As a middle aged man, Yonaka most definitely does not need my validation. That does not change the fact that this song is completely awesome.
One thing I was not really aware of as a man for most of my life, was how society does not really permit women to be angry. This song is unashamedly angry, and it is joyous as a result.
The lyrics read, “You think I should be seen but shouldn’t speak.You think I’m angry, You’re fucking right.” The best thing you could do is stop listening to me and check out the song for yourself.
2021 marks the 30th anniversary of one of Hard Rock’s seminal albums. I was 15 on its release date. So not only does this collection of songs have a special place within Rock history - they also hold a special place within my memories as a music lover.
Coming off the back of a commercially successful debut, this album seemed to have so much more to say. There was a real critical anger, a joyful fuck off attitude and more introspective moments that dealt with topics such as religion and abuse.
The opening track, Monkey business, does not mess about. It starts off slow…” Outside my window, there’s a whole lot of trouble coming. The cartoon killers and the Rag cover clones. Stack heels kickin’ rhythm. of social circumcision. Can’t close the closet on a shoe box full of bones…” The song then really cranks it up and we are off. There is a wide eyedness, the band are starting to make their way through a warzone.
The second track, Slave To The Grind, does not let up. It is a rallying cry against the nine to five, with the punchline, “You can’t be king of the world if you're a slave to the grind.” As a young man about to enter the adult world of work, it was a kick in the ass. The song came as a warning, not to get stuck into the routine, to go for it… to try and live your dreams.
The Threat comes through as a heavy but funkier number. It talks about the trials and tribulations of someone standing up to authority. It is also a song about self empowerment. Once you make your stand, once you fully recognise your power… you can also be treated as a threat. This is not a song about passive compliance. It’s a deadly manifestation of a rock’n’roll song.
The first ballad of the album, Quicksand Jesus, is not a bog standard song about lost love. Rather, it is about loss of religious faith. The song struggles between the natural wonder of the universe: “Tell me now, who is behind the rain?” then swings to, “Are we ashamed of our own fate?” This is such a mature song for such a young band. It does not play up the standard tropes of a glam metal band. It is really saying something and hitting the target square in the jaw.
Psycho Love brings back a touch of funk heaviness. The lyrics paint a bleak picture, of someone zoned out, drugged and drunk. There is a madness to this way of living."As the warm smooth soul chases through the cold silence of a body. A body of touch not feel. One question, is she a stone in the devil's garden?" The song paints a picture of a living nightmare.
Get The Fuck Out is the low point of the album. Not because of the repeated use of the F word but because of the sexism. It is hard to know in what world you can justify lines such as, “Why you walkin’ funny? You must have spent some time with the boys in the crew.” I have heard arguments that the song is “in character” and that women in such abusive relationships should get out of these circumstances. I think there is too much enjoyment taken in the imagery for such an argument to be convincing, however. I am not even sure if the band themselves were convinced. One the day of the album’s release, there was a ‘clean version’ put out which replaced this song with the track, “Beggars Day.” This song did cause controversy and even lead to the band being banned from ever playing Wembley again.
Living on a Chain Gang picks up the pace again, and starts what would have been side B of the album. This song begins with the same theme of the world being an unjust and harsh place. The world is fucked, and tells a story from the perspective of the victim living in an unjust society.
Creepshow is the third track with a funky influence. The song tells of being zoned out, this time by wasting time sitting in front of a television. Watching a ‘reality chat show.’ It tells the story of someone, wanting to escape the harsh realities but becoming diminished by living a wasteful existence.
The best song of the album and the second ‘ballad’ of three is In A Darkened Room. It has sensitive lyrics that describe the emotional life of a victim of abuse, a victim who feels disconnected from their religious faith, banished to a sort of purgatory. “Tell me when the kiss of love becomes a lie.” No amount of critical review can do this song justice.
Riot Act is a good rocker, playful, youthful… perhaps the song which has most in common with Skid Row’s first album. It is good without being great. It is fun though.
But the best riff is saved for Mudkicker. It is also one of Bach’s best vocal performances. The theme of the song chimes with the album, but the song ultimately works because of how full on it is. “Mudkicker kick, here is mud in your eyes!”
Wasted Time is a beautiful and fulfilling ending. It concludes with the sentiment, “I think back to the times, when dreams were what mattered. Though talking - youth naivete.” It is like an adult now, looking back to these youthful times, feeling a sense of loss. It is worth remembering that very young men wrote and played this song. I remember at the time, playing this track over and over again. Thirty years later, I am still tempted to do that.
As a whole, I love this album. It challenges me, still, in so many different ways. It is not a perfect album and has some very serious flaws. I am glad of its existence, however. It reminds me that in all of our lives, even when we make some very serious mistakes, there can still be an ultimate intrinsic value when we are being our most human.
Jessica Winter’s personality shines through this track; quirky,sarcastic, explorative. This is not an artist trying to be anything but herself. There is an edge to the sentiments, a crankiness with the melodic development at times. I love it.
The song opens with the line, “I know we are not stupid, we’re acting like we are.” This perfectly encapsulates early adulthood for me. Pushing boundaries, actions can often be described as stupid. The activity of pushing boundaries though, can often be about locating oneself in the universe, of finding some sense of meaning.
There is a playfulness to the song too. The idea of not watching “our funeral” plays with the self-obsessed notion that the meaning of life might be found in this final goodbye. Rather, despite an awareness of death, one is making a concerted effort to walk away from fairy tales, moving from the rainbow dreaming, of continuing to grow despite the darker realities.
“It’s not time wasted,” the song exhorts. “Many Memories.”
The first Alice Cooper album I listened to in full was Trash. I was a tennager and it was a time in my life when I started to take a real interest in music. For Alice Cooper, Trash was a comeback album which became a smash. With the help of Desmond Child, a songwriter who is responsible for some of the biggest hits of the 80’s, Alice Cooper became current.
Decades on, Trash sounds more dated than Cooper’s earlier 70s albums. This new album, Detroit Stories, has more in common with the earlier classic Cooper.
The songs here have a real raunch and roll feel and there is a direct straight ahead humour. In some ways this album is not to be taken too seriously. One song tells a story of a five year old who is bored until they find a rock n roll radio station. Another song describes someone getting out of jail and raising hell with a girlfriend. Yet another song tells the story of a man who is infatuated with a woman he philosophises with. The woman is then described as ‘a devil with angel eyes.’
The songs are littered with some interesting one liners. Consider ‘I saw you baby and I pissed my pants,’ or ‘We are all pessimistic creeps.’ This is the stuff of real life. These songs tell stories of rooted people, often struggling in one way or another. There is still humour in that. There is a certain quality in this humour, in the acknowledgment that we are all flawed in some way. These songs are therefore a way of expressing solidarity.
Near the end of the album, there is a touching moment when Cooper leaves the telephone number for a suicide prevention helpline as part of the track Hanging on by a Thread - Don’t Give Up. Despite the theatre of Cooper’s music, here is a moment where he shows a concern for real people.
This is an album I will go back to from time to time. Here I will find a proper artist at work.
If there is a PR team promoting Baby Queen’s new single ‘These Drugs’, I am certain I am not part of the demographic they are trying to reach. I am probably much older than any projected fan base. I am almost old enough to be the artist’s father.
That said, I don’t really care because the song writing is good - it’s really good.
I am not of the opinion that all the best years of rock and pop music is behind us. I think we have only just started and Baby Queen is evidence of that. She is the real deal. She weaves lyrical detail into her songs in such a natural artless way. It is marvelous. The imagery is of this time and I am convinced her words will ring true to many other young women who are listening.
Baby Queen is extremely literate and she drops the F Bomb with as much ease as any other word.
‘These Drugs’ feels like it is written from experience. The song is complex, up front and honest about wanting to get clean from a drug habit. There is irony working through the song - there is the courage of delving into the subject matter but also the realisation that, “I told you I don’t need help because I lied to myself.”
This is why projected demographics don’t matter. The song is essentially about human struggle, something that none of us, if we are honest with ourselves, are unfamiliar with.
I never realised how much I needed Ricky Warwick's new album When Life Was Hard & Fast until I had a listen. I found Rock ‘N’ Roll romanticism, tales of blood red moons, duelling guitars, rats that bask in the darkness of their unacknowledged crimes.
It’s what I needed because the themes that run through these songs is that of unknown destinations, of never being content with the here and now, of finding the next kick. Even in ‘Time Don’t Seem To Matter’, Warwick sings, “If distance was a measurement, I’d always be by your side.” Then he adds, “I know where to find you. You’re always in the last place that I look.”
At a time when much of the world is in lockdown, when we cannot physically move anywhere, we still have our memories and imagination.
The cover of the album has a scene of The Ards TT, a motor race from generations ago, located at the bottom of Warwick’s family farm. Connected in this image, is Warwick’s familiar ties. The location is where he was rared and bred, cut through with the wild madness of the pioneers of early racers.
Already, there is the complexity of being rooted in a particular time and place, alongside the desire for adventure and creating something new for yourself. In a way, this juxtaposition is resolved in the song I Don’t Feel At Home. He sings, “I don’t want to live in this world anymore.”
Notice, he is not singing “I don’t want to live.” This is not, as far as I can tell, a song about suicidal ideation. It is this world Warwick feels dissatisfaction with. It is this dissatisfaction that gives him the kick in the ass to get out and change things, to take to the road, to become a Rock'n'roller.
It is this last point that makes this collection of songs the ultimate lockdown album. It is for those kindred spirits who want to change their worlds, it’s a call to arms. When Warwick sings, “Is there anyone out there still alive?” he is raising his voice above the mundane uniformity of the everyday. He has already given his answer; in his music, in his art.
