FDF Volume 4 Issue 323 - The Crow - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Album – The Crow (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Artist - Various
Key Players – The Cure, Nine Inch Nails, Rage Against the Machine etc.

Produced By – Jeff Most, Jolene Cherry, Tom Carolan

Release Date – March 29, 1994

Overview - This is the soundtrack for the 1994 film. Based off a comic book the soundtrack has many cover versions of songs all with a bit of a “modern” twist. The soundtrack sold well, actually going to #1 on the Billboard charts. The films star, Brandon Lee, was killed on the set before the film was even completed.

FDF Comments (aka the songs) – The soundtrack is 14 tracks long and begins with a re-written track from The Cure called “Burn” has all the classic elements of a Cure song, the extended intro with a solid deep bass line. Robert Smith's classic delivery of lyrics and drums add to the darkness of the track. Machines of Loving Grace “Golgotha Tenement Blues” starts with a ringing bass and the guitars slowly build over and electronic sounding drum track. A band known for more heavier industrial sounding tracks, this is surprisingly laid back. Stone Temple Pilots “ Big Empty” follows and this song is just that classic STP sound. The big guitars and soaring vocal. It was on the band “Purple” album and still garners a ton of radio airplay. Nine Inch Nails  cover the Joy Division song “Dead Souls”. Reznor does a fine job and uses a bit of the technology that Joy Division would have used if available at the time. The bass and drums are the standouts on the track. Rage Against the Machine re-recorded, and renamed their inclusion on the soundtrack to “Darkness”. Starting surprisingly slow and hushed for a band of their reputation it quickly changes to what you'd hope and expect from RATM. Once you hear the Morello guitar line you know what to expect. “Color Me Once” is a track from the Violent Femmes. A wild change of direction from the prior tracks. A very slow tune with brushed drums and then heavier bass strikes make a hushed tune seemingly grow. An extended guitar solo is the highlight.  The Rollins Band  perform “Ghostrider” a track originally done by the band “Suicide”. The Rollins Band is always heavy, without a ton of splash. You get what you get. Buzzing guitars, deep bass and Henry's howl. Nothing to be missed. “Milktoast” (or Milquetoast) from Helmet  came from their “Betty” album and the rat-a-tat-drums and swirling guitars still get me each and every time. The version here is a little different that the original, mostly with the production values on the guitar. The original sounds better to me personally. Pantera cover Poison Ideas “The Badge” and its a rowdy one at that. What we'd want from Pantera, the growling vocals and heavy instrumentation. I'll admit I know next to nothing, okay nothing about For Love Not Lisa who play the tune “Slip Slide Melting”. It fits well with the bulk of this soundtrack with the big guitars and vocals. It has the grind of Helmet and the speed of Pantera. We get our tech fix when My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult play “After the Flesh”. Layer upon layer of keyboards and distorted vocals is the norm here. The Jesus and Mary Chain  blast out their trademark drone on “Snakedriver”. The big guitars along with bass and prominent tambourine plug along. Oh, it gets fuzzed out later, don't worry! “Time Baby III” from Medicine follows. The first female lead track. Sounds a lot like the Cocteau Twins to me, with the layers of angelic voices, its just the music is a bit more uptempo than what the Cocteau Twins were known for. Closing out the collection is Jane Siberry with “It Can't Rain All the Time”. Easily the quietest of all the tracks, blending the light vocals with acoustic guitar and long keyboard drones. The vocals do double up and it becomes more full

FDF Overall Take - The soundtrack is coming up on 20 years old already. It pulled in some pretty heavy hitters back in 1994 and the covers make it interesting enough. Some of the tracks you still hear to this day which is also a testament. A few shippable tracks, but overall its worth your time.

Links  (find out more..follow and buy)

The Crow on imdb.com

Buy it!

Disclaimer – I am just a music fan. Feel free to comment about something that may be written incorrectly about the band/members etc. I strive to have a fun and enjoyable site. This site used to post mp3s but ran in to many issues. The audio clips provided are usually from YouTube. No copy write infringement is intended. Please alert me if something should be pulled. Finally, support the artist featured, or your favorite artist by purchasing their music, seeing their shows if possible and saying hi. They need your support.

FDF Volume 4 Issue 322 - Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation

Album – Daydream Nation

Artist – Sonic Youth
Key Players – Steve Shelley – drums. Lee Ranaldo – guitar, vocals. Kim Gordon – bass, vocals. Thurston Moore – guitar, vocals, piano.

Produced By – Nick Sansano

 

Release Date – October 18, 1988

Overview – Okay okay..its considered their best, a watershed record etc etc. I guess the big reason its getting the nod this week is that it is 25 years old today (as of this posting). This is the bands fifth studio album and it was also their first double album. The album was hailed by critics and fans and it has even been chosen to the Library of Congress to be preserved (this was in 2005). Although the album failed to chart in the US it landed on many essential lists over the years (Top 100 Alternative Albums, 500 Greatest of All Time, Best of the 80's, Top 80 of the 80's etc). There was a deluxe reissue in 2007.

We talked about the bands album “"Goo" about a year ago.

FDF Comments (aka the songs) – This is a 12 song album that is just over 70 minutes long.  Opening with "Teen Age Riot" the slow build of swirling guitars and Gordon speaking repeated lines, it builds to about the 1:20 mark before things start to get rolling. Shelley keeps clicking the drums sticks but the band seems fine in finding their groove, then it all takes off. The band is tight and focused, the vocals are up front and the band plays with a wild urgency, but the layers are there. You can hear the bass to rhythm guitar. No one member seems to over take the whole. “Silver Rocket” is buzzier with a punk feel. Choppy fast vocals. Feed back for much of the tune, returns to the “riff” later in the track.  “The Sprawl” uses more of the layered guitar. Kim on lead vox, long drawn out guitar later. “Cross the Breeze” - cleaner guitar at the start but changes to a fast and rowdy track. Great instrumental play, machine gun drums. Bass is buried a little, but Gordon sings with heat. Its a ripper. “Eric's Trip” is under 4 minutes and has more of that “song” structure that people would be comfortable with. Lots of percussion instruments are strewn about. “Total Trash” has a long jam in middle and goes back to vocals later to close it out. “Hey Joni” they go quick after it, it is a rockin/focused track. “Providence” has a piano open, a distorted phone call/answering machine. Low rumble of guitar. Its an odd track, nothing too crazy going on here. “Candle”has a good guitar layer, a bit of a jangle to it. Lighter feeling for them, about as “pop song” (dare one say) you are going to get from the band. “Rain King” is brash and loud with a great rumble to the bass. This is another Ranaldo lead tune. These all feel more “song” structured in the classic sense, with a verse/chorus/verse and under 5 minutes. “Kissability” Kim sings and it gets good and ripping later. The album closes with “Trilogy” is just that, a three part song (clocking over 14 minutes in length) its frantic, then mellows with some hammer guitar, then it swirls, then it feeds back. You get it all here. All of it.

Where are they now? After 16 albums the band split in 2011. Gordon just released “Coming Apart”, an album with the noise project “Body/Head” and is currently on tour. Moore started a new band called “Chelsea Light Moving”which released their debut in March 2013. Ranaldo continues to work as a solo artist and Shelley runs the Sonic Youth labels and writes and performs as his schedule allows.

FDF Overall Take – Its about as flawless a record can be. It has made best of lists and stood the test of time for a lot of reasons. Go get it.

Links...“Find out More”, Follow em and Buy

Official Site

Buy it!

Disclaimer – I am just a music fan. Feel free to comment about something that may be written incorrectly about the band/members etc. I strive to have a fun and enjoyable site. This site used to post mp3s but ran in to many issues. The audio clips provided are usually from YouTube. No copy write infringement is intended. Please alert me if something should be pulled. Finally, support the artist featured, or your favorite artist by purchasing their music, seeing their shows if possible and saying hi. They need your support.

FDF Volume 4 Issue 321 - Echo and the Bunnymen - Ocean Rain

Album - Ocean Rain

Artist – Echo & The Bunnymen
Key Players - Pete de Freitas – Drums. Les Pattinson – Bass. Will Sergeant – Guitar, harpsichord, sitar. Ian McCulloch – vocals.

Produced By – Henri Lonstan, Gil Norton and The Bunnymen

Release Date – May 8, 1984 (May 14^th in USA)

Overview - This is the fourth studio album from Liverpool England and “Echo and the Bunnymen”. The band before recording this record had experimented with string sections and went with a 35 member orchestra for the recording of this record. Marketed as “the greatest record of all time” it would garner mixed reviews. With that, the album would peak on UK charts at #4 and it would crack the US Top 100 peaking at #87. The band would tour on this record again in 2008 playing it in full with a 10 piece orchestra. The album cover was shot inside Carnglaze Caverns, Liskeard, Cronwall.

FDF Comments (aka the songs) – The album is made up of nine tracks that run just over 37 minutes. Opening with the acoustic guitar strums "Silver" * gets underway. The string section is right along with Sergeant and Pattinson leads a solid bass line. McCulloch has a deep haunting baritone that picks the right time(s) to soar above it all. There is a quick guitar solo from Sergeant before the strings bring it all back in for another run of the chorus. “Nocturnal Me” begins with acoustic guitars again and the string section swelling before McCulloch comes in. The track has a heavy piano presence and deFreitas keeps the drums in check, doing tight and crisp rolls on the snare. It is a dark and haunting sounding track as the name would indicate. “Crystal Days” has more of a rock feel with the guitar being there right from the start. Sergeant layers the guitars well but Pattinson bass work is buried in the mix. De Freitas hits after it pretty well on two occasions but the song doesn't really bust out yet McCulloch is in fine form. “The Yo Yo Man” finds de Freitas and Sergeant at the start and somehow McCulloch gets even lower in his vocal range. Its a slower track that is filled out with piano and Pattinson's bass work has a solid presence through the strings and piano sections. The band works some off tempos on “Thorn of Crowns” as McCulloch stutters many of the vocal lines and Sergeant gets after his guitar like it owes him money. Easily the most 'rowdy' of tracks on the record, but the band layers it so well with off tempos, hushed and stuttered vocals it grabs you from the start and holds you through the end. One of the bands biggest hits “The Killing Moon” follows. From the guitar to the crash cymbal to the slow drum kit roll to the walking bass line..it has it all. You know it..you love it. Nothing more needs t be said. The lure of  "Seven Seas"comes from the terrific bass line from Pattinson and the tempo the band takes on the chorus, with the chopping string section. Set that up with bells and piano chords and you have the makings of a terrific tune. "My Kingdom"
is lead by Sergeant on the acoustic but the bass and drums are uptempo and fun. McCulloch seems in a “good mood” and you get the first real taste of backing vocals here and Sergeant has a terrific guitar solo. The album concludes with “Ocean Rain” a somber closer awash with strings and a brooding McCulloch. Seems to be a fitting album closer.

Where are they now? - The band is still active today. Sergeant and McCulloch being the two long standing members. Pattinson was the bass player even beyond McCullochs departure from the band for a solo career. He left the band in 1998 and is a member of “The Wild Swans”. Pete De Freitas died in a motorcycle accident on June 14, 1989. He was 27. Sergeant has done some solo records and has recorded as “Glide” McCulloch has also released solo records, even after re-joining the band. The most recent being “Pro Patri Mori” in March of 2013

FDF Overall Take - This is a perfect slice of Bunnymen. If you are a casual fan the best of collection is a great way to start, but there are a few songs from here that ended up on it. A great jumping off point with the band if you are new to them. Really, a great sounding record even today.

Links /“Find out More”, Follow em

Official Site
Facebook

Way back we did “Heaven Up Here” "Heaven Up Here"

And we also looked at Ian McCullochs solo record "Candleland"

Buy it!

Disclaimer – I am just a music fan. Feel free to comment about something that may be written incorrectly about the band/members etc. I strive to have a fun and enjoyable site. This site used to post mp3s but ran in to many issues. The audio clips provided are usually from YouTube. No copy write infringement is intended. Please alert me if something should be pulled. Finally, support the artist featured, or your favorite artist by purchasing their music, seeing their shows if possible and saying hi. They need your support.