Day 0698 - Ten

Pearl Jam "Ten" (1991) - got it

Pearl Jam rose (I'm not going to say "like a phoenix" because... trite) from the ashes of another band.  When the vocalist for Mother Love Bone died of an overdose, guitarist Stone Gossard started jamming with his friend Mike McCready who urged him to reconnect with his MLB bandmate bassist Jeff Ament.  They found young precocious vocalist Eddie Vedder through their friend (and ex-Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer) Jack Irons.

This album is considered one of the cornerstones of the grunge movement, a genre label that seemed to cover a range of sounds.  Nirvana were raging punk with a sense of melody, Soundgarden were sludgey Zeppelin-meets-Sabbath metal, slowly giving way to a more melodic mode, Pearl Jam started off with 'classic rock' riffs over funky mid-tempo rhythms and Vedder's growling voice.  I guess that they had in common a darker, grittier more cynical sound than some of the other artists that had been filling the rock charts at the time.

In some ways, it's odd that "Ten" is the album that a lot of people associate with the band.  It certainly is a good album, and it was commercially successful, but it doesn't feature feature either of their longest serving drummers Jack Irons or Matt Cameron, and the bulk of the songwriting is undertaken by Ament and Gossard, rather than the more even spread of input and large input from Vedder that would characterise later albums.  The album has much less variety than later releases, to the extent that "Even Flow" and "Why Go" have almost identical riffs, and Ament admitted that "Jeremy" was largely written around an E chord!

There are some great tracks though, with the heartfelt "Black", the raging "Porch", the meditative drone of "Release" and the anthemic "Alive". That last track was originally pitched by Vedder as the burden of being left behind when others die but over time has been taken by fans to be a life-affirming track.  The band have come around to that interpretation too.

Mention should be made of lead guitarist McCready, whose songwriting contributions are minimal on this album, but who is allowed pretty free-reign and sprays blistering blues lead all over the songs, including "Alive" which ends with an extended guitar solo.

I was quite late coming to Pearl Jam.  I have friends who were into them in the 90s.  I actually got into them (being serious for a moment, fam) when I was going through a  bout of depression.  I've often found something that can help push me out of that kind of funk is to listen to music that I'm unfamiliar with, or don't know that I really like it.  There were one or two PJ songs I liked and I was peripherally aware of one or two other things of theirs.  I dove in headfirst to their oeuvre and I've not regretted it at all.

Day 0697 - Low End Theory

A Tribe Called Quest "The Low End Theory" (1991)

This album would be interesting solely for the facts that it launched the solo career of Busta Rhymes, and that it featured bass from the legendary jazz bassist Ron Carter (the list of who he DIDN'T play with is probably shorter than the list of those he did), but beyond all of that, the album is also good.

Carter's presence reflects the album's heavy jazz influence.  In the first track they drop the couplet:
"You could find the Abstract listening to hip hop
My pops used to say, it reminded him of be-bop".

The  band were plagued by health issues, legal issues, one member leaving and some minor infighting between the remaining members, but still managed to produce a strong hip hop album.

The album's title was phrased to refer to both bass frequencies, and the way that many African Americans were treated in the US. 

Day 0696 - Apocalypse 91... the Enemy Strikes Black

Public Enemy "Apocalypse 91... the Enemy Strikes Black" (1991)

Increasing concerns from record companies around copyright laws were not conducive to Public Enemy's 'wall of noise' approach, building tracks from large quantities of samples.  To add to their woes, the data discs containing all the samples and bits and pieces for their fourth album were stolen, forcing them to go back to the drawing board.  The PE production group the Bomb Squad took a back-seat as 'Executive Producers' leaving the Imperial Grandmasters of Funk to handle the bulk of the production duties.

The arrangements are less dense, more conventional hip-hop production, but still a bit more interesting than just 'beat-n-bass'.

As usual, the mixture of MCs' styles adds a nice bit of variety to things.  Not really up to the standard of "It takes a nation of millions" or "Fear of a black planet" but it holds its own.

Day 0695 - Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge

Mudhoney "Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge" (1991)

I'll be frank - Mudhoney don't really do it for me.  They have a lot of the hallmarks of other bands that I like from this era/movement; the loud guitars, the loud vocals.  It's just that, although there are moments on this album that I enjoyed well enough, none of it really stands out or sticks in my memory after 3 runs through.  There are moments where I think "oh that sounded kind of interesting" but no "oh wow!".

The album title comes from a memory device for teaching students the line notes on the treble clef (EGBDF... the gaps 'FACE' are easier to remember), though usually it's "Every Good Boy Deserves Fruit/Favour.

Day 0694 - OG: Original Gangster

Ice-T "OG: Original Gangster" (1991)

The production is slightly dated, but otherwise this is a powerhouse rap album.  Ice-T has some serious charisma going on, best exemplified by the brief acapella track "Prepared to die" where T's biting, spitting voice feels like a fully produced track in and of itself.

T addresses a number of rap's go-to's, trying to offset the claims of misogyny with "Bitches 2" where he reasons that a 'bitch' can be a man or a woman.  He also attacks the glamourisation of ghetto life, pointing out that this is less a choice, and more due to wealth inequality.

The album features an early appearance of T's hard-rock band Body Count, whose album would be released the next year.  This interest in heavy guitar music also shows through in the Black Sabbath sample that track "Midnight" is largely built from.   Track "the Tower" is based around John Carpenter's theme from the "Halloween" film, so the range of influences wanders well outside the usual funk samples.

Day 0693 - Blood Sugar Sex Magik

This is a lengthy one because... as I say below, this is a favourite. 


Red Hot Chili Peppers "Blood Sugar Sex Magik" (1991) - got it

I’m a big Chili Pepper’s fan, so here’s some band history.   The Chili Peppers formed, and recorded 3 albums of punky, speedy rap-funk characterised by busy slap-pop bass, minimalist guitar and sex-inspired rhymes, but also exploring elements such as RnB, psychedelic rock and metal.

Original guitarist Hillel Slovak died of a heroin overdose and drummer Jack Irons decided to leave music (though he’d later join Pearl Jam for – arguably – their best albums).

Mainstays Anthony Kiedis and Flea recruited drumming behemoth Chad Smith and teen guitar prodigy John Frusciante and together they released the much heavier “Mother’s Milk” album with wall-to-wall distorted guitar on some tracks, and with each of the players showing off their musical chops.   The band parted company with EMI, and signed to a new label.  They joined forces with young producer Rick Rubin, who had co-founded Def Jam records and was making a name producing rap and metal albums (LL Cool J, Run DMC, Slayer etc.).  He suggested that they rent a house to live and record in, and in that laid-back setting, this collection of tracks was created.

For a time this was my favourite album (in general, not just for the Chili Peppers), until I realised that ‘favourites’ with music are somewhat transitory.  There's over an hour of music across 17 tracks, yet to my tastes, it does not sag at any point.  One of those albums where every other song has been my 'favourite' at some point.

The studio polish that defines the Chili Peppers now was barely starting to show then, which is a good thing.   Where their records now feature tight, compressed polished production; the drums on "give it away" sound like they were recorded in someone's bathroom, and it's fantastic.

Whereas they are now serial offenders for COS (Chorus Overuse Syndrome), on BSSM they would play around a lot more with structures and parts, with lengthy jam sections being injected into songs.   There's something like "Power of Equality" which just keeps going with multiple verses before breaking into a slappy bass outro that eventually winds down to scattered applause.  Even a 'hit' song like "Under the Bridge" has that beautiful opening guitar part... that never pops up again in the rest of the song!

Frusciante would later become somewhat overbearing creatively, but here he is balanced by still finding his place, so provides brilliant playing and ideas but more as a facilitator than as a leader.

The album is diverse, yet has a certain internal logic, helped by the band's MO at that point of having the tracks segue into each other, creating the feeling of an "album" as opposed to just a collection of songs.  The sound is mostly slow, minimalist funk with interplaying parts that don't necessarily ape each other.  There is rock in tracks like "Suck my kiss" and "My lovely man".   There's melodic balladry with songs like "Breaking the girl" and "I could have lied", there's the leisurely psychedelic outro of "Sir Psycho Sexy" and the fun coda of Robert Johnson cover "They're Red Hot", recorded outside at night (you can hear cars driving past in places).

This was lightning in a bottle, and even the Peppers themselves while promoting other albums have often acknowledged that it was special album for them.

Day 0692 - Rising Above Bedlam

Jah Wobble's Invaders of the Heart "Rising Above Bedlam" (1991)

Jah seems to be a bit of an interesting guy, having played in Public Image Ltd with his friend John Lydon and then with members of Can.   There are stories that he set fire to his room-mates' possessions and maybe even the drummer from the Fall, the aptly named "Karl Burns".

Jah had a number of musical collaborations throughout the 80s before releasing his first album with the Invaders of the Heart.  "Rising Above Bedlam" is the group's second release and takes the mixing of cultures/genres popular in London at the time to new levels.  There are middle-eastern chants, synthy noodlings, African rhythms, Spanish guitar, dub, street poetry... bedlam indeed.  Yet, Jah does manage to rise above the musical carnage of the mishmash of genres to present an interesting, cohesive album.

Day 0691 - Qui Sème le Vent Récolte le Tempo

MC Solaar "Qui Sème le Vent Récolte le Tempo" (1991)

Qui Sème le Vent Récolte le Tempo (Who sows the wind, reaps the beat) is the debut album by French rapper MC Solaar.  The album got Solaar's career off to a pretty successful start, and fair enough too.  The backing tracks brilliantly mix jazz, exotica, triphop, soul and other styles.

Solaar's rhymes... I speak a bit of French but I can't follow what he's saying, especially when he gets up to full speed!  I'm not too worried about that though, as I'm more into the sounds of the vocal than what's being said, and as it happens, the French language sounds pretty damned good over these tracks.

Day 0690 - Step into the Arena

Gang Starr "Step into the Arena" (1991) 

Gang Starr had recorded a few demos and released some singles, but then broke up.  One of the MCs, Guru, decided to carry on the group and paired up with DJ Premier to create a new incarnation of Gang Starr.

The duo released their debut "No More Mr Nice Guy" which grazed the rap charts and caught the attention of Spike Lee.  Lee got them to revamp one of their tracks from the album for his film "Mo Better Blues" and the group went on to score a major label deal for their second release "Step Into the Arena" 

It's a nice, stripped down album, mostly beats and sparse tracks with the rhymes on top.   The only thing is, with just one MC there isn't a whole lot of variety of style.  Some of the backing tracks are quite interesting though, ranging from straight-ahead hip hop to moodier sounds almost similar to early Massive Attack.

Day 0689 - Peggy Suicide

Julian Cope "Peggy Suicide" (1991) 

  An album from Cope's band Teardrop Explodes features earlier in this list and I did quite enjoy it; likewise, the double-album "Peggy Suicide" is a goodie.  It does suffer from that old double-album affliction of 'track fatigue', and not every song is memorable, but the sheer breadth of musical ground covered is impressive.  

I love artists who (particularly when they go solo) take the approach of just throwing everything at the wall, rather than limiting themselves musically, particularly if they have the ability to do so.

I'll say what I said with Teardrop Explodes: if another album by Cope pops up on the list, I won't be unhappy.

Day 0688 - Cypress Hill

Cypress Hill "Cypress Hill" (1991)

It's a really great hiphop album.  The mix of two MC's different voices, the mix of the sense of humour with the more hardcore subject matter, and underneath it all, DJ Muggs' simple, yet memorable arrangements.

The bass and beat-centric music with some interesting, but sparse use of samples and miscellaneous noises is kind of what I used to associate with 90s hiphop, I suppose because I was mostly familiar with artists like Cypress Hill, House of Pain, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony who go for those more stripped-down arrangements.  

Day 0687 - Woodface

Crowded House "Woodface" (1991) - got it

For a long time this was my favourite Crowded House album, though "Together Alone" is slowly drawing me into its orbit.

Neil Finn's writing towards CH's 3rd album had met with lukewarm response from his record company.  He was concurrently working on some material with his brother Tim so invited him to join the band and put their collaborative songs towards Crowded House.

As much as I enjoy most Finn related musical activities, Split Enz has always been my favourite, so the reuniting of the two brothers and the injection of slightly more quirk and humour to the often overly earnest House mix, was welcome.

There's a nice mix of light (Chocolate Cake, Italian Plastic) and sombre (Fall at Your Feet, Four Seasons in One Day).   Tim's beautiful"All I ask" is probably my current favourite on the record, but half of these songs have held that position at some point.

The album was a big hit for the band in the UK and back home in the Antipodes, but tanked somewhat in the US after the single "Chocolate Cake" (featuring the line "the excess of fat on your American bones, will cushion the impact as you sink like a stone") failed to make an impression.  

 Despite the album's success, Tim was fired from the band during the subsequent tour.  Though they'd made beautiful music together, it didn't seem as though Tim was the right fit for Crowded House, leading to any number of 'witty' headlines about how crowded the house was yadda yadda yadda.

Day 0686 - Nevermind

Nirvana "Nevermind" (1991) - got it

One of those albums where so much has been said about it, every song has been picked over musically and lyrically like a day-old carcass in the Serengeti.

It was certainly an early discovery for me.  My brother had a copy on cassette, and while I wasn't really a fan of "loud music" at that point, this one had enough melody and I found Kurt's voice interesting enough that it won me over.  I listened to it quite a bit and rewinding it to listen again and again... then one day I was doubly rewarded when I actually bothered to turn the tape over and listen to the second side too!

It's an album (and band) of contrasts and contradictions.  From the loud/quiet/loud formula that the band specialised in, to Cobain wanting to revel in punk rock, even as he wrote snappy pop songs.  Producer Butch Vig takes the songs from close, tight intimate sounds to booming, stadium-ready thump, often within the same song (such as on ‘Drain You’).

Dave Grohl is now 'the nicest guy in rock' or 'an embarrassing twat' depending who you ask, but as a new addition to the band, he really helps anchor this album.  With his able backing vocals adding a little something extra to the mix, and of course his bombastic drumming.  A drummer friend of mine once pointed out that Grohl is a great songwriting drummer.  He doesn't play a million fills and hugely intricate parts, but what he plays locks into and complements the songs.  A lot of his parts for this album if you heard them in isolation you'd likely still be able to pick the song it came from.

The single “Smells Like Teen Spirit” launched the album, band and the newish ‘grunge’ genre into the commercial stratosphere. Arguably, here Cobain achieved his goal of mixing the Pixies, the Melvins and the Beatles, but his punk guilt was triggered by a feeling that the album was too polished and almost too successful.  More successful  than many of his influences (which is possibly one reason why he devoted a decent portion of Nirvana's high-profile MTV Unplugged show to covering other artists).    With the next studio album 'In Utero' he would try and bring a bit more noisy punky squalor to proceedings.

Day 0685 - Loveless

My Bloody Valentine "Loveless" (1991)

Another enjoyable late-era shoe-gaze album.  Funnily enough, I didn't think too much of this on first listen, but then I gave it another go through headphones and it kind of clicked for me.  Not sure if this is just headphone music, or if I just needed time to get on board with it.

The band spend a lot of time (and money) experimenting with sounds and studio techniques and I'd say it's paid off.  The sounds are almost orchestral, there's a wall of sound that is most likely guitar but (full credit to them) I can't tell for sure.   There's enough melody tucked away in there as well that it's not complete drone.

Day 0684 - Nowhere

Ride "Nowhere" (1990)

The band had released a few EPs before settling in to record this, their debut full-length. 

I'm not usually a huge fan of shoegazer stuff, but this one actually tickled my fancy.  The melodies didn't seem quite as obscured by the wash of guitars etc. as is usually the case.  I found the grooves to be hypnotic and engaging, instead of boring and forgettable.

Day 0683 - Goo

Sonic Youth "Goo" (1990)

Sonic Youth's major label debut, but it doesn't feel as though they're trying to court a mainstream audience any more than they have on previous albums.

The band started with noisy no-wave, brought in swirling psychedelic noise pop.  This album feels a lot punkier and more riff-heavy (not that their albums have ever been bereft of riffs).  The band were followed and filmed on tour for the documentary film "The Year Punk Broke" which included some bands from the burgeoning grunge scene.

I liked it, though less impressed with the track "Kool Thing" with Chuck D from Public Enemy.  Not really the best thing that either party has ever done, but kudos to both for being willing to try it.  Sonic Youth were willing to experiment with different styles, they worked with samples and drum machines on the album "The Whitey Album" released under moniker Ciccone Youth, a reference to Madonna.

Day 0682 - People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm

A Tribe Called Quest "People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm" (1990)

While I found the album sonically interesting, and the MCs created a sense of fun and humour, this one didn't really hold my interest much as the other rap albums in this section of the list did.

Having said that, It seems to be slowly slipping under my skin after a few listens.  I can certainly hear the influence on interesting hip hop artists such as Jurassic 5, Outkast and others... Maybe it's just a grow-er, not a show-er.

Day 681 - I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got

Sinead O'Connor "I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got" (1990)

A great album beyond just the obvious hit of "Nothing compares 2u" (that Prince fella popping up again).  The album touches on elements of her homeland with some Irish folk elements, and "I am stretched on your grave" a 17th century poem translated from Irish and laid out over a bass and drum loop that, with O'Connor's voice, feels akin to Massive Attack's early sound.  Some fiddles eventually crash in at the end  to see the track off in style.

There are a couple of more pumping, driving songs in "Emperor's new clothes" and "Jump in the River" which stop any chance of the album being 'one note'.  

The track "Black boys on mopeds" is criticised in the book, something to do with it being a bit of an unsubtle protest song.  Thanks to my blind-spot (deaf-spot?) when it comes to lyrics, it just feels like a nice folky singer-songwritery thing that I really enjoyed.   

The album closes with the meditative acapella title-track.  A calm after the storm.

Day 0680 - Fear of a Black Planet

Public Enemy "Fear of a Black Planet" (1990)

Production team the Bomb Squad were clearly on a roll with this, and Ice Cube's album a couple of entries earlier on the list.

Here Public Enemy revisit the 'wall of noise', and layered samples that seem more like sound collages to a beat, than just straight backing tracks.  The MCs lay abrasive in-your-face rhymes over this... it's essentially a continuation of the sound of their brilliant sophomore album "It takes a nation of millions to hold us back".

If it aint broke, don't fix it.

As the title suggests, race relations, African American empowerment and the issue of white supremacy are addressed.
A great time for hip hop, and an intense listening experience.  I can only guess at what it would be like to see these guys do their thing live.

Day 0679 - Mama Said Knock You Out

LL Cool J "Mama Said Knock You Out" (1990)

LL's brand of brag-rap had been starting to wane in the face of socially conscious rap and the violent, occasionally misogynistic gangsta rap styles.  LL's 1989 album "Walking With a Panther" had attempted to change things up stylistically, and was a commercial success, but led to some derision from the rap community.

LL swung back into action, helped by producer Marley Marl, as the title suggests, he was ready for a fight.  Sparse beats and booming bass dominate with occasional samples adding a nice bit of flavour.   LL is a skilled wordsmith, agile, powerful and interesting.

Day 0678 - Ritual de lo Habitual

Jane's Addiction "Ritual de lo Habitual" (1990) - got it

The last album before the tumultuous Jane's broke up (for the first time). 

It really is "an album of two halves".  The first 5 tracks are more or less stand-alone rock songs, including the brilliant "Been caught stealing".  The last 4 songs take you on a journey, musically and emotionally with songs written for Farrell's mother who committed suicide, and his girlfriend who overdosed.  The songs are drawn out alternative rock epics with synthesisers, piano and strings on "Then she did..." which almost touches on Zeppelin's 'Kashmir' or "Stairway' in its scope and power.   That is followed by the brilliantly left-field middle-eastern flavoured "Of course" with heavily featured violin, plodding, elephantine percussion and Farrell's voice hitting new heights of nasal-ness.... nasality?

Day 0677 - Amerikkka's Most Wanted

Ice Cube "Amerikkka's Most Wanted" (1990)

Ice Cube's first album after leaving N.W.A.  The album was produced by the BombSquad (also producing for Public Enemy, whose Flavour Flav and Chuck D guest here).  It's an almost unrelenting aural assault, and two things become quite clear from listening to it:
1. Ice Cub loves the word 'mutherfucka' 
2, He is not to impressed with anyone being 'on his dick'.

You have to take the lyrics with a grain of salt as Cube blasts a certain degree of misogyny over the tracks.  This side of things is at least partly counterbalanced by his rap battle with Yo Yo on "It's a man's world".  She gives him a run for his money.

Day 0676 - Ragged Glory

Neil Young "Ragged Glory" (1990)

Young had had a bit of a return to form with his previous album 'Freedom' after what was considered by many to be a period of creative decline for him.  For this album he went one step further with taking things back and reunited with his band Crazy Horse. 

The band jammed on sets of songs each day and eventually went and listened back to all of the takes to choose the best tracks to move forward with.  Young said that it was to stop them overthinking, though there is also some suggestion that it was to keep Young from controlling the sessions too much.

It's a pretty straight-ahead set of rockers with Young's fuzzy guitar solos and some nice vocal harmonies going on.   It didn't wow me as much as some of Young's other albums I've listened to on this quest, but I do really love the slow burning album closer "Mother Earth (Natural Anthem)".

Day 0675 - Listen Without Prejudice Vol.1

George Michael "Listen Without Prejudice  Vol.1" (1990)

Another excellent solo album from GM.  He was clearly still looking to show that he was more than a pretty face and a pair of short-shorts in Wham!

The album mixes jazz, gospel and West Indian influences, with a range of sonic textures and GM's strong voice soaring over it all.

Amazing voice, and his rendition of Stevie Wonder's "They won't go when I go" is a new favourite.

Unfortunately, the record did not sell as well as it's predecessor "Faith" ...though 8 million in sales sounds pretty damned good to me.  GM quarrelled with his record label, accusing them of not supporting his career.  Everyone just needs to calm the heck down!

Day 0674 - Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches

Happy Mondays "Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches" (1990)

I wasn't a huge fan of "Bummed" the previous Happy Mondays album on this list, but this one appealed to my sensibilities much more.   The production is clearer than 'Bummed's muddy sound, and the mix of raucous, almost punky rock, with dance beats and hints of 60s influences presents a sound that largely doesn't feel like it has aged too much at all.

The album and band helped link rockers to ravers and probably influenced some of the 'Cool Britannia set with its interesting mix of sounds a production ideas.

Day 0673 - Behaviour

Pet Shop Boys "Behaviour" (1990)

This album continues the P.S.B's line of quality, interesting pop, that uses some technology (analogue synthesisers as the Boys were unhappy with the digital synths available at the time) but retains its humanity, through stripped down arrangements and Neil Tennant's light, sometimes plaintive voice.

Much like their second album, Angelo Badalamenti (best known for his scoring work on David Lynch films and the "Twin Peaks" series) provides some string arrangements.  A change to the formula though comes in the form of Johnny Marr providing guitar across one or two tracks.

I don't have too much else to say about this one.  It has some fairly nostalgic and introspective lyrics (which then makes it a pity that they'd already used "Introspective" as the title for their previous album) in songs like "Being Boring" and "This Must Be the Place I Waited Years to Leave".  

Day 0672 - Sex Packets

Digital Underground "Sex Packets" (1990)

I got some enjoyment out of this, but that is based more on the source material that the album is built from than from anything D.U. bring to it.  Funky samples are used from artists like George Clinton, Jimi Hendrix, Prince, and Herbie Hancock.

I have to admit that this is not what I'd thought Digital Underground would sound like.  I was expecting a nascent electronica album; instead, it's rap built on top of funk grooves with a sense of humour and, unfortunately, a touch of misogyny.

Apparently it's a concept album with a narrative around a drug that provides sexual pleasure.  I didn't really take any of that in though.  As I've said before, I'm not generally a lyrics person.

Day 0671 - Rust in Peace

Megadeth "Rust in Peace" (1990)

Megadeth gonna Megadeth.

This is the fourth Megadeth album and features their third lineup, though apparently this one would stick for the next few albums.  As always with Megadeth, the album largely centres around Dave Mustaine, his riffs, his lead guitar, and his voice.  David Ellefson should be given his due though, being one of the most constant members of the band, and providing bass that ranges from nimble and virtuosic; and restrained and interesting.

This album gets held up as one of the highlights of the thrash movement, and I can buy that.  While I've always been more of a Metallica or Slayer fan, this album features some speedy riffs and (as the superlative goes) 'fretboard pyrotechnics' from Dave.  It has enough melody and intensity to it that it almost feels like it sits between thrash, and something more in the 'party-rock' vein like Guns n Roses.

I always felt like Mustaine took himself far too seriously though.  I never felt his music was quite as good as his old band, and he seemed to be stuck repeating what they were doing in their first couple of albums.  Mind you, some metal fans (though not all) appreciate a spot of creative inertia, so....

Day 0670 - Bossanova

Pixies "Bossanova" (1990)

 
To be honest, to my 'non-Pixies-fan' ears, this sounds like a similar flavour to its (in my opinion) far superior predecessor "Doolittle".

There is an added touch of surf music with the reverb drenched opener "Cecilia Ann" and the far-out theremin of "Velouria".  The Pixies' more abrasive side is still very much on display with "Rock Music".

Bassist/vocalist Kim Deal had stayed in the UK to record the debut album by her band the Breeders.  She eventually joined the other members of the Pixies back in the US, but her songwriting is absent from the album with all songs (other than the opening cover) being written by Black Francis.

The Pixies' more melodic side is still present, but again, to me the melodies just feel like 'more of the same' after "Doolittle".

Day 0669 - Violator

Depeche Mode "Violator" (1990)

 
After making several albums, and getting good at what they did, th'Mode decided to pare things back on their first album of the 90s.   Band-member Martin Gore described how the group had become bored with the extensive pre-production and discussions on album 'sound' that they would usually undertake before working on a release.  They decided instead to work things out on the fly in the studio with new producer Flood (New Order, Ministry, Smashing Pumpkins, PJ Harvey, NIN etc.)

Apparently Depeche Mode were a big influence on Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor, and I can hear it.  The synthline in first track "World in my Eyes" bears more than a passing resemblance to that band's sound.  The album mostly goes for sparse, but moody synth arrangements.  "Waiting for the Night" and "Clean" provide slightly fuller arrangements.

Oh it also has "Personal Jesus" on it.  Most people would at least be familiar with that or the so-so Marilyn Manson cover of it a few years later.

Day 0668 - Shake Your Money Maker

The Black Crowes "Shake Your Money Maker" (1990)

 
To pull out the 'old reliable' again "I'd heard of the band by name, but wasn't familiar with any of their music".  Turns out that I had heard a couple of these tracks ("Too hard to handle" and "She talks to angels") but just wasn't aware that they were Black Crowes songs.

The band was maybe one of the earlier groups to start the fad of reviving the 1960s blues rock sound.  Channelling artists such as Rolling Stones, Joe Cocker ("Seeing things") and Tom Petty.  They deliver a set of tracks that dwell in the sleazy, greasy good-time aspect of rock n roll, while still delivering a slice of gravity in "She talks to angels" which deals with another rock n roll 'classic'... heroin addiction.