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Way Back Wednesdays: U2 – “Sunday Bloody Sunday”

April 7, 2021 — Leave a comment

What do you say to Bono when he gives you flowers? I love U2. Time for a new post…

  • Pictured: Bono (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar/Percussion), The Edge (Lead Guitar/Synths/Backing Vocals), Adam Clayton (Bass Guitar/Keyboard) & Larrry Mullen Jr. (Drums) (2020) (Photo by Olaf Heine)

Good Morning to you – My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for our weekly throw back to one of the seminal sounds of the past that have influenced those of the present, and possibly the future to come, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to get writing up about a different piece of music every day! One of U2’s most outright political Rock tunes, ‘Sunday Bloody Sunday’, released as the opening track and the third single from 1983’s ‘War’, their third studio album, it was largely notable for it’s connotations to Easter Sunday in it’s ending of the lyrics. Along with being well-received by critics and fans alike, this is a track which helped to propel U2 to reach a wider listening audience, and it became one of their most-performed and best-known tracks in the process. U2 are obviously mega-famous now, but, at the time, the two gut-punch of this track, along with ‘New Year’s Day’, made for a solid introduction to the Dublin rockers before the stardom set in. Although creating some controversy, the real subject matter of the track is the ‘Bloody Sunday’ incident of 1972 in Derry where British troops shot and killed unarmed civil rights protesters. Although a music video wasn’t shot, the 4-piece settled on this live performance to promote the tune instead.

Rolling Stone once declared ‘Sunday Bloody Sunday’ on their poll of ‘The 500 Greatest Songs of All-Time’ and, since it’s doing-the-rounds of the 80’s, it has been covered by over a dozen of different artists before – with the bunch including Lance Angelus, Electric Hellfire Club and Evergreen Terrace, to name just a few. Known for it’s vaguely militaristic drum beats, it’s melodic harmonies and it’s abrasive guitar sequences, the lyrics were written from the perspective of a third-person observer of ‘The Troubles’ period in Northern Ireland. Lines like “Broken bottles under children’s feet” and “Bodies strewn across the dead-end street” describe the violent aftermath of a pointless oppression, and lines such as “There’s many lost, but tell me who has won” and “When fact is fiction and TV reality” protest against the forthright and intentional damage of the tragic world situations that inspired it. The guitar riffs have a brittle feel to them, and the two-step drum beat introduces some ambiguity, yet the chorus is accessible and catchy fare. Along with the blame in refusing to accept violence as a resolution to political problems, the track speaks specifically about the hope of the Irish Easter Sunday uprising, with “The real battle just begun, To claim the victory that Jesus won” closing the track as a final repeat of the chorus is given some fresh context. Nods to human nature (“The trenches dug within our hearts”) and the role that it plays in resistance are here, while the addition of a String section towards the end (famously added by Irish Violinist Steve Wickham, who approached ‘The Edge’ at a ‘chance meeting’ at a bus stop) helps to give the track a nod towards classical Irish folk music. Overall, while there’s no denying that ‘Sunday Bloody Sunday’ is now a pretty ‘radio-friendly’ track by any means, it’s sometimes important to remind ourselves that these sounds are beloved, and that these kinds of artists – like U2 – have had so many hits coming off the back of it’s recognition. Enriched by core cultural messages, ‘Sunday Bloody Sunday’ still manages to pull it off to this day.

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “War” (LP) (Released on 28th February, 1983) (via Island Records)

That’s all for today – Thanks again for embarking on my weekly ‘Time Machine’ trip to the history of music with me. I’ll be back tomorrow, as always, where you can join me again to see how the first new single from The Offspring in nearly a decade has shaken out… I’m actually looking forward to that quite a bit now.  If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Easter Sunday 2021 Special: Dolly Parton – “He’s Alive” (1989)

April 4, 2021 — Leave a comment

“He is not here, for he has risen, as he said” – He has risen indeed! Easter post time…

  • Pictured: Cover Art for “White Limozeen” (LP) (Released on May 30th, 1989) (via Columbia Records)

Wishing you a Happy Easter – it’s Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get typing up for today’s track on the blog, just like always, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! No Scuzz Sundays post this week, because I’ve got something Easter themed to share with you instead today to roll with the holiday season. Dolly Parton is an artist who I don’t feel I have to give much introduction for. She’s only probably the most famous Country music star of all time, and so her discography and socio-economic impact is pretty blindingly obvious. “He’s Alive” is a track which was actually written by Worship music icon Don Francisco in 1977, released on his album ‘Forgiven’, but Parton put her own spin on the track for the closing section of her staggering twenty-ninth main album release, ‘White Limozeen’, in 1989. I’m not familiar with that record (Country music isn’t really my thing, as I’m sure that you’ve probably noticed by now), but my research indicates that she aimed to return to the Country roots of her prior work after 1987’s ‘Rainbow’ saw disappointing results. She did so to great success, with the record spending a total of 100 weeks on the US Country Albums chart, earning positive reviews, and it went certified Gold in sales. ‘He’s Alive’ looks at the resurrection of Jesus Christ from Peter’s viewpoint. Last year, Parton shared an acoustic performance of the track to her followers on Instagram, and since arguably not much has changed in the way of lockdown restrictions since then, it still feels punctual today. Let’s check it out below.

“Somebody said the other day, oh, we’ve had a rough week”, “and just think about the rough week that Jesus had, and look how well that turned out for us. I’m going to sing about that” was a lovely way for Parton to introduce her acoustic rendition of the track in the video of her performance above, and ‘He’s Alive’ had previously earned it’s original producer, Don Francisco, similarly rock solid success in the way of two notable Dove music awards following it’s release way-back-when. Parton gets her version off to a bang with her signature voice and some stirring, naturally acoustic guitar chords. Parton balances a noticeably grounded tone with some more profound odes to religious events during the track, with lines like “Looked down into the street, Expecting swords and torches, And the sound of soldiers feet” and “The stone’s been rolled away, And now his body isn’t there” narrates the story of Peter’s revelation of seeing that Jesus’ body had been risen from the tomb on Easter Sunday in a more Spoken Word form. The grand finale of the track sees Parton exclaiming “I believe it, He’s Alive” and “Sweet Jesus” above a slightly more rough guitar rhythm and nothing more, as she celebrates the revelation in unbridled joy. Parton would usually perform the track with a Choir to back her up, but she joked that “there wasn’t enough elbow room” for one last year (and there still isn’t this year…) and so, using nothing more than her acoustic guitar and her natural voice in the solo performance, she does a great job of bringing some religious context to a holiday that is commercially about overpriced chocolate and a longer weekend. It really isn’t “my thing” in the personal opinion sense, but it makes a good reminder for what the strange holiday of Easter has been built upon. Seriously, why have it on a different day every year? It’s to do with the Moon and the Equinox, but just how? Anyways – You go and have a good one.

  • Pictured: Dolly Parton at the 53rd Annual CMA Awards in Nashville (2019) (Photo via Forbes.com)

That’s all for now! I’ll be back tomorrow for another Easter-themed post that is contemporary, and so that makes for a switch-up. Bank Holiday Monday… it looks like I forgot to book it off. I’ll catch you tomorrow then. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Way Back Wednesdays: Candy Girls – “Wham Bam”

March 31, 2021 — Leave a comment

The obscure 90’s hit that was as sweet as candy, but crazy as a Bat. Let’s go Way Back!

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Wham Bam” (Single) (Released in 1996) (via VC Recordings)

Good Morning, Sweet Tooth cravers! I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for our weekly ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ spot on the blog, where we take a look at something from before the 2000’s that was off-the-radar, underrated, obscure, or, of course, seminal – since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! An off-it’s-handlebars chart hit from 1996, The Candy Girls’ ‘Wham Bam’ is something of a bizzare anomaly. Released during the explosion of Acid House and Ibiza-ready floorfillers of the 90’s Big Beat dance craze, ‘Wham Bam’ seems to almost play out like a half-remembered entity in itself now. I write this because, despite the track reaching the #20 spot of the UK Singles Chart shortly following it’s release, I could find hardly any information about it on the internet. A re-mixed ‘Dolly Mixture’ edit of the track exists, but it’s slim pickings from there. I guess I could start by telling you that it is the brainchild of Northern Irish DJ and record producer Alex Masterson, who has released music with numerous titles over the years. His most consistent production alias is probably Yomanda, but there’s also Amen! UK (who he had another modest chart hit with ‘Passion’ under), Celine Diablo, Erotixis and Working Class Hero – he’s also worked as Hi-Gate (a project which he frequently collaborates with Judge Jules on) – to name a few more. With several monikers in his grasp, he’s actually had several modest chart hits combined. Let’s take a look back at ‘Wham Bam’ – which also reached the US’s Billboard Dance Songs Club chart – below.

The vocalist on the track is Candice Jordan – an American singer who soon went on to make some underground dance releases as ‘Candy J’, and she also had another UK Top 40-reaching hit with the Belfast-born, but now London-based DJ Paul Masterson, when he released ‘Fee Fi Fo Fum’ a year prior as Candy Girls. From the very little information I could gather, Candy Girls was a very short-lived project. ‘I Want Candy’ (featuring Valerie Malcoln) was his final track as ‘Candy Girls’ to leave a dent on the charts. Still, judging from the bizzare spoken word sections where Jordan breaks up with her man, before doing a 180-degree turn on this and crying for forgiveness from him, intersected by the unrelated and meaningless refrain of “Wham Bam, thank you ma’am”, the case is pretty arguable that it was probably conceived as just a novelty act in the first place. The first half of the track sees Jordan listing off the bad deeds of her former man, with her head held high, in the most cheesy delivery imaginable, but it’s mildly amusing for it’s irreverent sense of humor, while a downbeat keyboard sample creates a melodramatic vibe. The chorus sees the “Wham Bam, thank you ma’am” hook being repeated as strobing synths and commercial D&B sounds carry the main melody. The last section of the track sees the synth instrumentation and the classical samples come together as the alternating emotions finds Jordan regretting her decision immediately. She begs for him to return, as the odd visual imagery of the video and the irritating vocal performance from Jordan roll to an end. Overall, there is not much I can say about the track other than saying that it is, indeed, very odd. I think the critical flaw comes from how the track tries to balance these two different moods to a point where the House beats feel like an afterthought. In combining these tones with an oddball sense of comedy and an Ibiza house novelty style, it manages to have no sense of mood at all, because we haven’t built to that feeling of tension or atmosphere. Surreal and looking/feeling like an ultra-bizzare dream, it plays out as a ‘Handbag’ house club anthem that manages to make me chuckle a bit at points, but it leaves me feeling largely confused for the most part. One of the most deeply flawed structures I’ve heard, or one of the oddest to grace the charts. Either way, it’s rubbish.

  • Pictured: Yomanda (Paul Masterson) performing a live DJ set (2020) (Photo via Facebook.com)

You’ll have to let me know if you remember that one. It’s a bit before my time! Anyhow, there will be no Scuzz Sundays feature this week because I’ve got a weekend of loosely Easter-themed festivities to take place over the Bank Holiday weekend for your enjoyment instead – so watch this space for some treats coming very soon. We’re getting the party started tomorrow with a recent Future Funk release that comes from one of my latest Bandcamp finds. This Mexican DJ is signed to the specialist Neon City Records label, and his latest album has achieved over 10k streams on Spotify. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: The Snuts – “Somebody Loves You”

March 29, 2021 — Leave a comment

Not to be confused by the goo that runs down my nose in this season. New post time!

  • Pictured: Jack Cochrane (Lead Vocals/Acoustic Guitar), Joe McGillveray (Lead Guitar), Callum Wilson (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals) and Jordan ‘Jojo’ Mackey (Drums) (2019) (Photo taken via readdork.com)

Good Morning to you – My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get typing up for your daily track on the blog, as per usual, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! An emerging indie rock band originating from West Lothian, Scotland – The Snuts are a band who I’ve heard a little of before, but I’m admittedly not that familiar. Signed to Parlophone Records, a German indie label which was acquired by Warner Music Group in 2013, each of the group’s four members met each other during their time in secondary school, and they have been performing music together since the band was formed in 2015. They have been getting modest airplay from BBC Radio 1 and Radio X over the last few years, and they also made this year’s NME 100 – of the famous publications hotly tipped artists to gain success stories in 2021. This weekend, on April 2nd, The Snuts are set to release ‘W.L.’ – their debut album, and The Snuts have told us that some of the tracks on the record were written ten years ago. ‘Somebody Loves You’ is the most recent single to date, and it’s made the C-list of BBC Radio 1’s usual rotation. It’s important to note that the new track has been released in aid of the Scottish Refugee Council, and they have donated the budget for the music video to charity, so they turned to the SRC’s workers to film the video instead. Let’s see the results below.

Is is just me or does the band’s lead – Jack Cochrane – share an uncanny resemblance to the delightful Daniel from The Undateables? Before I go on too much of a tangent, The Snuts have commented “Our debut album W.L. is our lifetime work.”, elaborating, “It’s a collection of milestones and melodies that time stamp a dream we had becoming a reality”, for their press release about the debut full-length collection, which they also say: “It’s a record about being true, loving and resilient.” as they gear up for the release date on Friday. If you like the sound of this, you can also catch them on a headline tour across the UK and Ireland in 2022. ‘Somebody Loves You’ is a self-explanatory title for the track – a light-hearted and feel-good Pop, barely Rock, anthem about showing care to others. Built on some acoustic guitar backings, lines in the opening verse like “It’s a lovely day, rain clears from my feet again” and “The panic stations clear out from the streets today” that hone in on themes like empathy and appreciation for the small moments in life. The guitar work is gentle and uplifting, with slightly more riffing on the chorus, where Cochrane happily sings “Someone loves you, and that someone is me” at the end of the chorus. Overall, I have mixed feelings on this one. Starting with the bad news, I found the songwriting to lack depth, in the sense of it reminding me of tunes from New Radicals and The Fray but not doing much that felt different to those bands, and so it feels a little bit dated – in a bad way – as a result. It sounds a bit like the label had some creative control over the track itself, with it feeling like a bit too much like they are trying to have a hit. I could be wrong about this, but I didn’t find the subject matter to have much to say other than the “Have a nice day” kind-of idea. It’s just not that memorable, and I simply didn’t feel that it was pushing any boundaries. That said, it’s not terrible. For starters, I really liked how the voice of Cochrane comes across quite naturally. He’s not monkeying around with any auto-tune effects – and that’s far more than I could say about some of the genre’s contemporary peers (Here, I am looking at excruciatingly mediocre self-ascribed “Indie bollocks” bands like The 1975 and Pale Waves in particular), and that makes the track quite basic, but pleasant, to listen to. I also enjoy how the band went about creating the music video for the track, and it’s great to see them donating what they don’t need to those who are less fortunate and making a positive impact on society in the process, and so I think that’s worth giving the praise for. Overall, I don’t think it’s great, but there are things that I liked in it. The production is nice – everything else feels a little too disposable for my snobbish taste.

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “W.L.” (Released on April 2nd, 2021) (via Parlophone Records)

That’s all I’ve got time for today – as the end of the month of March in the not-so new year quickly approaches. I’ve got more music on tab for you tomorrow, though, like always – with an in-depth look at a fab recent single from a fully independent South African singer-songwriter who was included on the shortlist of nominations in the Academy Awards of 2018 for ‘Best Original Song’ – with a track that she wrote for the film ‘Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story’. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays: Cypress Hill – “(Rock) Superstar”

March 28, 2021 — Leave a comment

The spiritual “Black Goat” of the Latin American Rap-Metal picture. It’s Scuzz Sunday!

  • Pictured: DJ Muggs, Louis “B-Real” Freese & Eric “Eric Bobbo” Corea (Date n/a) (Photo via Medium.com)

Good Afternoon to you – I’m Jacob Braybrooke and, yet again, it’s time for our weekly throw back to the relics of the Emo era world from between the late-1990’s and the mid-2000’s, to see if the ‘classics’ hold up to that moniker, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Fronted by “The Black Goat” DJ Muggs (who has just put out some more solo material with a new album, for the record) – Cypress Hill, although technically still active, were California-based cornerstones of the Scuzz TV era. They sometimes got polarizing reviews from audiences and critics in a Nickelback or Imagine Dragons sort-of way, but they are still largely seen as the main pioneers of West Coast Hip-Hop from the 90’s, and the group have still sold their way to over 20 million units globally. In 2019, they became the first ever Latin-American rap group to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame. ‘(Rock) Superstar’ was a UK Top 20 single taken from their fifth studio album, ‘Skull & Bones’, released in 2000. It closely resembles the preceding single, ‘(Rap) Superstar’ in it’s duology subject matter, where the album was even divided into two sections on seperate discs – one exploring Rap-Rock and the other exploring Nu-Metal, by way of comparing and contrasting the band’s experiences with these two sub-genres. Check out the music video, with a cameo from Coal Chamber’s bassist Nadja Peulen, below.

If you are less familiar with Cypress Hill – each of the group’s members have always notably advocated for medical and recreational use of Cannabis in the States, which is a crucial stage of their mythos. Collaborations is another – with the 2000 release of ‘Skull & Bones’ alone seeing guest musicians like Chino Moren from Deftones, Brad Wilk from Rage Against The Machine, Dino Cazares from Fear Factory, and even the ‘Rap God’ himself – Eminem – pulling in some appearances. Back to the matter at hand, however, we can see some blurring of the lines between melodic Hip-Hop and commercial Metal on ‘(Rock) Superstar’. The track paints it’s dark tonal picture with the spoken word into by Chino Moreno of Deftones, before a tense violin string and slowly building drum beats gives the track a downbeat vibe. Lines like “I remember the days when I was a young kid growing up/Looking in the mirror dreamin’ bout blowing up” and “I wish it was all fun and games, but the price is high” look back at the dark edges of our childhood dreams. Sen Dogg recites a slightly more involved verse later on, following from the ballad-style narrative that B-Real delivers, rapping the likes of “You wanna look shanty in the Bentley/Be a snob and never act friendly” and “I heard that some never give full to the fullest/That’s while fools end up dining on the bullet” as the string section intensifies. The chorus sees DJ Muggs lay down a Trap beat, as “So you wanna be a rock superstar, And live large, a big house, 5 cars, you’re in charge” and “Comin’ up in the world don’t trust nobody, Gotta look over your shoulder constantly” permeate through the dramatic instrumentation and the harsh synth tones. I get an overall Hamilton vibe from this track – a strikingly similar one, as a matter of fact, while rich String instrumentation and heavily Rap-inspired Spoken Word sections tell the narrative with an intensely cinematic and character-driven style. The subject matter of the track isn’t particularly interesting, but the feel of Paranoia is easy to identify with, as a listener, and the beats remain mostly the same, although there is some decent guitar work going on here, with some distorted sounds and delayed pedal effects contributing to the atmosphere. The vocals feel slightly out-of-place with the Hip-Hop influences, but the drums on the hook make for some palpable aggression. To sum it up, I feel that it works. While there’s nothing here that truly blows me away, it feels different to the type of music that was around elsewhere in the day, and some effort clearly went into building the atmosphere here. An odd sense of commercial roots bogs it down a little and the pure singing abilities aren’t the best and feel a little ‘amateur dramatics’ overall, but the hooks are pretty enjoyable and the Hamiltion-style rapping is fun too. All in all – I’ll give it a thumbs up.

  • Pictured: Cover Art for “Skull & Bones” (Released on April 25th, 2000) (via Columbia Records)

Thank you for reading my latest blog post! I’ll be back tomorrow to do it all over again – with a new post that features a rising star Indie Rock 4-piece band who have been playing all over the UK and Ireland since they formed in 2015, but they are from West Lothian, Scotland. The band’s material has been used in a national advertising campaign for Strongbow cider. Their new single was released in support of the Scottish Refugee Council, with the quartet donating the budget for the video to the charity. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Way Back Wednesdays: New Order – “Fine Time/Don’t Do It”

March 24, 2021 — Leave a comment

Just over 20 years later – Is there still ‘Truth Faith’ in this track to soar? New post time!

  • Pictured: Bernard Summer (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar/Synths), Phil Cunningham (Lead Guitar/Electronic Percussion), Gillian Gilbert (Keyboard/Programming), Tom Chapman (Bass Guitar) and Stephen Morris (Drums/Splicing/Percussion) (2021) (Photo taken from PR/Factmag.com)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time again for me to get typing up for your daily track on the blog, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of new music every day! It’s Way Back Wednesday – where we revisit one of the important sounds of the past that has influenced the exciting, fresh sounds of the present. New Order are cool – and it’s about ‘Fine Time’ that we featured some of their material on the blog. Although this track probably isn’t given the same mainstream airplay as ‘True Faith’, ‘Blue Monday’ or ‘World In Motion’, it still reached #11 in the UK Singles Chart. Although I probably wouldn’t consider New Order to be one of my top favourite artists upon my initial instincts – I have consistently enjoyed the music that Bernard Summer and his co-horts have put out over the years, and since a bulkload of that music was from before my time, I think that has something to say about their funky musicianship and crossover appeal. ‘Fine Time’ was officially released in 1988 as the A-side of a 12″ Vinyl release, which included the B-side of ‘Don’t Do It’. Written and recorded partially while the band were on tour in Ibiza, the lyrics were modeled after a witty incident where drummer Stephen Morris’s car was towed, and he had nearly forgotten to pay the fine for the penalty. It was another modest hit for the band in the UK, but it also found success within the Top 10 chart in Finland, Ireland and New Zealand, along with finding commercial success in the US, where it landed a spot on three of Billboard’s genre charts. The track was later included as a single from the band’s fifth studio album, ‘Technique’, a year later. Let’s cast our minds back with the official music video below.

“My car had been towed away and I had to remind myself to go and pay the fine”, Summer said to his press team on the track back in the day, “I just wrote ‘Fine Time’ on this piece of paper, to remind myself to go get it and, I thought that’s a good title” was the statement that he used to explain how, at times, the human eye is the most responsible component for creativity. The critics were also big fans of the single, with Aaron Febre of Niner Times writing that it’s off-kilter sound had “refurbished the band and gave them a fresh start, and Ned Raggett of AllMusic writing that it “not only had paid attention to the acid-house/Ibiza explosion but used it for its own ends, capturing the frenetic energy that the musical eruption on British shores had unleashed with strength and style” in his review. It certainly has a vibrancy and a sense of experimentation which gives it a distinctive edge, especially for a group who were off the back of their commercial peak at the time, with the low-pitched voice samples and the hyper-energetic synthesizer sequences going for an outgoing vibe. The keyboard sections also feel wonky and not conventionally structured, with an overall Disco influence that feels subverted by the explorations of Neo-Psychedelia. The vocals contemplate the moral universe of the dancefloor, and by extension, party life. Lyrics like “You’re much too young, to be a part of me” and “You’ve got class, but most of all, You’ve got love technique” feel enigmatic, but witty due to their drunk-sounding effects. We get to a bridge were “The past doesn’t matter” is repeated by a robotic sound effect that evokes the Industrial Motorik of Kraftwerk or Visage, but the instrumentation feels less flat and the lyrics feel more daft. Overall, it is a likeable anthem because it sounds like something I would feature on my “That Was A Hit” segment of my radio show, in the sense that it feels like a hit that was unusual for being that. This clearly breaks away from the typical Pop format with the seemingly unrelated vocal hooks and the musical non-sequiturs making for a strange mixture. It felt like a bold creative direction for the group to take, however, because they were determined to re-invent with the use of a crazy, silly ode to the Ibiza Club and Acid House dance music explosion and, for all of these risks, it succeeds in paying them off.

  • Pictured: Cover Art for “Technique” (LP) (Released on January 30, 1989) (via Factory Records)

Well, it really has been a pleasure to stop and muse as always… but it’s about “fine time” that I got on with a few other jobs on today’s list now. I’ll be ready to go back at it again tomorrow, however, with an in-depth look at a collaborative single that seems to have gone down as a hit for the BBC Radio 6Music listener’s group on Facebook, coming from a lesser-known US indie Post-Rock band from Illinois who based their debut album on the frontman’s early experience of living among a Cult. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays: The Offspring – “Want You Bad”

March 21, 2021 — Leave a comment

What do you call the successor of a royal’s bed? An heir mattress! It’s Scuzz Sunday…

  • Pictured: Cover Art for “Conspiracy Of One” (Released on November 14, 2000) (via Columbia Records)

Apologies for that terrible pun – but I REALLY could not think of anything else to put there! It’s hard, you know? I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s my self-imposed duty to publish your new weekly entry to the Scuzz Sundays feature – where we rediscover a Pop-Punk or Nu-Metal classic from between the Emo scene of the late-90’s until the mid-00’s to see if they can hold up to quality. After all, it’s my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Cornerstones of my childhood phase – California-bred Pop/Rock band The Offspring are back – with their first new album in nine years, ‘Let The Bad Times Roll’, set for release on 16th April via Concord Records. To coincide with the announcement of their surprise tenth studio album, which is being co-produced with Bob Rock (The Tragically Hip, David Lee Roth, Ron Sexsmith), which actually pricks my ears up a little bit, we are going to revisit ‘Want You Bad’ this week – which was released back in 2000 on their sixth and arguably most popular studio album titled ‘Conspiracy Of One’. This track was released back in the band’s heyday, after their sophomore LP – ‘Smash’ – had sold over eleven million copies worldwide, which was staggering for an independent label release. This led to the band’s signing with major label, Columbia Records, and they continued to receive strong sales in the form of Gold certifications and acclaim from the critics since. ‘Want You Bad’ is actually a play on words, where the narrator of the lyrics is saying to his girlfriend that he wants her ‘to be bad’ in a Dominatrix way. You probably couldn’t get away with it now – but this is Scuzz TV music, and the times would have been very different back then. This reached #15 in the UK Singles Chart. Let’s take a listen below.

One rather interesting fact about ‘Conspiracy Of One’ is that it’s release was fueled by The Offspring’s support for peer-to-peer file sharing. For instance, Bryan Holland – the band’s lead – endorsed the practice because he claimed that it would not hurt album sales. As you may guess, Columbia Records was irate about this, threatening to sue their own band for their intentions to release this album directly on their website before it was available in the shops, and so the group reverted back to the traditional physical release strategy. It still reportedly sold around 125k copies in it’s first week, though, reaching the #9 spot on the US Billboard 200, and so the debate could still be made, with streams playing a vital role in consumption today. As for ‘Want You Bad’ itself though, I reckon this single is a little more driven for casual radio airplay than the band’s rebellious personality may let on. Built on a thread of Power-Pop guitar chords and memorable hooks, easy-to-sing-along lyrics like “Your one vice, is you’re too nice, Come around now, can’t you see?” and “I know your arms are open wide, But you’re a little on the straight side, I can’t lie” evoking a jovial Skate Punk vibe. The chorus is built on similar rhymes, with the sharp vocals of “Complete me, Mistreat me, Want you to be Bad” and “Complicated, X-rated, I want you really bad” permeating through the fast instrumentation and the upbeat melodies. The melodic style feels a little at odds with the darker connotations behind the songwriting, where a darker tone could have benefited the track a little more for me. It sounds a lot like the music that Busted and Blink-182 were making around the time, and there’s not much to say about it lyrically, and so I ultimately think the band did “Sell Out” a bit here. That said, I think there are still things to like about the track. The quick pacing works in it’s favours, the lyrics don’t divulge into some teen Porn-like comedy (akin to the awful Bloodhound Gang) that it could have easily self-indulged itself into, and I think the hooks are relatively fun too. Overall, I think that I can still see why the track appealed to the masses, although I just wanted it to be slightly better than it was. I look forward to seeing how band have matured in the gap to their new album though.

  • Pictured: Dexter Holland (Lead Vocals), Kevin “Noodles” Wasserman (Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals), Todd Morse (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals) and Pete Parada (Drums/Percussion) (in 2012) (via PR)

There’s no denying that The Offspring were one of the most commercially successful projects from the Scuzz TV video era, and this isn’t the first time that the Californian mainstream mega-stars have appeared on our Scuzz Sundays list of throwbacks – and you can still check out my retrospective thoughts on ‘The Kids Aren’t Alright’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/01/12/scuzz-sundays-the-offspring-the-kids-arent-alright/

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Americana” (LP) (November 1998) (Via Columbia Records)

Thank you for checking out my latest blog post – but that’s all that I’ve got time for right now! Please join me again tomorrow, however, for an in-depth look at some brand new music from an emerging Dream-Rock band who are based in South London who self-released their debut EP collection over the past weekend. Originally hailing from Buckinghamshire, the 4-piece group have gained solid support from publications such as Gigwise, Under The Radar and Notion, and BBC Radio 6 Music presenter Shaun Keaveny is a big fan too. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays: Marilyn Manson – “The Fight Song”

March 14, 2021 — Leave a comment

Let us take a walk on the wild – or, possibly, more like weird? – side. It’s Scuzz Sunday!

  • Pictured: Marilyn Manson (2017) (Photo Credit: Mauricio Santana/Getty Images/EW.com)

Good Morning to you! I’m Jacob Braybrooke, writing from Stoke-On-Trent once again, and it’s time for our weekly blast from the past, as we re-evaluate one of the Pop-Punk classics from the Emo era around the late-1990’s through to the mid-2000’s, to see whether they can hold up to value among modern quality standards. Juxtaposing the names of golden age film star Marilyn Monroe and cult leader Charles Manson (two very different American cultural icons) for his stage alias and band, Ohio-based rock star Marilyn Manson always came across as more ‘Goth’ than ‘Emo’ to me, with politically charged music that points fingers at the American political systems and gun violence issues. In fact, he used to really freak me out as a child. However, he’s still one of the biggest artists from the era, with a large wave of multi-platinum and gold selling albums coming along with his wave of controversy. I know that Marilyn has been in the news recently, for the wrong reasons, and so I originally delayed this post after planning to do it for the Royal Rumble Sunday, solely because the title of ‘The Fight Song’ really fits the theme for the big multi-man match. So, I’m just going to judge the track purely for it’s quality to avoid sensitive material. ‘The Fight Song’ was released back in 2000 on his fourth studio LP, ‘Holy Wood (In The Shadow Of The Valley Of Death)’, which was a Rock-Opera concept album with an Industrial metal style and Glam Rock-influenced production akin to some of Manson’s earlier work. It had it’s share of controversy, no suprise there, but it’s still seen by publications like Kerrang! as some of his best work, who commented in 2010: “[It is] still scathingly relevant [and] a credit to a man who refused to sit and take it, but instead come out swinging.” for a retrospective. Let’s take the brass knuckles of ‘The Fight Song’ below.

Urgh… There’s something about that dude. Unsettling. Most recently, he’s been dabbling his paintbrush in a little bit of Art work, completing an art exhibition in 2017 of 20 paintings which he called ‘Genealogies of Pain’ with the famously off-his-rockers film director, David Lynch, which took place at the Kuntshalle gallery in Vienna. For ‘The Fight Song’ specifically, Manson voices his usual complaints by titling the track as a pun of the ‘fight songs’ that US football teams use as their theme tunes. Therefore, it becomes a post-Columbine statement disparaging the college traditions of the US, and America’s fandom for football being a metaphor for the country’s glorification of violence among the youth, in the case of Manson’s opinions. The track was a decent sized hit in the UK, reaching #24 in the Singles Charts over here. Performed as a direct address to the listener as his audience, Manson voices his grindings with bold lyrics like “Nothing suffocates you more/Than the passing of everyday human events” and “Isolation is the oxygen mask, You make your children breathe in to survive”, with heavy guitar riffs and quick drum signatures selling his feelings of anger and rage. It feels commercially suitable enough, however, with polished production and hooks like “So when we are bad, We’ll scar your minds” and “The death of one is a tragedy, The death of a million is just sadistic” that pop out a little. It’s very outspoken and direct, with a snarling vocal performance that complements the bitter qualities of the songwriting. The electric guitar riffs aren’t likely to change the world, but they keep the pace rolling at a fiery speed. The underlying themes are the use of tragic death as an exploitation for entertainment among the masses, with a couple of high-pitched wails and screams of which your mileage may vary on. Overall, although Manson is likely to always cause a share of controversy and has a very direct way of expressing his opinions that I can’t say I always agree with, I think one of the most important elements of making ‘good music’ has to be a message or expression formed within the fabric of the sound. ‘The Fight Song’ is a success in these regards, but he is just not a dude I’d want to hang out with.

  • Pictured: Cover Art for “Holy Wood (In The Shape Of The Valley Of Death” (2000) (via Nothing Records)

That’s all I have for you right now… Run along and have a nice day! I’ll be back at it again tomorrow, however, for an in-depth look at some brand new music from a relatively familiar face from the blog – the second entry from a Disco throwback project from a Los-Angeles based project (I’m still not 100% sure if it’s just a dude or a band, but anyways) who hosts his own podcast with new episodes releasing every Thursday. The track is a cover of a famous 60’s pop hit originally performed by Wayne Fontana. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Way Back Wednesdays: Roy Davis Jr. & Peven Everett – “Gabriel (1997 Live Garage Mix)”

March 10, 2021 — Leave a comment

There’s as many mixers for Rum, as there are mixes for this classic. Let’s go Way Back!

  • Pictured: Cover Art for “Gabriel” (Need For Mirrors Bootleg Mix) (Released in 1997 & Reissued 2020)

Top ‘O’ The Morning to you, I’m Jacob Braybrooke and it’s that time of day again where I get typing up for your daily track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! In terms of the sounds of the past that influenced the present, ‘Gabriel’ might seem like an obvious choice as an instantly recognizable and pretty memorable era-defining classic of the House and Garage scenes of the late-1990’s. It is important to remind ourselves sometimes, however, that a certain tune had got so popular that it crossed over to mainstream success. Originally conceived by Roy Davis Jr of the Chicago House scene, XL Recordings re-released the track in the UK with Peven Everett as a featured artist, since the Garage icon put together the Trumpet and Vocal sections of the track. A classic was born, and numerous different mixes were released of the track – like the ‘Need For Mirrors Bootleg Mix’ and the ‘Scroll Mix’ which crossed the borders between 00’s ‘Chillout’ compilations and live DJ set closers with a diverse appeal to audiences. Artists such as Basement Jaxx, R.I.P. Productions and M-Beat got themselves in on the action with remixes and covers too. The ‘Live Garage Mix’, however, is the version of the track which seemed to gain the widest attention across Europe. In fact, the single reached the #22 position in the UK Singles Chart in 1997. Let’s take a listen to it below.

While hardly a rarity by any major press of the imagination, the ‘Live Garage Mix’ of ‘Gabriel’ arguably found it’s largest attention when the single peaked at #5 on the UK Dance Singles Chart, where it remained in the charts for five weeks running. It’s influence on the Deep House and Electronic Jazz genres still seems to continue through to this day, where the Large Records label released a 12″ vinyl reissue of the single, including four of the different versions, back in 2015 – almost 20 years after the original track was unleashed to the world in 1996. With a deep bassline formed by a bass-heavy two step drum beat and a mid-tempo synth beat, the familiar vocals of Peven Everett riffs on love and spirituality with a smooth tone, singing lines like “Once, love was the focus of the true message” and “He had good news, for those dedicating their lives, to the spirit” with a sultry and soulful mood. The next verse feels a little more interactive, with Everett instructing: “Those that stand aside and watch, The soul moving, grooving” and “Clap your hands, be the one to show your love overflowing” as he continually references the mission of the archangel Gabriel. He also makes the music itself part of the involvement, with lyrics like “If you love music, deep in your soul” and “Just release your soul to the love that’s holding you, that’s consoling you” going for more of a straight-up Chicago house root for the track. A set of sweeping Horn parts litter the rest of the instrumentation, with a sparse Jazz influence that also briefly touches on melodic Rapcore and Neo-Soul in places as well. I’ve never really noticed before, in this record, how the religious connotations feel like a natural commentary on the social impacts of music, and how the experience of being in a club with a diverse group of people can nourish your soul. Meanwhile, the track certainly has a clear cross appeal to lots of different groups of people. It’s up-tempo enough to feel like a Dance record, but the instrumentals also feel relatively stripped back and suited for home listening too, with a deeply Soul-oriented style that also feels a little ethereal. Overall, it’s a 90’s hit that manages to hold up, as it feels developed musically and has a clear message to boot. Gabriel Play!

  • Pictured: Roy Davis Jr. performing a DJ Set in Chicago, Illinois (Date n/a) (Photo by Sean Delahay)

That’s all for now! Thank you for checking out my latest bog post! I’ll be back tomorrow, as always, as I attempt to clear up some of my backlog with an older, but still pretty recent by all means, track which I perhaps wish that I’d got around to covering a little bit sooner, here on the web. It comes from an infectious Nu-Disco trio who began making music in the sleepy Peak District town of Matlock, and since then, the group have received praise from publications like The Guardian, performed live at the Isle Of Wight Bestival in 2018. They are set to release their debut album, “Power Up”, on March 26th. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: The Pretty Reckless (feat. Tom Morello) – “And So It Went”

March 6, 2021 — Leave a comment

…But we should never forget that God gave Rock and Roll to you! It’s new post time!

  • Pictured: Cover Art for “Death By Rock and Roll” (Released on Feb 12th, 2021) (via Fearless Records)

Good Morning to you, my name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s finally time yet again for me to spruce up your mid-weekend with a new daily blog post, since it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! It makes me feel quite old to think that Taylor Momsen’s Pop-Punk outfit, The Pretty Reckless, has been going for the better part of just over an entire decade now. Since the masses nodded their head to the tune of “Make Me Wanna Die” from the popular 2010 comic book action-comedy film, “Kick-Ass”, which had starred the likes of Aaron Taylor-Johnston, Chloe Grace Moretz, Nicolas Cage and Christopher Mintz-Plasse – among a few other famous faces – Momsen’s band have managed to achieve streaming figures of over 10 millon now, and so naturally, I’d expect their latest material to head in a more commercial direction. “Death By Rock and Roll” is the title of their fourth studio album and this is also their first LP to be released through their new label, Fearless Records, when it saw the light of day last month. The new album features guest appearances from Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil and Matt Cameron, as well as the very prolific Violinist Lindsey Stirling, but I’d argue the most notable of which comes from the mega-famous Rage Against The Machine guitarist, Tom Morello, who delivers a charging guitar solo on the last single, “And So It Went”. Let’s check it out right below.

Centred around the key themes of political protests and censorship rights, Momsen describes the songwriting process and the backing band-oriented production of the latest record as a new body of work designed “To celebrate the power of speaking out in order to promote a more just world” in her press notes for this release, and more guests, such as Within Temptation’s Sharon Den Adel, have jumped on-board to establish more of a collaborative enterprise for the track listing to pull from, in order to convey this sense of making difference through togetherness, and challenging social norms with a combined display of unity. Of course, “And So It Went” is a melodically driven Pop-Rock track at most, with Momsen delivering lines like “And so it went, the children lost their minds” and “Begging for forgiveness was such a waste of time” above the typically rousing and quickly building pace of the guitar-oriented instrumentation that builds from the back of an atmospheric, dark synth riff in the opening. The bridge is sharp and sounds bitter, with Momsen crooning: “They said the world does not belong to you, You are not the king, I am not the fool” as the bass guitars chug along and the lyrics build to a stadium sing-along anthem with heavy chords and loud vocals. The track reaches a slow breakdown towards the end of the track, with lines like “With all these eyes upon us, but no one seems to see/That you and me are just the same as God meant it to be” permeating over a lighter keyboard melody. It’s just a temporary interlude, however, as we reach the ever-impressive guitar solo from Tom Morello, before Momsen brings things to a close with the chant-led chorus. It’s a track that goes for a very anthemic feel, and for the most part, I feel that it succeeds. There are enough callbacks to their sound in the past to show a progression of their artistry, and I think both the vocals and the instrumentals work quite well to suit their purpose of giving the track it’s urgency. I have a few nitpicks with it, such as the structure feeling very conventional towards the modern Pop song format and the track remains in the safe establishment of the Pop-Punk wheelhouse for the most part, but there is a nice message behind the track and it gives the fans what they probably came for, if not much else. It does sound rather commercial, but it is still decently inspired. It’s nothing that special, but overall, I think it’s perfectly fine.

  • Pictured: Taylor Momsen (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar), Ben Phillips (Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals), Mark Damon (Bass Guitar) and Jamie Perkins (Drums/Percussion) (2016) (Photo by Andrew Lipovsky)

Well, that one was a bit of a “Scuzz Sundays” tune – wasn’t it? Of course, you can join me for the real thing tomorrow, as we take a stroll down the memory lane of Emo-Rock and Pop-Punk releases from the late-90’s to the mid-00’s. Our next entry in the series is a track that peaked at #25 on the Alternative Airplay chart and #15 on the Mainstream Rock Charts in the US – coming from a Memphis-based Grunge band whose debut album was released on the Rockingchair Records label, which was newly set up at the time by Mark Yoshida and Ruth Thompson-Bernabe. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/