Monthly Archives: April 2021

#824: Deftones – Mein

Leave a reply

Should I listen through the Deftones discography? It probably wouldn’t hurt. My knowledge on the group is limited. I know the band members names through Wiki searches, and I only know a few songs of theirs through seeing some of their music videos on MTV2 while growing up. Saturday Night Wrist was released around the time that I had started secondary school, so I remember ‘Hole in the Earth’ showing up a few times whenever I came back home or was getting ready to leave in the morning. That song’s pretty good. It was months later that ‘Mein’ followed as the album’s second single, and I distinctly remember saying to myself, “That was a weird song” after seeing its video for the first time. I was 11, it was different to anything I’d heard before.

Fourteen years have passed. During that time, I’ve been on the Internet like many a person. When I’ve listened to the song online and seen comments about it, two things are usually a common occurence. One, that fans of Deftones don’t hold Saturday Night Wrist in the highest of regards. I don’t have an opinion on that; I’ve never listened through it. And two, ‘Mein’ isn’t considered to be that good of a song by the band. Now, I probably couldn’t have an opinion that holds that much weight on that too. But seeing as this post is on here, you can probably tell that I think this track is great. I like the kind of wall of sound guitars and the chord progression in the verses matched with Chino Moreno’s vocal melody. I think the drumming on this majestic, especially during the breakdown ending. What I thought was weird all that time ago was how the verses suddenly jerk into the chorus. I also did think that how the track ended was quite strange too. And who expected Serj Tankian from System of a Down to randomly show up in the bridge? You know, this track is still weird, but I can’t say it’s a boring listen.

Below’s a video of guitarist Stephen Carpenter giving a lowdown on the song. He demonstrates the songs chords and everything.

#823: Bob Dylan – Meet Me in the Morning

Leave a reply

Bob Dylan does the blues on ‘Meet Me in the Morning’. The sixth number on Blood on the Tracks, the break-up album of all break-up albums (I think I read that somewhere), is in a standard AABA form that you’ll hear almost every other blues song. But it gets my head nodding every time that rhythm section kicks in. On the track, Dylan howls for his love to come back to him. He wishes to meet her at the intersection of 56th and Wabasha, gives all these poetic and wild examples of the things he’s done to prove that he’s earned her love. By the end, it seems he’s been waiting all day for her to arrive. Safe to say she doesn’t show. Guess he’s left in some pain; the way he sings the track symbolises that, I think.

It’s just that groove, man. There’s a lot of oomph behind that kick drum and the overall rhythm, but there’s also a stiffness to the delivery. It’s all hi-hat, open hi-hat and snare. Never a slam on the ride or crash cymbals. I guess this allows the different guitars and Dylan’s vocal to take over the soundscape. It’s been said that Dylan doesn’t have the greatest singing voice, but I can’t think of another track of his where he tries his hardest than on here. He reaches notes that could really surprise some people who listen to this for the first time. Reaches those higher notes with his chest and giving it a lot of gusto.

It took me a while to properly get into this track. It’s the most recent from that album that I added to my list. That was a couple years back or so. When I really sat down and listened to the record all the way through one day, ‘Morning’ suddenly stood out to me. It carries on a run of 10/10 tracks beginning with the album’s opener. None of which were written in the happiest of times for the man. Definitely my favourite album of his though.

#822: They Might Be Giants – Meet James Ensor

Leave a reply

‘Meet James Ensor’ is a song from They Might Be Giants’ fourth album, John Henry, from 1994. One of the few in the first bunch of tracks I ever heard from the band when I was about eight or something, it’s a song about the rise and fall of Belgian painter James Ensor. It may just be the only song in existence about the guy. And his story is told in the minute and a half that the track lasts for.

It is a very succinct story. Ensor lived with his mother and made a lot of nice paintings which impressed a lot of people and contemporaries, but as time passed his art was gradually forgotten. So this song was a nice reintroduction or introduction to the man for many a fan of the band. Admittedly, I think I may have googled Ensor’s name once or twice and that’s the extent of my research. But I’m sure a lot of people were more interested after having listening to this.

John Henry is noted for being the first TMBG album where the two Johns (Linnell and Flansburgh) were accompanied by an actual rhythm section rather than the programmed drums and bass that were the norm in the four albums before it. John Flansburgh takes the lead vocal on this one; Tony Maimone and Brian Doherty respectively take up the bass and drums. Doherty’s drumming on this is manic. When I first heard the song I wasn’t sure if those drum rolls were real, but I’m sure I saw a video of the band playing it live and it was exactly the same. They’re probably a very easy thing for drummers to do and I might have just been over-excited. They still provide this unexpected hectic energy that keeps the song moving on. Overall it’s a great tune, melody’s all there. Those drums though, just a highlight for me.

#821: Eels – The Medication Is Wearing Off

Leave a reply

Ah, this is a sad song. Listening to it the first time you might think it’s not too emotional, but knowing the context of it all adds some weight to it. Mark Oliver Everett, commonly known as ‘E’ and the main man behind the music of Eels, found himself to be the only surviving member of his family when both his sister and mother passed away within a short amount of time of one another. Him coming to terms with their loss became the main theme of the Electro-Shock Blues album, released in ’98, and ‘The Medication Is Wearing Off’ is the penultimate track.

The song sees E staring at this watch that he’s been given as a present by either his mother of sister (not quite sure which one) that’s still working and ticking away the seconds while both of his dearest relatives are no longer living. I feel that the song’s a blunt depiction of a person who really feels like they have nothing left. Going through the motions, walking down the street and looking through emails, but wondering what’s the point of it all when you feel so alone. You know that scene in The Simpsons where Homer’s mother leaves him again, and he sits on his car and stares at the night sky while the credits roll? This song is that scene.

The music’s so calming too. That glockenspiel that introduces it and those woodwinds that follow… Makes the whole track sound like a lullaby. Those programmed drums that keep the tempo are never intrusive and the bass is so warm. It’s not necessarily uplifting, though you can’t help but feel a bit good when listening to it. But then you see the lyrics and you think, “Oh”. It’s a conflicting thing. Obviously, you feel however you want to feel when you hear it.

#820: Madvillain – Meat Grinder

Leave a reply

Think it’s an understatement to say that it was a sad day when it was revealed on New Year’s Eve that MF DOOM was no longer with us. It was a bigger shock to find that he had been gone for two months by that point. Daniel Dumile was such an enigma. Here was a guy who wasn’t asking to be in the spotlight much. I think he was more a private man who wanted to be with his family a lot of the time. But the way he rapped with that husky voice and jaw-dropping flows and internal rhyme schemes always left the people wanting more. I know I was hoping for something new from him in whatever capacity. It’s a huge loss. But the music is forever.

‘Meat Grinder’ is the third song on Madvillainy, the legendary collaborative album by DOOM and producer Madlib under their Madvillain moniker. I see a lot of comments under this song on YouTube saying how this track reminds them of SpongeBob SquarePants. I always shake my head and think, “Why?” Apart from the sampled slide guitar that I can admit does sound a bit like something from that show, my mind doesn’t automatically go to it. I’m always thinking about how grimy and sneaky-sounding that bassline is. Alongside DOOM’s hoarse vocals, it just gives this real nasty vibe. I feel like it’s a track that should be in a Breaking Bad montage or something. There’s a dirty, disgusting feel to it that only listening it would you be able to understand.

DOOM’s flow and lyrics on here are insane. The internal rhyming on this is miraculous. He was always noted for the way in which he could introduce a word in one line, rhyme it twice in the next and bring it back around in the final line while still rhyming five other words simultaneously. It’s a marvel to listen to. His versatility had no boundaries. I can’t keep up with them myself, but there are phrases throughout which always stick in my mind. “Borderline schizo/Sort of fine tits though”, “Hackthoo’ing” songs, lit in the booth with the best host/Doing bong hits on the roof, in the west coast”… just to list two of them. I’ll just show the rhyme scheme highlight video. Jesus.