Day 0902 - Heartbreaker

Ryan Adams "Heartbreaker" (2000)

I've never had a huge urge to check out Ryan Adams.  Not sure why, I think I heard a song or two back in the day that I didn't care for, then heard stories about him being a bit of a dick (not that that necessarily makes for bad music) so didn't really feel the motivation.

After the breakup of his alt-country group Whiskeytown, Adams teamed up with country/Americana artists Gillian Welch and David Rawlings to work on his solo album.

The album was actually pretty good.  It's mostly alt-country with a bit of a Bob Dylan vibe in places (drawling vocal, harmonica and acoustic guitars).   The opening track is wasted on a discussion about which album a particular Morrissey song is on... not exactly going to stand up to re-listens that one.  

After that it bursts into an ambitious rockabilly track "To be young (is to be sad, is to be high) which breaks into more melodic passages.  "Amy" is a gorgeous 60s flavoured ballad that wouldn't be out of place on a later era Beatles album.   "Oh my sweet Carolina" is a smouldering country ballad with guest vocals by Emmylou Harris, whose album "Red Dirt Girl" shows up shortly in this list.  "Bartering Lines" almost has that atmospheric T-Bone Burnett production to it and some lovely vocal harmonies.

Perfectly listenable, and I'd be more than happy to check out further Adams albums based on this.

Day 0854 - In it for the Money

Supergrass "In it for the Money" (1997)

The "difficult second album" and yet I would say this is easily Supergrass' best (of what I've heard).   They developed naturally from their cheeky and often whimsical pop-rock of debut "I Should Coco" and bring a more mature sound.

The self-titled track opens with an almost sinister tone that rises up to a chant of the title and a catchy rock song.  "Richard III" likewise opens with a sinister 'devil's interval' before Gaz Coombes gives a peppy 'whoo' that launches a rock riff that is excellent in its simplicity.   A couple of tracks later things slow down and show the band's increasing maturity.  The moody, acoustic "Late in the Day" may get a bit bouncier in the choruses (mirrored in the pogo-sticking music video) but is still somewhat contemplative.

Much of the rest is just catchy and enjoyable, with single "Going out" being a remaining nod to their lighter hearted debut.   The album finishes on an interesting note, with the pop-jazz feel of "Hollow little reign" and album closer "Sometimes I make you sad" which could almost be described as 'vaudeville techno' with a crazy speedy guitar solo partway through.

Brilliant album and I'm not quite sure why I don't own a copy.

Day 0781 - Snivilisation

Orbital "Snivilisation" (1994)

I probably prefer this to the previous Orbital album on the list.  They don't muck around so much and throw a bit of passion into the mix in the face of the British Conservative party and authorities working to crack down on the rave culture.

Plenty of interesting beats on display and a performance on track "Sad But True" from Alison Goldfrapp before she formed the group... er, Golfrapp.

I prefer the back end of this album with my favourite probably being the almost mechanised piano track "Kein Trink Wasser" with occasional vibes of what sound melodically like Yann Tiersen.  Followed by the short but rocking "Quality Seconds", another Alison Goldfrapp featured track and groovy loop to finish.

Day 0707 - Metallica

Metallica "Metallica (AKA The Black Album)" (1992) - got it

Metallica’s greatest album, or “the one where they sold out” depending on where you hang your hat.

Metallica had started off playing sweaty, dirty punk-metal, a genre that came to be known as ‘thrash’.  The intensity of punk, but the heaviness and musicianship of metal.   The band had been evolving on each album, with arrangements becoming more and more intricate and harmonically interesting, with many different riffs, time changes and the songs building in length.  This all came to a head with “…and Justice For All” where the songs were generally all around the 7-10 minute mark with a multitude of riffs.  The band found the songs hard going while playing them live, and even started to notice some of the fans in the audience noticeably losing interest during the duration.

Enter “Metallica (the Black Album)”, the band enlisted producer Bob Rock, impressed with his work on Motley Crue’s Dr Feelgood album with it’s crunchy-yet-polished sound.  With Rock’s help, the band simplified their songs, basing them around one or two riffs, (instead of 15!)  The band slowed most of their songs down, using more of a ‘groove-metal’ approach, fusing heaviness with a greater degree of melody and atmosphere than had maybe been present before.

While some felt Rock’s production sound was too polished, I feel it adds a bit of much needed bottom-end to ‘tallica’s sound.  Jason Newsted’s bass is audible after being MIA on “…and Justice”.   He doesn’t have the nimble-fingered virtuosity of previous bassist Cliff Burton, but his solid, chunky sound suits the groove of the new music nicely.

There are still some speedy riffs that wouldn't be out of place on their 80s albums.  Songs like “Holier than thou”, “Through the Never” race along at a rate of knots.  Elsewhere, songs such as “Wherever I may roam” and “Sad but true” have a slower, more epic bent.

The album was a massive success, going multi-platinum and (to date) spending more than 500 weeks in the billboard 200.  With the polished sound, simpler songs, music videos, and the occasional (gasp!) ballad - the beautifully simplistic “Nothing Else Matters” – this album would also cause one of the biggest divides between Metallica fans until the next album where they (Gasp!  Again) cut their hair.