Other lyrics, such as “Though this world’s essentially an absurd place to be living in/It doesn’t call for a total withdrawal” and “Acts of rebellious solidarity/Can bring sense in this world”, that play on how we believe the things that we read in the news as humans, and how the media is typically motivated by a secret agenda. Overall, the concise lyrics are touching upon personal freedom and how there’s a path to a better future if you’re going to spend time calling out what clearly isn’t working. These themes still feel relevant today, in a world where we’ve been following instructions on how to navigate the Covid-19 pandemic as a mass society. While Stereolab are dealing with a rich assortment of some complex themes here, the sound of the track itself felt contemporary for it’s time and the formula of Sadier intonely droning above the harsh Synth climax and the noisy, collage-like guitar and drums melodies creates enough of a late-80’s New Wave element to balance a retro and modern style for its time to a point where it feels original and not outdated. The hook of “La Resistance” is a powerful and ominous one, and the track has an overall playful style to it that weaves together the band’s different influences of Kraut-Rock, Prog-Rock, Drone, Noise-Pop and Synth-Rock in a way that feels accessible yet stacked. Therefore, it’s that reason why I would suggest ‘French Disko’ as a good entry point into the rest of Stereolab’s discography if you are not familiar with their music. In conclusion, ‘French Disko’ is a very punchy cocktail of academic influences that still sounds unique today.

  • Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Jenny Ondioline’ (EP) (Released in 1993) (via Duophonic/Elektra Records)

That’s all for now – and, as I mentioned yesterday, ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ will be going on a short break until Wednesday 5th January, 2021, because it’s time to begin our ‘Countdown To Christmas 2021’ feature that we’ll be spreading throughout the days of the coming weeks because Santa’s on his way – whether we like it or not. With the goal of adding some Alternative festive options to your playlists, we’ll be mixing some of the latest seasonal releases with older tunes from some of our favourite on-brand names on the blog. Tomorrow is ‘New Album Release Fridays’ and we will be shifting our focus to the new LP from multi-time ARIA award winner Courtney Barnett.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Talk Talk – “Eden”

September 22, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Spirit Of Eden’ (Released on September 16th, 1998) (via Parlophone Records)

Good Afternoon to you! You are reading the words of Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for us to revisit one of the seminal sounds of the past that proved influential to those of the present for ‘Way Back Wednesdays’, not forgetting that it’s always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! This week, for our feature, we’re looking back at the 80’s London-formed Synth Pop group Talk Talk, who you may have noticed circulating around some news circles, in publications like Pitchfork and KEXP, and that’s because the Art Rock trio’s 1991 LP release, ‘Laughing Stock’ is celebrating it’s 30th anniversary year since its original release. Their magnum opus, however, is more widely considered to be 1988’s ‘Spirit Of Eden’, which was absolutely showered with critical praise upon release following a long recording process at Wessex Studios. It was quite different to their more accessible hits – like 1985’s ‘Life’s What You Make It’ – in the sense that it drew from improvisational elements of Ambient, Blues, Classical Jazz and Dub music, and the LP made an appearance on NME’s list of ‘The 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time’ back in 2013, despite receiving a muted commercial response due to it’s experimental approach at the time. In a tragic turn of events, we lost Talk Talk’s frontman Mark Hollis in 2019, but bassist Paul Webb and drummer Lee Harris have continued to work in the business as producers, and they have collaborated on a few seperate projects as a duo. ‘Spirit Of Eden’ was seen as one of the very early Post-Punk records, and it has been cited by contemporary groups like Elbow, Radiohead and Explosions In The Sky as a major influence on their output. Check out the fan-favourite piece, ‘Eden’, below.

Sadly, the daring and moody nature of 1988’s ‘Spirit Of Eden’ made Talk Talk a difficult act for their label, the Virgin-owned EMI Records division, to promote. When Hollis first sent a demo of the now-beloved LP to his producers, they doubted that it could become a commercial success and the band refused to tour in support of the album due to the difficulty of performing the tracks live, and, therefore, some friction was created with EMI, eventually resulting in legal action and counter-suing later on. The record did still, however, spend five weeks on the UK Albums Chart and it peaked at #19 there. It is a shame, then, that ‘Spirit Of Eden’ can also be argued as a catalyst for the band’s disbandment that was eventually confirmed in 1991 because, when you listen to ‘Eden’, it is easy to find the intriguing mix of textured guitars, pastoral electronic textures, an emphasis on dynamic transitions and fades between sounds, ambience and lovely minimalist elements that are heard as part of the equation breathtaking. ‘Eden’ is not marketable rubric, but it has an intellect that sets it apart from the mainstream tactics of the time. Vague lyrics like “Rage On Omipotent’ have a biblical charge, delivered with a wide-eyed voice that reminds me of Frankie Goes To Hollywood, as opposed to the more pop-friendly style of Duran Duran. Lyrics like “A child of fragrance so much clearer/In legacy” are just as hushed and restrained, and certainly open to further interpretation by the listener as either an embodiment of inner peace, or more alike to a haunting emotion. Either way, it boasts a sense of cinematic grandeur and Post-Rock minimalism that places a large emphasis on the large emotional pull that resides in the use of silence. There’s a harsh, yet thrilling, rupture of a lead guitar hook towards the end of the track, which also boasts a free-spirited feel and a free-form personality that marks another unexpected burst of both subtlety and discordant attitude. All in all, it’s a stunning piece of work that is a unique track – and a peculiar album – for several interesting reasons. A frail and challenging, yet a distinctive and rewarding, listen which simply dared to be different.

  • Pictured: Mark Hollis (Lead Vocals/Guitar/Piano), Paul Webb (Bass Guitar), Simon Brenner (Synths/Rhythm Guitar) and Lee Harris (Drums) (1982) (Photo via Michael Putland/Getty Images)

That’s all for now! Thank you for joining me today and supporting my independent journalism, and please feel free to join me again tomorrow for an in-depth look at a London-based producer who is gearing up to release a new album next month on BMG. He cleverly combines elements of Funk, Prog-Jazz, Neo-Soul and Hip-Hop into his repertoire, and he first emerged onto the UK’s Grime scene in 2007 with ‘The 140 Mixtape’. He has since collaborated with acts like Terri Walker, Flowdan and P Money.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Portishead – “Glory Box”

September 15, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Dummy’ (LP) (Released on 22nd August, 1994) (via Go! Beat/London Records)

Good Morning to you! This Is Jacob Braybrooke and, you guessed it, it’s time for me to guide you through an in-depth look back at one of the seminal sounds of the past that has been influential to those of the present for ‘Way Back Wednesdays’, because it fulfills my mantra to write up about a different piece of music every day! A female-led group who were largely seen to be the companions of Massive Attack in mid-90’s Bristol, Portishead were one of the greatest pioneers of the Trip-Hop music genre – a blend of Hip Hop and Electronica with elements of Dancehall, R&B and Soul that obscure the two core values to feel quite unrecognizable at times – between their years of activity between 1991 and 1999, with a reunion to follow up in 2005. Fronted by Beth Gibbons, Portishead were named after the nearby town to Bristol of the same name, which can be found roughly a few miles west of Bristol along the coast. The band are mostly known for their debut studio album, ‘Dummy’, which was showered with universal praise from both critics and audiences alike when it saw the light of day in 1994, quickly becoming a landmark British album of the 1990’s. A further two well-liked albums followed in 1997 and 2008, but ‘Dummy’ inevitably won the Mercury Prize in 1995. They also cited an engineer, Dave McDonald, as their fourth member ahead of some releases, and, in 1999, the band received the ‘Outstanding Contribution To British Music’ award at the Ivor Novello Awards. These days, Beth Gibbons has continued to work on projects as a solo musician, and she worked as a judge for the tenth annual Independent Music Awards, supporting the careers of independent music creators. Check out one of their earlier singles, ‘Glory Box’, below.

Built from a sample of Isaac Hayes’ ‘Ike’s Rap II’, ‘Glory Box’ reached the #13 spot of the UK Singles Chart when it was released as a single from Portishead’s iconic triple Platinum certified debut album ‘Dummy’, in January 1995 and the legacy of the track continues to take off because, in 2011, Slant Magazine ranked the tune at #21 in their article of ‘The 100 Best Singles Of The 1990’s’ and it has also been used in a variety of TV drama programmes, including appearances in episodes of ‘Lucifer’, ‘Snowpiercer’ and ‘The Vice’. Kicking off with a classical Bond-like instrumental created from the aforementioned sample piece, Gibbons reflects on post-feminism and what it means to seek love as a woman during the more contemporary times of the track, slowly crooning nail-biting lyrics like “Leave it to the other girls to play/For I’ve been a temptress too long” to the tune of a mellow, ambient and fairly spacious musical backdrop made up of a slow hip-hop breakbeat dressing and a lustful, darkly hypnotic Dub template. There’s a push-and-pull sense of tension to these sounds, with a harsh guitar solo that continually enters the fray at brief intervals, which gives the energy of the track an uplift in the more rough-edged moments, where Gibbons croons lyrics like “We’re all looking at a different picture/Through this new frame of mind” that feel slightly more optimistic, in outlook, than the more swooned delivery that came before. The chorus of “Give me a reason to love you/Give me a woman”, for example, explores her feminime out-and-out dejection with an emotional payoff, while the downtempo Jazz sensibilities knowingly nod just enough in the direction of Plunderphonics and Lounge Jazz. The rest of the production feels very potent, with Gibbons matching the cinematic string-infused instrumental with a voice that almost feels like it’s coming out directly from an antique radio on the beach. It isn’t quite a ‘Chillout’ record of slowed dance melodies and Ambient Pop production that were all the rage for a brief period during the late 90’s and the early 00’s, but the psychedelic backdrop oozes a balanced mixture of melancholy and momentary bliss. Overall, this is a liberating and terrifying anthem for post-feminist despondency of the time, with edgy production that kept things fresh and well-paced instrumentation that amplifies the power very carefully. An iconic “Final Torch” moment from their landmark album.

  • Pictured: Portishead’s Beth Gibbons performing at Roskilde Festival (2011) (Photo by Bill Ebbesen)

That’s all for now! Thank you very much for your continued support for me and the blog, and thank you, as always, for getting this far to the end of the page with me. Tomorrow, I’ll be looking at a popular recent release from a California-born rapper, performance artist, poet and activist who has been opening doors in the Alternative Hip-Hop and Neo-Soul genres, and, as of 2019, has identified as transgender after beginning hormone therapy for a gender transition in that same year. They have rubbed shoulders with huge mainstream mega-stars like Kanye West and Taylor Swift.

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