This is probably my favorite version of this song. In my mind, it even trumps Bowie’s original version. Very cool.
Defending Axl Rose
an abnormal music blog
Author Archives: Jason Wendleton
Tame Impala “It Is Not Meant To Be”
Fantastic Tame Impala song from INNERSPEAKER. Stay mellow, kids.
Sunday Morning Chill-Out
There’s nothing better than lazing around the house on Sunday morning. I like to make a pot of coffee, stay in my PJ’s, and listen to some good music. Not everything “chill” has to be “lame,” there’s some really awesome mellow music out there. But what does the super-hipster-rock dork listen to when he wants to both maintain credibility AND be mellow in the morning?
How about a little David Bowie…in Portuguese! Brazilian singer-songwriter Seu Jorge did a whole album of classic David Bowie covers for the 2004 Wes Anderson film THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU. You want mellow? Wrap your ears about Jorge’s smooth vocals and crisp acoustic renderings of one of rock’s trippiest artists. All the classics are covered, from “Changes,” “Suffragette City,” and of course the epic “Space Oddity.” This is probably the best covers album I’ve ever heard in that, the songs are truly interpreted rather than just covered. I realize that the reason these Bowie songs sound so phenomenal is because they’ve been translated into Portugese (an achingly beautiful language) but I also think Jorge is a fantastic singer. This way more than just an album of note-by-note covers.
Sue Jorge, prior to learning how to hold an acoustic guitar.
Those wishing for something trippy AND recorded in English could groove to the cosmic-mellowness that is Tame Impala’s album INNERSPEAKER. Tame Impala is a fantastic Australian band that makes a noise I would call “dream pop.” There’s lots of 1967-type mysticism in their lyrics, which is always good for a Sunday morning hangover. Turn it up a bit, and let the psychedelia wash away your weekend worries. I really like the echo-y Lennon-esque vocals and the fantastic drums. Seriously, this band manages to have great, boisterous drums while still maintaing a laid back sound. The songs are all around the five minute mark and manage to walk the fine line between “trance-like” and “coma inducing.” Though it’s most definetly “rock” the band’s arragements are very jazz-inspired.
Apparently this is what Australia looks like...if you're on drugs.
I find them hypnotic, my wife says they make her sleepy–drink plenty of coffee (preferably from Dr. Robert) and you’ll be fine. What do you like to listen to on Sunday morning? Sound off in the comments section below. And remember, stay chill.
“September Gurls” by Big Star
Awesome song by an awesome band.
Your Next Favorite Band: BIG STAR
One of my favorite things to do is turn people onto the things that I love. To that end, I’m going to use this blog to promote the stuff I like that’s just as well known as it should be. For my first installment let me introduce to you Big Star.
That is one big star.
I guarantee that you know at least one Big Star song, even if you’ve never heard of the band before. Probably most famous for “In the Street,” which was covered by Cheap Trick and used as the theme song for THAT 70’s SHOW, Big Star continues to influence musicians today. And while “In the Street” is a pretty bitchin’ song, it’s nothing compared to Big Star’s ballads. Frontman Alex Chilton had this amazing, almost supernatural ability to write simple songs that were not only catchy as hell, but heartbreakingly honest. I’m talking make-you-cry-it’s-that-beautiful. The band only put out three albums #1 RECORD, RADIO CITY, and THIRD/SISTER LOVERS (the first two are sold almost exclusively together on one disc) but you know what they say about stars that burn twice as bright…
These men had the balls to call their first record "#1 Record".
As far as 1970’s rock goes, you can’t do much better than Big Star. The band’s production doesn’t sound particularly dated or cheesy, like a lot of 70’s music does (at least to these ears). If you like The Kinks or REM you owe it to yourself to check out Big Star.
ESSENTIAL LISTENING:
1. “In the Street” off #1 RECORD
2. “The Ballad of El Goodo” off #1 RECORD
4. “September Gurls” off RADIO CITY
5. “I’m in Love With a Girl” off RADIO CITY
6. “When My Baby’s Beside Me” off #1 RECORD
7. “The India Song” off #1 RECORD
I challenge you to all of those songs and not smile or tap your foot. If you can do that then you are dead inside.
Defending Axl Rose: PART #1 “Chinese Democracy”
Well it’s been a week, I guess it’s time I start defending Axl Rose. Welcome to the first in a series of posts that will examine CHINESE DEMOCRACY, track-by-track.:
I’m not going to sit here and try to tell you that CHINESE DEMOCRACY is a perfect album or that it’s better than APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION. It is my belief, however, that people dismissed CHINESE DEMOCRACY too quickly. For one thing, the long delay in it’s release did nothing but raise expectations to a ridiculously high, completely unattainable level. Time was also an enemy for the album in that 15 years passed between GNR albums. That’s a long time and in the music industry that’s practically a lifetime. Styles change. Trends come and go. When Axl Rose released “THE SPAGETTI INCIDENT?” in 1993 people were still listening to music on the radio and watching music videos on MTV. I guess what I’m saying is: the world moved on.
I feel like a lot of the negative reaction to the album had to do with people expecting Axl to pick up right where GNR left off all those years ago. But why did fans expect or want Axl to stay locked in 1993? Anyway, I can’t really explain why it took 15 years to make CHINESE DEMOCRACY, and I certainly don’t think it “sounds” like it took 15 years to make. What did does sound like is an older, more mature rockers attempt at a comeback album. It incorporates what was great about his old work and adds to it some modern touches. I think it was those modern touches that turned off most listeners, especially the old GNR fans. People who expected or wanted the record to sound like “Welcome to the Jungle” are missing the point of art and artists. Wanna hear “Welcome to the Jungle”? Go put on APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION.
The first track on CHINESE DEMOCRACY is, fittingly enough, “Chinese Democracy.” Axl has stated publicly that the song is about the Chinese government and their poor treatment of the Dalai Lama. It opens with a faint and ominous siren-like noise. A chorus of quiet voices bleed over the sound of a guitar for a few seconds before we hear a louder, more highly processed guitar. That was the first thing that suck out about both “Chinese Democracy” the song and the album-there are so many different guitar tones on this record it’s not even funny. At first these crashing/clashing tones are pretty jaring. It sounds initially that these guitar sounds are just tossed around haphazardly, like Rose just threw the kitchen sink at CHINESE DEMOCRACY, but really what Axl does throughout the record is to create a lush, pulsing wall of sound. It’s not out of control or random, the entire record is highly organized. It reminds me of the symphonic work Brian Wilson did on PET SOUNDS.
I guess the Brian Wilson comparisons are easy, after all Wilson’s magnum opus SMILE (in it’s original form) was only just this past year made available to the listening public. Both albums are the singular vision of musical geniuses, the only difference is that Rose seems to have lost the war with a lot of critics. That said, I think that in 20 years it’ll be as highly regarded as SMILE. Why do I think this? Well genius is very rarely recognized, at least initially. And Axl doesn’t bend over backwards to make CHINESE DEMOCRACY likable or “easy.”
Axl lets us know right off the bat, ending his 15 year silence with this pronouncement:
“It don’t really matter/You’re gonna find out for yourself/No it don’t really matter/You’re gonna leave this thing somebody else.”
The song goes on to point a finger a China’s government and it’s use of an “iron fist” to subdue it’s people. It’s accusatory and at the same time resigned in the fact that ultimately totalitarianism fails. I find it ironic that Rose’s first album in 15 years is called CHINESE DEMOCRACY and seems to stab brutish dictators…the irony being that Rose is something of a brutish dictator himself. A quick look at the personal of the album reads like a who’s-who of rock musicians (studio hands or otherwise). So many people have credits on the damn thing it’s unreal. And you know that for every person given proper credit there must be two people who aren’t. Maybe I’m wrong about that, but it would seem that 15 years is an awful long time to remember whom to thank. “Chinese Democracy” alone is credited as having five different guitarists (not counting two different bass players). And then there are the people who started on the project and pissed Rose off and were booted off…
Regardless, “Chinese Democracy” is a fucking great rock song. It’s rebellious, scary, and when you finish hearing it you are left with no doubts that Axl Rose has come screaming back like he’d never gone away. Ignoring the fact that the song bookends a 15 year period of silence, I think “Chinese Democracy” is a great opener and a worthy addition to the GNR catalogue.
Next week I’ll continue my strange, track-by-track odyssee through CHINESE DEMOCRACY by looking at the second track “Shackler’s Revenge.”
Guilty Pleasures: 5 Artists I Reluctantly Admit to Liking
Look, I like what I like. I’ll be the first to admit that I have great taste…and I also love the worst shit. One of the nice things about being a mature adult, as opposed to a scared little boy, is that I just don’t care what people think. Which is why I’m able to speak openly about so-called “guilty pleasures.” You know, those things we all like but wouldn’t necessarily admit.
Well, no one’s twisting my arm, here are 5 of mine:
1. ROBBIE WILLIAMS: Britain’s most popular entertainer is also one of my all-time favorites. The bravado. The ego. The amazingly catchy (and increasingly kitchy) songs. The positives are also the negatives when it comes to Mr. Williams. Though he started out in a dopey boy-band, Robbie’s been realeasing consistently great pop records since the late 1990’s. Too bad his fey, anglo-saxon schtick didn’t catch on over here in America. Oh well, I guess it’s just another example of Europe’s superiority.
Robbie Williams, man-above-town
CHECK OUT: 2002’s ESCAPOLOGY is probably the best “mature” Robbie record to date. You should also pick up THE EGO HAS LANDED which is an American-only compilation of hits from first few British releases.
AVOID: The over-the-top dance/techno record RUDEBOX is awesome, but will probably turn most people off.
2. GENESIS: Everybody agrees that after Peter Gabriel left Phil Collins ran Genesis into the ground. Well guess what? I find myself listening to “I Can’t Dance” way more than “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway.” There’s a reason that Genesis went double-mega-ultra platinum after Collins took the helm: I only sometimes want to hear a 7+ minute prog-rock song…but I always want to hear a 3 minute pop song.
Gabriel took all the pink hearts and blue horseshoes.
CHECK OUT: INVISIBLE TOUCH and 1983’s GENESIS are pretty much the gold-standard when it comes to Genesis. Sure, they’re mostly Phil Collins solo-records, but who cares?
AVOID: STATION TO STATION the record the band released after Phil Collins left in 1996. No Collins? No Gabriel? No dice.
3. LADY GAGA: This one surprise you? Well it shouldn’t. Lady Gaga’s first two records are pretty damn good. “Bad Romance” and “Paparazzi” are great, catchy songs. The production alone is fantastic, period. I’m seeing a pattern here with these guilty pleasures: they’re all “pop” music. What is it about a good pop song that makes us love it despite ourselves?
This is the stupidest cover for this album I could find.
CHECK OUT: THE FAME and THE FAME MONSTER.
AVOID: BORN THIS WAY. My how the mighty have fallen.
4. METALLICA: Alight, now we’re getting to embarrassing. I think I’d rather tell people I like Lady Gaga before I told them I liked Metallica. Why? We’ll besides being pretty meat-headed, Metallica has cultivated a reputation over the years as pretty much hating their fans (see Metallica vs. the Internet and LULU). That said, once upon a time Metallica WAS metal. To this day I get goosebumps listening to “One” and “For Whom the Bell Tolls.” Sure, “Enter Sandman” has been overplayed, but that’s because it’s an awesome song. It sucks to admit it: but I like Metallica.
A graveyard. How prophetic for Metallica's future artistic endeavors with Lou Reed.
CHECK OUT: MASTER OF PUPPETS and RIDE THE LIGHTNING.
AVOID: For crying out loud stay FAR away from LULU. If you don’t know what that is, consider yourself a lucky (better) person.
5. BREE SHARP: This is totally random. I almost didn’t put her on the list because she’s pretty obscure. I decided I liked Bree Sharp after hearing her do a cover of Don Henley’s “The Boys of Summer” on an all-covers podcast a few years back. I downloaded her album MORE B.S. and thought it was fantastic. Songs like “Everything Feels Wrong” and “Morning in a Bar” are melancholy yet kinda dreamy at the same time. I then proceeded to do a little research and found out that she’s mostly known for her semi-novelty song “David Duchovny” which is about her infatuation with the former X-Files star. Yikes girl.
Look at that front-end! Oh, and there's a nice cab too.
CHECK OUT: MORE B.S. and her live album LIVE AT THE FEZ (if you can find it).
AVOID: Her 1999 debut record, A CHEAP AND EVIL GIRL, is pretty lame and dated. A song about Agent Mulder, seriously?
(DIS)HONORABLE mentions must also go to: Van Hagar/Sammy Hagar, Jay-Z, Duncan Sheik, 14:59-era Sugar Ray, Lilly Allen, Sade, Mick Jagger (solo), and Ben Folds rapping.
GBV on CBS tonight
Guided By Voices one of my all-time favorite bands has reunited and released a new album! In celebration of this momentous event, David Letterman has kindly invited the band to perform this evening. GBV is one helluva live act. I can honestly say that the two times I saw them were the greatest night(s) of my life. Lead singer Robert Pollard is white-headed now but I’m sure he can still swing a microphone with the best of ’em.
So if you’re suffering from insomnia tonight why not watch Letterman? You could seriously do worse…I’m looking at you Jay Leno.
METAL MONDAY: Kvelertak, badass Viking music that’s good for punching stuff
Welcome to what I hope to be a (semi) recurring feature here at Defending Axl Rose: METAL MONDAY! I’m really excited to talk about Kvelertak, whose name is Norwegian for “Stranglehold.” I gotta say, I love over-the-top metal. In fact, I pretty much despise metal that takes itself too seriously. Kvelertak is a six-piece Norwegian black metal band that are just the right amounts awesome and goofy as shit. Their songs are all sung in Norwegian and from what I can decipher deal with Norse/Viking themes. I guess they could be saying anything and I wouldn’t know it, but honestly metal this powerful is pretty universal.
That owl is a pimp.
Kvelertak are most definitely a metal band but they have a lot of punk and hard rock sensibilities. I really like their rich, diverse sound they have. The band makes good use acoustic guitar and piano in some of their songs, without making them feel gimmicky or forced. Aggressive (or high energy if you prefer) while at the same time very melodic, Kvelertak is great for working out or just punching stuff. These guys are damn fine musicians and their guitar riffs/hooks are pretty memorable.
My favorite tracks are “Blodtorst,” “Mjod,” “Liktorn,” and “Nekroskop.” All of which are loud, complex, and in your face awesome. All of the album tracks hit hard and fast and always leave you wanting more. That last part is most important to me because unlike a lot of metal bands, Kvelertak tend to keep their songs right around the 3 1/2 to 4 minute mark. I find that by arranging their songs like more traditional rock/pop songs, Kvelertak keeps me from getting bored. The usual metal tropes like stupidly long intros or overly lengthy solos pretty much absent from KVELERTAK. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good solo but sometimes it’s best to be left wanting more. And Kvelertak definitely leave me wanting more.
Their first album, KVELERTAK came out this year in the US, but was originally released back in 2010. I first heard about the band from Metalsucks (a pretty righteous metal website) who sang their praises. After hearing a few of their songs I illegally downloaded the album and enjoyed it for an entire year. When they finally came to iTunes in America this year I instantly snapped it up (it came with 4 extra live tracks and 2 demos, but honestly it was so damn good I just wanted to give them my money).
And let me just say, I haven’t seen such an awesome album cover in quite a while, metal or otherwise. It’s hypnotic and sexy. I know it’s wrong to judge a book by it’s cover, but that cover art was one of the reasons I decided to give Kvelertak a listen in the first place. Metal bands take note: sometimes a big bloody skull is not the best way to attract knew fans.
I was also impressed to see Kvelertak listed as “Breakthrough Artist of the Year” in the metal category on iTunes End-of-the-Year Rewind. Clearly they’ve made a big impact on the American metal scene, I hope they grow into a major metal act in the years to come. If like me, you got some iTunes gift cards this holiday season you should pop over to iTunes and download KVELERTAK, if you like thundering Viking music you won’t be disappointed.
KVELERTAK gets an “A” for thundering through my brain for over a year and half.
Defending Axl Rose 