Newspaper Page Text
October 16, 1991
FLAGPOLE MAGAZINE
Page 1.7
good example of their Anglo-ethnicity, but the ideas behind
the words are universally relevant. "You Win Some But Lose
More" and 'The Greed Creed" strike out at the young
materialists and those they empower due to their selfish
ness. They may be "dreaming of life on a sunbed of nails",
and feeling quite content, but the gains are short-term and
emptiness is sure to follow. The album's one cover the
standard Ball of Confusion", couldn't be more appropriate
to the theme of Lip.
God’s Little Monkey’s write music which is lovely aria
lyrics which are articulate and interesting. The result is both
soothing and challenging; a pleasure of both the spirit and
the mind. .. ^
Lisa McDonald
Five Thirty
Bed (Atco)
Five Thirty is a new London trio which writes energetic,
catchy songs that cast more than an occasional back
wards glance to the seminal ’60s. Between the sound, the
period attire worn by the band in the sleeve photo and the
androgynous beauty of bassist/singer Tara Milton, one
could well imagine cooking-oil and food color designs
being projected on a screen behind the stage while the
band plays to a room of precariously balanced platform
shod dancer.
In spite of the memory triggers they pull, Five Thirty
doesn’t fall into the over-crowded retro tar pit. Perhaps it is
the sense of humor exhibited on a few tracks, the wry bites
of socio-political commentary provided, or just the enthusi
asm with which they play the songs, but they manage to
work within a well-worn style without being merely deriva
tive or boring The Jam is probably the best comparison
overall, but Five Thirty adds a measure of dance rhythm
and psyche distortion to the Weller recipe.
Ultimately, Bed motivates the listener to get up, brusi.
his or her teeth in the bathroom with the black light above
the mirror, and dance to the cool music. , „. ^
Lisa McDonald
Single Issues
Helmet (A )
"Unsung” b/w “Your Head" / Amphetamine Reptile
These New Yorkers can lay down a pretty mean groove,
repeat the hell out of it, and still sound a whole lot fresher
than 99% of today’s grunge rockers. These two songs were
recorded for the BBC’s John Peel Show in June of this year,
and both are pretty amazing. The only noticeable differ
ence between this single and their previous album is that
you can hear the vocals clear as a bell without any distortion
props — and they still sound good!
Mecca Normal (A+)
Cardboard Box House of Love 7” / K
When I first heard this duo’s stuff on their Water Cuts My
Hands LP, I was completely turned off. I accused them of
being boring, derivative, unimaginative, trendy artist types.
Needless to say, I’ve had a complete change of heart and,
quite frankly, this is one of the most beautiful pieces of vinyl
to ever grace my turntable. Granted, to some this group’s
modus operandi will seem a bit esoteric (distorted guitar
and female vocals and that's all, folks), but it carries a sort
of eerie charm to it. This band is well worth checking into.
Melvins (B)
Eggnog 10" / C/Z
This is a limited edition re-issue of the Melvins’ first ep,
something like 3000 on CD and 2000 on vinyl. That said, it’s
a pretty typical first effort by a good band, showing some
need for improvement but still a sizeable cut above the rest.
Nothing particularly special, except for the b-side track
"Chemicharmicat", and only because it’s over 12 minutes
* on 9' Joshua Houk
The bottom of the box
Chesney Hawkes
The ONE and Only (Chrysalis)
Stephen Crawford gives me this CD with an evil smile.
“Review this." he says.
Chesney Hawkes is a kid actor starring in Roger Daltrey's
"Buddy's Song." Roger and Chesney stand side by side in
his promo picture. The best part of this record are Chesney’s
moles. Yes, moles. Cindy Crawford came along four years
ago with her little mole, and now everyone has a mole. I’m
sure somewhere in L A. you can probably get a mole put on
for a hefty price Ole Ches has like four of em. The largest
one has to be fake.
Therecord sounds good if you like DebbieGibson Ifthe
movie is anything like this singer's debut soundtrack it will
probably be on home video by the time I finish this sen
tence I don’t think anyone in Athens will ever even see this
record.
The ONE and Only is probably exactly what this record
will be
Rush
Roll the Bones (Mercury/Polygram)
Rush, the other three piece Canadian rock band ndes
again To be honest. I’ve never been a Rush fan (Which
means nothing )
They are a unique band who do it their way You
probably won't get beat up at a Rush show, or have your
girlfriend attacked by a goon; you’ll probably see your
insurance salesman and a 12 year old kid who lives at the
end of your street Their lyrics are bizarre. They appeal to
some and send the rest changing stations quick. They live
in the countryside of Canada, way out there. Their single
"Dreamline" is the # 1 AOK single in America and has been
for four weeks The lyrics are pretty strange. There are tons
of hooks, harmonies, and cool keyboard sounds, good
guitar solos and things.
If you like Rush, you will love this record. If you don't,
then buy the new Nirvana album, it’s great.
Buren Fowler
Buren Fowler, the blonde maned guitarist for drivm' n'
cryin’ has graciously volunteered his services as music
critic to Flagpole, so we just keep giving him our most
Interesting" records to listen to. We do anything to please
our public...
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