[#TBT] CAN / FUTURE DAYS (1973)

CAN - FUTURE DAYS (UNITED ARTISTS) 1973

By; Randy Nieto

Can is one of those bands that sound like a bunch of guys who love Fela Kuti smoked pot in their garage and made music on the instruments their moms bought for them from Montgomery Ward. Actually, members of the group were classically trained German musicians, but a trip to New York City “corrupted” founding member Irwin Schmidt, as he put it. (You’re not the first, Irwin.) Irwin wanted to foray into contemporary music, which at the time in Europe was composers such as Karlheinz Stockhausen and Pierre Boulez. Boulez and Stockhausen were actually doing pretty cool stuff, but after you smoke a joint with Andy Warhol and Lou Reed, you realize how relative “cool” really is. At times Future Days sounds a lot like Air’s Moon Safari, but without the heavy bass or serenading vocals. Melding tropicalia, krautrock, afrobeat, and classical influences, Future Days served to really cement together genres and create a mellow yet highly progressive sound. Moonshake is the only song on the record that really serves to fit a typical pop song formula. This doesn’t mean the rest of the album is sub-par, in fact quite the opposite. Future Days exemplifies how disciplined these guys really were. This record belongs in every music lover's collection. Check out Moonshake below.

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[#TBT] R.E.M. - RECKONING (1984)

R.E.M. - RECKONING (I.R.S.) 1984

By: Randy Nieto

Several albums before they shat all over their dark and brooding legacy with “Shiny Happy People” and “Stand”, R.E.M. released “Reckoning”, a beautifully written and lyrically poetic record. R.E.M. was the quintessential college rock band of the early 80’s: they had already practically invented indie rock (which could be argued), but the songs on Reckoning proved to be more complicated and somber than ever before. Lyrical gems like ‘They shifted the statues for harboring ghosts’ in “Harborcoat” and ‘These rivers of suggestion are driving me away’ in “South Central Rain” inspired many 80’s and 90’s college kids to join bands and begin writing poetry in their spiral notebooks. There is a moment of brightness in “Second Guessing”, and a weird, tongue-in-cheek, funky intro to "Don't Go Back to Rockville", but really that's all you get, so you better have something to be sad about. You know how there are those albums where every single song is amazing, and you play the whole thing over and over again until you get sick of it? This is one of those records. The songwriting is inventive, original, and fun(in the most depressing sense of the word). Clearly this was the album they fell in love with the minor chord. If you are not familiar with “Reckoning”, it's never too late to start loving this 30 year old record. To get you going, I posted a full stream of the album below.

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[#TBT] BRIAN ENO - HERE COME THE WARM JETS (1974)

BRIAN ENO - HERE COME THE WARM JETS (ISLAND RECORDS) 1974

By: Randy Nieto

Here Come the Warm Jets is Brian Eno’s debut solo album. Simply released under the name “Eno” and affectionately titled after a satisfying trip to the washroom, Warm Jets features members of King Crimson and Roxy Music. Needle in the Camel’s Eye is the first song and the album’s most popular single, but some would say (some being me) not even close to being the best tune on the record. Paw Paw Negro Blowtorch has a clear vocal influence from Brian Ferry, no doubt from Eno’s tenure in Roxy Music. Cindy Tells Me sounds like The Velvet Underground if they simply turned up the gain on their amplifiers. Baby’s on Fire, a poppy and sarcastic song, dares the listener to take Brian Eno seriously, and how can you not, with overly melodic lyrics and guitar solos that totally shred in between each verse.

The most amazing thing about this album is not the catchy lyrics, wicked solos, or glam rock sound of the 1970’s, but really the innovation of production on the record. Experimental guitar noise weaves in and out of each song, and the swooshing soundscapes surface at just the right times that would bring chills down any audiophile's spine. Here Come the Warm Jets is the album Radiohead wish they had made and probably came closest to on Ok Computer. I’m not sure why Brian Eno left Roxy music, maybe he got tired of people mistaking him for Riff Raff from Rocky Horror Picture Show. Or maybe all the lipstick and eyeshadow finally seeped into his brain. Whatever the reason, we are glad he did, because we wouldn’t have a lot of the great music we have today were it not for this revolutionary musician. If you have not heard it yet, check out "Needle in the Camel's Eye" below.

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[#TBT] MASSIVE ATTACK - MEZZANINE (1998)

MASSIVE ATTACK - MEZZANINE (VIRGIN RECORDS) 1998

By: Randy Nieto

Following the departure of Tricky, Massive Attack released “Mezzanine”, which quickly became the band’s best selling album. I totally remember because Massive Attack was already super hip at that point, and when this record came out it pretty much sealed the whole fucking deal. Edging away from the R&B and reggae inspired tracks on Blue Lines and Protection, Mezzanine had a much darker and heavier vibe than anything they had previously released. The vocals are crisp and menacing, with flawless production that really showcases the deep drum and bass sound of the 90’s. I always found it kind of amazing how they could seamlessly transition from a trip hop track into a heavy metal record. This album is still cooler than 98% of shit that is coming out today, and I’m fairly certain if you play it loud enough it will melt any Lumineers and Mumford and Sons CD’s in the general vicinity. Six years after its release they even managed to score a theme song for the TV show “House”. This is their magnum opus, and anybody who considers themselves a music fan deserves to own this record. If you really want to appreciate it in true 90’s fashion, I recommend getting some tinted windows on your car, putting this album on, turning the bass up to 10 and driving around your block over and over until everyone hates you. Trust me, it's worth it.

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