#413

Impressions: Mea culpa: I really dig these dudes. So, I’ll try not to slobber too much in this review. Simply put, there’s never been anyone quite like them, outside of maybe, maybe, Wire (coming up at #412!) Let’s get this started, since this one is long!… From the beginning, they always favored short songs, few of the 43 total tracks clock over 2 minutes. “Viet Nam” fits the already established Minutemen ethos well: unlikely lead man D. Boon’s cranks out scratchy guitar and lefty rant screeds over the tight, angular funk of bassist Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley. From there, they stretch out on tunes like the gorgeous acoustic guitar intrumental “Cohesion,” blistering Hendrix-esque lead guitar infused “Shit From An Old Notebook,” or the gentle and touching autobiographical “History Lesson – Part II.”  This double album is an explosion of ideas and a weird, heady mix of elements: jazzy lead guitars, punk aggression, delicate almost-ballads, fragments of songs and ideas played by three of the most unlikely guys to be in a band. Sonically, I love their clean, unadorned sound. They seem blissfully unaware of big ’80s gated drum noises, keyboards and the like. “Do You Want New Wave or Do You Want The Truth?” and the rumbling “Political Song for Michael Jackson To Sing.” Woah, the riff from “Two Beads At The End” sounds like an inspiration for Pearl Jam’s “Corduroy.” Of course, the driving polka anthem “Corona” (known to most as the “theme from Jackass”) probably their most well known song and still is a fiery, thrilling performance. There’s Steely Dan and Van Halen covers (which is not a bad halfway point for their sound,) and other high points like the moody “There Ain’t Shit On T.V. Tonight” and the closest-thing to a conventionally structured song in “This Ain’t Know Picnic.” Obviously, anything this big in scope is going to have some complaints (they even have a side of the album labeled “chaff.”) Sure, maybe they could use a few more choruses, a few songs could have been left off, and I’m sure lots of people think it could have been shorter. Not me, however, I love digesting the whole thing.Starred Songs:  “It’s Expected I’m Gone,” “Maybe Partying Will Help,” “Corona,” “This Ain’t No Picnic,”
Sneaky Track: “Cohesion,” “Two Beads at the End,” “Toadies”
Should this album be on the list? Yes
Will you listen to this again? Yes