Review- Jesse Jones/ Jesse Jones

Jesse Jones/ Jesse Jones (Burger, 2015)

I am admittedly out of my depth reviewing this album. I picked this up because Bobby Harlow (of The Go, Conspiracy Of Owls, Magic Jake And The Power Crystals, etc.) produced it, buying it blind. Being more of a classic Rocker type, this left me scratching my head on the first spin. I always give an album three spins before I form an opinion, and I do this for two reasons. One, there have been albums that have bowled me over on the first spin but by the third I am yawning, and Two, there have been albums that went right over my head on spin one but by spin three I get it and realize what it was that the artist was trying to say and dig the shit out of it.

There are many textures and sounds that are pleasing to the ear. Jones' voice bends in a number of directions, my favorite being the Carole King direction. (Yes, I am so Metal that I can freely admit to owning Carole King albums.) Make It Spin is bizarre, bouncy and catchy while not being an obvious Pop song. It is though, at least in the traditional sense. I am sucker for Psychedelic music, and this is some trippy shit. Underneath all of the trippy table dressing you have to have songs or it is a waste of everyone's time, and this album does indeed have songs.

There are Indian or Asian scales in Prisoner's Cinema and Lady La De Da that sound very strange to my western world ears. My wife, who majored in music at one time (she has 2/3 of a music degree but switched majors way back when) was all over this album. Normally she rolls her eyes at most of what I play but dug this big time. All of this is sort of Avant Garde and a bit above my pay grade.

Twelve Hour Man is absolute genius. Think of the best big sounding early 1970s song. Pick anything off of the first Steely Dan album early Chicago, Carole King...this stands up to, if not surpasses, any of those songs. To call it bliss is an understatement. The song is a gift to the ears.

Again, I have no real reference point or a yardstick to point at for this type of music. Is it Rock? Pop? I have no idea what to call it, so let's just call it good.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- This is the part where I go into nitpicking aspects of physical media. iPod or mp3 folks can feel free to leave. Thanks for stopping by, hope to see you around. For those of you still here, I am a square and so I bought this on CD, so that is what I am reviewing here. It comes in a trifold sleeve, with the CD sliding into a pocket inside. The lyrics are all printed on the foldouts as well as the album credits. Part of me wishes that I bought it on vinyl, and maybe I will grab it on vinyl too. Who knows. 

Review- John Krautner/ Fun With Gum Vol. 1

John Krautner/ Fun With Gum Vol. 1 (Burger, 2015)

Bobby Harlow and John Krautner of The Go are like the Lennon and McCartney of Detroit Rock. Since Bobby produced this album it would be like if John Lennon produced Paul McCartney's solo debut. As The Go progressed John's songs became more bubble gum oriented, so it should come as no surprise that that sound is played to the hilt here.

The songs are short and sweet and to the point. Much like The Go, John doesn't waste any time. If something doesn't work toward the goal of the song it is thrown out. I have always been of the mindset to leave them begging for more rather than screaming for mercy. You should want to play an album again as soon as it's done, not be glad that you endured the length of it. This album flies by and you want to play it again as soon as it's finished.

I Need Sugar is one of the catchiest things John has ever done. This song has caused me to increase my sugar consumption since the first time that I heard it. I Get A Kick shares a lyrical theme with much of the rest of the album: optimism about love and/ or friendship. You might think that it's corny but there is way too much cynicism and negativity in this world. I'll take sunshine whenever I can get it. Lion Eyes and I Know What's Right would both sound at home on an earlier album by The Go. Northwood is John's love letter to the stripmall of his youth. I grew up on the opposite end of town from John, and while Northwood stands to this day my “Northwood” is now an abandoned husk with only 2 occupants and 24 empty store fronts complete with bums roaming around like zombies. Still, I spent many broke yet carefree days wandering around that place as a kid, so I can share the sentiment.

Where Is Terry? is pure Pop, in the true bubble gum sense of the word. This song, like several others, has a nostalgic bent to it lyrically. Good At The Bad Things is another great one, but Music Is the Thing is the highlight of the album. Someone once told me that music is the glue that holds memories together. I would take it a step farther and say that music is what brings people together as well. I still believe that Rock and Roll can save the world.

So after seemingly endless delays the album is out, and it is real and in my hands. I have been raving about these songs in reviews from live shows over the past year and a half or so, and now you can find out what I have been talking about all this time. Lovers of Rock and Roll rejoice...the feel good album of 2015 has arrived.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

Available at finer record stores everywhere and at Burger's website. Operators are standing by!

The OCD zone- For those of you new to this blog, this is the section where I dive into packaging elements. I am a physical media dinosaur and junkie, and the packaging is part of the experience of an album for me.

There is a card inserted that are a sort of mock trading card set. The fact that the pictures were taken in Midwest Walmart-competitor Meijer only adds to their awesomeness.

I have this on limited edition colored vinyl, which in this case is pink. Like bubble gum, get it?

Review- King Tuff/ Black Moon Spell

King Tuff/ Black Moon Spell (SubPop, 2014)

Be forewarned- the opening riff on Black Moon Spell is a threat to your speaker's mid-range. Not since Metallica's Kill 'Em All has the mid-range been pushed so far into the red. Proceed with caution lest you desire your speakers to become confetti. This album is produced by Bobby Harlow of The Go, and his greasy pizza fingerprints are all over this beast.

The Rock is pushed to the front here. Those with an aversion to fun and life would do well to avoid this album like the plague, as the result of a listen straight through is a good time. King Tuff treats Rock and Roll like a buffet spread, grabbing bits from this and from that and making it into a stew where the ingredients become almost indistinguishable. I can pinpoint where bits come from but this is more gut and less cerebral, so it is best to just punch the gas and go with it. Madness and Demon From Hell will sound as great live as they do when you are blowing yellow lights.

Eyes Of The Muse is “the hit” to my ears, all fish hooks to the brain, a radio hit in the 1974 of Counter Earth. Staircase Of Diamonds reminds of Billion Dollar Babies-era Alice Cooper. It's incredible. Many of King Tuff's reference points are that sort of early '70s Rock, the time before Rock started taking itself so goddamn seriously and forgot to breathe. Eddie's Song is probably the most reminiscent of King Tuff's earlier albums, the sped up, amped up boogie that makes me happy. Nobody likes to boogie anymore. Everyone should clap and dance and stop trying to look so cool at shows. If you are concerned with how you look at a show then you are doing it wrong.

The best way to describe this is “Loser Rock”. King Tuff isn't the guy who was popular on the homecoming court and got laid in high school. He was the guy that you cut sixth period with only to realize that you only have three bucks between the two of you and you decided to blow it on video games anyways. The popular kids get old and unpopular while the losers are still happy blowing their last three bucks on something fun. The meaning of life can be found within the grooves of this album if you are worthy.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- Those of you who just wandered in, pull up a chair. This is the part where I talk about the album's packaging. MP3 people, thanks for stopping by, it's been real. The rest of us who still dig physical media, welcome.

I bought this on CD. While the LP has a Loser Edition available, I believe that the CD is the real loser edition. All of the cool kids have their records and tapes while the rich kids have their iPods and phones, leaving us squares at the CD table at the music party. Hey, where is everybody? Plenty of seats over here. Anyone? Oh well.

The case is a gatefold card sleeve with an inner sleeve to protect the CD from scratches, providing me with a lifetime of PURE LISTENING ENJOYMENT when handling my CD from the edge and placing it directly in it's case upon completion. The crystal ball is a foil stamp, which is way cool. There is some additional foil stamping on the inside of the gatefold as well as on the back cover. 

Review- Wolfman Band/ The Go/ Redd Kross @ PJ's Lager House on Friday, April 12, 2013 in Detroit, MI

Wolfman Band/ The Go/ Redd Kross @ PJ's Lager House on Friday, April 12, 2013 in Detroit, MI

PJ's Lager House is a fascinating place. The building itself is over 100 years old and it has that awesome ceiling work from the 1930s found in many buildings in Detroit. Tonight was sold out, and the body heat makes things heat up pretty quick in there. Those with a fear of rubbing elbows with strangers would do well to stay away. Those of us who like stiff drinks and Rock and Roll quickly feel right at home. 

I'm going to let you in on a little secret: I adore werewolves. Sure, I likes my vampires, but only the old school ones, not those Twilight ones. Werewolves are untainted by poseurs and soccer moms. One of my dreams is to see the '70s Horror comic book Werewolf By Night made into a movie. Until then, I have the Wolfman Band. Not one werewolf, but an entire band of werewolves. This made perfect sense to me for some reason. I mean, who wouldn't enjoy watching werewolves play instruments and sing songs? I recognized snippets of songs played, such as Is It My Body? by Alice Cooper. If the band had offered shirts with werewolves on them for sale they probably would have gotten a drunken T-shirt purchase out of me by the time they were done. 

It's been years since The Go played a show for the general populace of Detroit. While many in the building were here to see headliners Redd Kross, my wife and I came for The Go. My kids are early risers and so I have become accustomed to going to bed early. Luckily I was off today and managed to get a good nap in so I could go the long haul. They came on around 11 and played for roughly 30 minutes, with everything played tonight coming off of the new album Fiesta. The songs were all played at 78 speed with little or no breaks between them. Voices Rant On seamlessly shifted gears into Beyond the Beyond, ditto Live Inside A Hole and So Let's Pinch. It Always Happens To You was a lot of fun live. I'm A Dot In Place seemed to lose it's snarl when sped up but was still very cool. I love the lyric Girl I'll never live without it, try it now you'll dream about it. 

The Go is once again a five piece, and I noticed that they also had a new drummer. I'm thinking that the new guitarist and bass player were from Magic Jake and the Power Crystals but I am not certain.

For Me Alone and Can't Rely On It were both great at 78 speed. The latter lost some of it's bubblegum sound at that tempo but still worked. Tease My Ears is one of my favorites off of the new album. Ya Gimme That Feelin' was my favorite of the night, hitting that magical hypnotic space in the brain that makes you involuntarily move to it. I've even watched my 3 year old daughter do it. In The Go's home dimension on Parallel Earth, the band appeared on an episode of the '60s Batman TV series. They use the song's hypnotic groove to entrance people, making them dance uncontrollably and commit crimes while they are helpless. They played pied piper villains that crash some society ball, with all of the fat cats dropping their watches and jewelry into sacks as the band plays the song while wearing bandit eye masks and black and white striped shirts. Hilarity ensues as Batman and Robin crash the scene and are forced to do the Batusi while The Go steal the Batmobile. 

During Dirty Room I noticed that the horn parts were played as twin harmonies on guitar. They sounded like the original Alice Cooper band's harmonies when played that way. After Last To Know Bobby Harlow shouted “Fiesta!” (as heard on the opening of the LP) and that was it. I wanted more more more but them's the breaks. It's better to be left begging for more than screaming for mercy at a show's length.

I hung out for a while, catching the first few songs by Redd Kross. They were fast and punchy and the kids seemed to love them. By kids I mean folks my age and older. There were many an old school Punk in the room, crawling out of the woodwork and out from under rocks to catch the band's first Detroit gig since 1997. One guy was even carrying around his personalized license plate that read RDKRSS or something similar.

My wife was tired because she worked, and so we ended up leaving during them. The room was so packed that we couldn't see it very well anyways. I did feel bad leaving during them, because I know how many folks were unable to get tickets to this show. It sold out pretty quick.

Review- The Go/ Singles, Jingles & EPs

The Go/ Singles, Jingles & EPs (compilation, 2013)

This is a compilation of odds and ends, B-sides, and EPs. There are several songs where you scratch your head and wonder why they were relegated to B-side status. Get Me Free, Maribel, and especially Scenic Railway fit this bill. The latter is the most interesting song on this album. I had never heard it before. The song is pure jazz but sang in French. What made The Go write such a song, and why was it buried? It gets my wife's vote for favorite song as well.

Some of these songs are excursions into the bizarre, such as the Christmas song, Christmas on the Moon. Their children's songs 7”, Knock Knock Banana and Pin The Tail on the Donkey, left me speechless. I have no idea what to make of them. Other oddities include six songs written for a cartoon. Yes, a cartoon. Those were shelved until now. It should be noted that The Go's lesser songs are still better than many band's best songs.

This is not a proper album, and it doesn't flow like an album. It's a chronological collection of B-sides, singles, EPs, and a few unreleased songs from the past decade or so. It is currently only available in the mp3 format here.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

Review- THE GO/ FIESTA

Earth, the early 1960s. A quartet of time traveling space aliens come to the past from a post-apocalyptic future to stave off nuclear war amidst Cold War tensions. Armed with the greatest songs of the past 200 years, they set out to spread a message of peace and love. They called themselves The Beatles but failed in their mission to save the world, splintering and breaking up. The leaders of the parallel Earth in the dimension next door sent their musical ambassadors, The Go, into the past to mop up The Beatles' mess and try to save the world. The Beatles, evil Satanic time traveling sorcerer bastards that they are, used their futuristic alien technology to zap The Go, sending them spiraling through the timestream until they landed in Detroit in the late '90s. Stranded and with no means to return to their home dimension, The Go have decided to make this horrific divergent timeline their home.

John Lennon and George Harrison aren't dead, folks. They returned to the future. The reason that you don't remember that, or that my series of facts don't line up with your perception of reality, is because of The Beatles. They used their sorcery to wipe out everyone's memories. Using my crystal ball, I have been able to divine the truth and see past the smoke and mirrors. It's all in the 8s. You can't argue with science, man.

The Go come from a dimension where music never sucked and Justin Bieber never got a recording contract. There is no poverty or disease in their dimension, only Rock and Roll. Which brings us to this...

The Go/ Fiesta (Burger, 2013)

The further down the rabbit hole these cats go, the more the psychedelic elements become their dominant sound. There is a subtlety that requires repeated listening to grasp once you get past the choruses. Instruments fade in and out of speakers, EQs are different from song to song, etc. There are also funky and almost jazz-like textures in a few songs, which looks weird “on paper” but works in practice when you listen.

Being a double album, it would be easy to pad this out with superlong jams that fill up album sides in the name of “artistic experimentation”. Instead, we get 20 tightly arranged songs with economy in mind. I imagine that some of these songs were much longer and the fat was cut out with surgical precision. This is a filet mignon served on a paper plate.

John Krautner was a teen idol in the 1966 that The Go come from. Remember that episode of The Flintstones with The Way Outs? In their home dimension, Beyond the Beyond was on that episode, and The Go played the part of bouncing tire-body characters. Hire A Navy was a staple at high school dances and Can't Rely On It was performed on American Bandstand.

On the Bobby Harlow side of the coin, A Dot In Place is one that haunts me as I walk down the street. For Me Alone and No More Stars are also pure genius. I hope that the fellas didn't rupture something singing that high on the harmonies. Mere Earthlings don't sing this way in this time continuum. Tease My Ears is the best song that The Association never wrote.

I Fear To Think I'm Here could have been an early James Gang song, it's that awesome. Ya Gimme That Feeling has a funky, Motown vibe to it. If you listen closely, John's spleen ruptures hitting those high notes. Marc Fellis uses a cowbell on that one. Saturday Night Live and Blue Oyster Cult jokes aside, cowbells are awesome.

There are so many truly great moments on this album, and sadly, most of humanity will miss out on this album. Don't let this happen to you. If you don't own Fiesta, the Mothership won't permit you entrance to return to The Go's home dimension with them. I know that I don't want to stay in this crappy, fucked up timeline where America is going down the toilet. Don't be the only kid on the block without it. Fiesta.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

Reviews: The Go- Unreleased 1996-2007 box set/ Black Sabbath- Born Again Deluxe Expanded Edition

The Go/ Unreleased 1996-2007 (Burger, 2011)

This is a five cassette box set. What's that, you say? Cassettes in 2012? Sure enough. Not my first choice in format, but you take what you can get, right? This is a pretty nice package overall. It's a plastic case that snaps shut, with two booklets and a pin. This goes all the way from the salad days up to what would become Conspiracy of Owls. This is a warts and all collection, with some of the earlier songs showing them taking their first steps and fumbling around. It's interesting to see how things progress. Black Eyed Susan is a good song. Whenever I listen to any band's unreleased stuff, I'll hear a song and think Why on Earth would they leave that off of the album? This is easy to say from my armchair, so to speak.

Tape Two is where the Rock swagger starts to kick in, becoming more pronounced and leaning towards something. Why Ya Gotta Cum is another one that caught my ear. Some Stones and Who influences begin creeping in. Crawl is a wonderful mess. It sounds like you're right in the room. I have no idea the hows or whys things are recorded, I'm just saying that there is a sound that appeals to me and sounds live. The overall sound quality is great, which might puzzle those watching from home. I wasn't sure what to expect, since these were demos and whatnot, but by and large this stuff sounds album quality sound-wise. Somthin' To Do is another great jam that has a raunchy vibe that rules.

Tape Three is where it gets really good. Turn Your Little Light Bulb On, written and sang by Jack White, is very cool. I love the saturated garage Rock recordings, where everything sounds like it was recorded in one room, and everything is bleeding into all of the mics. The songs that ended up making it on Whatcha Doin' sound slower and more polished than the versions that made the final album, oddly enough. I prefer the album versions with the exception of Meet Me At The Movies, which sounds far cooler here. That first album always had a train going off of the tracks live feel to it, and it is why I rank it among the best albums of the 2000s (okay, I know that it came out in the Fall of 1999, but whatever). The 5 songs taken from the live radio performance are pure gold and are worth the price of admission alone. I have always wanted a live album from these guys, and this fits the bill. The live radio stuff on Tape 5 is also great. Down A Spiral was always awesome live and I rank it among my favorite songs of the 2000s. 

Super Cuts is re-released here in mono, and it sounds better than the stereo version LP. I say that we bring back mono, in revolt to surround sound. Who's with me? Anyone? Anyone? Oh. Arterial Angel is another great tune, filled with attitude and a level of noisiness that I love. The demo to Tower of Diamonds demo sounds almost reggae-ish in the verses. Weird. That and Puzzle People made their way into Conspiracy of Owls. Two of the three songs from the Bobby Harlow 'solo' EP are also featured here. This whole box set took me a month or so to properly digest. 

                                                                                                              

Black Sabbath/ Born Again- Deluxe Expanded Edition (Sanctuary/ Universal, 2011; original album released in 1983)

Always the sucker for an upgrade, I bought this album for the fourth time. I first owned it on cassette, then CD, then the 1996 UK 20-bit remaster, and now this 2-disc version, complete with unreleased gem The Fallen, the full version of Stonehenge, and a live show from 1983.

This album is a love it or hate it affair. Many people cringe at the notion of Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan fronting Black Sabbath, but in my opinion it totally worked. Many people hate the mix of this album, but to me it is a glorious mess of muddy, over amped recording, with everything pushed up to the reds. I rank this as the heaviest Sabbath album, too, with it being musically over the top. Tony Iommi's tweeter shredding solos are loud and obnoxious to the right, Geezer Butler's bass is too loud most of the time, and Bill Ward's drums are buried under a wall of sound. Cymbals? Yeah, they're here somewhere. Bass drum? Yeah, you can hear it if you listen closely enough. This album's mix defied conventions of the time and today sounds like it was recorded in a bathroom...with overdubs. Frickin' amazing sounding album.

This remaster is actually quieter than the brick-walled mid-90s job that Castle UK did, but it sounds clearer and truer to the old US Warner Bros. Records cassette that I owned. I also like how the artwork has been restored to it's proper ugly ass purple instead of the blue-er hue of the 1996 reissue.

The live set is great, with exceptional sound quality except on the song Black Sabbath. Slightly after the 6:00 mark, there is clipping for a split second. I have no idea if this was from the source tape or if this was a mastering flaw. Again, this album is not brick-walled, and it is of minor concern for me, I just thought that I'd list it for those of you on the fence about whether or not this reissue is worth the money. And it is.

The gatefold digipak and booklet feature all of the original sleeve art, including the handwritten lyric sheet from the original LP release. At 5” by 5” it's a tough read, but it's there. The rest of the Sabbath catalog has been given this 2 and 3 disc treatment, and the only other one that I own is Mob Rules. I am desperately trying to resist upgrading the rest of the catlog. Godzilla help me...

Oh, and that white band in the picture is actually a sticker now. It peels off and leaves no residue. Mob Rules had a clear slipcase with the Deluxe Edition logo on it.  


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