Burning London: The Clash Tribute

This album is a wonder. A tower of bad ideas and bold attempts blended evenly with the kind of slick toadyism that exemplifies tributes. I bought this many years ago and it has always been one of the albums that most exemplifies what I love in b movies. You can see what they were going for, and it was a bold attempt, and their failure is less tragic than hilariously over the top.

The Clash are one of my favorite bands, and in many ways they exemplify these b movie virtues as well. They made a career out of always pushing the boundaries of what was expected, whether or not they were actually skilled enough to achieve it. The fact that they were extremely hard working and very talented made their attempts neither tragic nor hilarious but completely inspiring to me, an overly intelligent kid from middle class New Jersey.

The best album to listen to in order to understand this aspect of them is Sandanista! It is sprawling. On vinyl it is three records, even on cd it is an excruciatingly long double album. When initially released it was sold at the same price as a single record, at the insistence of the band and at significant financial loss on their parts. The album was recorded over a year in three studios with a handful of outside collaborators, a small army of engineers, and more genres than sense. They seriously had everything from Celtic folk to dancehall, and pretty much everything in between. Of particular note was the song  Magnificent 7, which was such a good proto-rap track that it got heavy airplay on New York City’s increasingly important urban music stations. None of the above means the album is 100% successful. Far from it. It can be really boring, though there are really great songs on there. It is a towering tribute to effort and open mindedness, even if there are better Clash albums out there.

An album attempting to pay tribute to The Clash, made in 1999, could have easily just called in all the punk bands that claimed them as inspiration at the time, collected the money, and taken the bonus to Rio. To the producers credit they seem to have made a serious attempt to pull in artists from all the genres that The Clash either inspired or drew inspiration from. The artists on the album represent a wide swath of styles and, while punk is represented, it is hardly dominant. Though most of the artists will certainly claim a punk influence, it might be hard to discern at first in their music.

That said, a number of these tracks are hilarious failures. Some artists seemed to not be sure why they were there, others just are terrible artists. To parse this out I think I need to go track by track. This will also be a lot of fun I think. So enjoy.

1: No Doubt – Hateful

Holy crap, remember when No Doubt was a Ska band? This came out even before Return of Saturn, so you know it’s good. Holy crap is it nice to hear them do ska. Even on Tragic Kingdom they were diluting their ska with I guess you’d have to call it chick rock. That basically took over on Return of Saturn. Even if you liked Return of Saturn (I did), the ska tracks on that album were the best parts. I had hoped an album called “Rock Steady would be a return to form, given that Rock Stead is a reggae subgenre. I was wrong. And sad.

But yeah this track rules. It is funny and energetic and bubbly and everything that was awesome about No Doubt.

2. The Urge – This Is Radio Clash

This is the definitive version of this song. Seriously. The Urge kill this. The Clash version is great and all, but the third wave ska treatment it is fun and funky and the vocals are well done, and then it gets to the bridge and fucks you in the ear. And you like it. You want to get ear fucked more. If there is any one reason to buy this album it is this song. When this song comes on, I turn back into a high school kid, blaring music out the window and screaming the lyrics.

3. Ice Cube ft. Mack 10 – Should I Stay or Should I Go.  

What the fuck is this? This has nothing to do with the original except the line “Should I Stay or Should I Go” and the guitar sample, which gets super annoying. The lyrics are…fucking insane? Everything I hate about hip hop? Not the original song?

Ok, I really get what the producers were trying to do here. Its part of that whole leftist white dude things I was talking about with Black 47. To a large extent the impoverished areas in the United States have been, until recently, dominated by African Americans. Any leftist discussion of class thus also needed to address race. The Clash did this with Magnificent 7, which it would have made sense for some rapper to sample, except I guess that they did that when the song came out. So instead of using the song from back then, or something, they had Ice Cube come in and make a song based on Should I Stay…? And it is about deciding whether to get high, make money, or do a show? And then there’s a verse where he is telling his baby mama to get off his back about how he is raising their child since she dumped the kid on his doorstep? And…?

Choosing this song made no sense, and the lyrics had nothing to do with the original, and while it’s not really a bad song as far as hip hop goes, using it like this on a tribute is odd and bizarre. It’s like Ice Cube didn’t know what it was going to be used for? But he went to the trouble of making this a really good track, were it standing on its own. So clearly he cares enough about the Clash to try hard to make the track good. But then why not pay more homage to the original? And it’s just kind of hilarious. You’re listening to these great punk and ska covers and then all of a sudden you hear the guitar, the “whoo” and you are listening to Ice Cube rap about his ho.

4. Rancid – Cheat

Of all the bands on this album Rancid was the reason I bought it. Every punk band that could give themselves a bad mohawk said they loved The Clash, but Rancid was the only one that kind of incorporated their musical teachings as it where. Though not as musically experimental as The Clash, Rancid brought ska and punk together in a volatile blend of leftist politics and listen-ability. They wore their love for The Clash on their sleeve, and eventually Tim Armstrong’s Hellcat Records would take the financial risk to put out Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros second and third albums. Them being here was both necessary for me to take this album seriously, and a case of serious hero worship on their part and I expected great things.

The track isn’t bad, in fact it’s great, but it’ a safe choice. Among Clash fans, those who consider themselves True Punx, or ever did so, usually say the first album is the best, because it is the most punk. Cheat was one of the tracks on the UK version of the first album that was omitted from the US version and subsequent releases in favor of “White Man in Hammersmith Palais,” “I Fought The Law,” and a number of their other classic tracks that served to make The Clash more inventive and experimental and less punx. As a result Cheat is somewhat less well known. It is certainly the most punk. Rancid choosing Cheat, a song from the first version of the first album, was akin to them holding up a big banner that said “WE ARE NOT FUCKING POSERS,” which of course does a lot to convince everyone that they are total fucking posers.

What’s worse is it’s not really a good song for Rancid’s style. Rancid brought the fusion of punk and ska to such perfection that their style was seamless. They don’t have songs that are more funky or more punky. They just have Rancid songs. That is kind of what rules about most of their work. Cheat is just a punk song, and Rancid plays it as a punk song. They don’t change anything. The engineering and tone color is different, but really the biggest change is that it is Tim Armstrong slurring his way through the vocals instead of Joe Strummer. It’s a good track, and if you aren’t a Rancid fan it is a lot of fun, but if you are, it’s as disappointing as their career was from here on out. The band was clearly more interested in proving their fan credentials than adding anything. Which was, of course, the problem with most of the punk scene in this era. Ah well.

5. Third Eye Blind – Train in Vain

Fuck dude. As much as I expected Rancid to destroy I expected this to be mediocre, and I was wrong about both. I am still floored by how well Third Eye Blind did with this. It is really funky while staying true to the emotion and artisanship that went into the original. It is really a perfect track, and everything one hopes for in a cover. It adds something while staying true to the original. It’s like they poured all the not sucking from their entire career, post first album, into this one song. Fucking epic.

6. Indigo Girls – Clampdown

I don’t think a lot of people understand The Indigo Girls. Sure they play folksy chick rock, but this isn’t some Melissa Ethridge, I’m-vaguely-pissed-at-men, kind of act. The Indigo Girls are fucking angry at everything, from ancient religious persecution to having an odd day. They write really beautiful songs, with wonderful intertwining melodies, about being completely and totally pissed off. These ladies have balls of pig iron and they use them like chain flails.

This track is a perfect example of their style and a wonderful contribution to the album despite being as un-punk as possible (without singing about hoes). They are so fucking pissed at that Clampdown. I wouldn’t want to be The Clampdown when I listen to this song. It is a lovely song with some really nice instrumentation and vocal harmonies and my god, if I was The Clampdown, I would probably leave the country.

7. Mighty Mighty Bosstones – Rudie Can’t Fail

Dickie Barrett is a god among man, the single person most responsible for me first listening to The Clash, and a very very talented musician, and the reason I attended college in Massachusetts. This track is tits and I will sodomize you with a cat if you disagree with me. I will take a living animal, possibly one with fleas and/ or mange, and shove it in your behind. Fuck you. What is your problem? This is why we can’t have nice things.

8. 311 – (White Man) in Hammersmith Palais

Ok now is where I talk about how much I fucking hate 311. It is a mixture of many factors. Part of it is their douche bag fans. Part of it is that they are overplayed, but I actually liked their singles when they came out. It is a many splendored hate that has grown in me over the years. Much of it has to do with how much I should like them. They make funky music with great technical skill, folding in numerous genres as influences to create music that discusses philosophy and the world with a Buddhist twist. It’s like they described my background and made it into a band.

But they do it with this infuriating smugness, and with a lack of soul that is intensely alarming. I once met a 311 fan who did not understand my indifference to the band. He explained that they were very technically talented, and that when he had seen them live, they had preformed all their songs exactly as they were on the album. I was kind of appalled. I asked why he would want that. He seemed confused, and explained how very hard it is to sound exactly the same as one does on the album. I suspect he left that room convinced that I was a cretin who did not value technical skill. To the contrary, I understand the challenge of what he described, but mere technical challenge does nothing for me. I want a band that plays with passion as well as skill. If you play the song the same way every night there is nothing there.

I have the same problem with bands and artists that have coordinated jumps throughout their set. Not that jumping is bad, I’m all for stage shows, but having it go on for the entire set, beyond the fact that it is incredibly goofy, shows that someone, probably in their management, told them it was a good idea to be active on stage if they wanted to interact with their audience, and then hired them a choreographer, and had them fucking practice jumping. This is no longer a spontaneous act of communal emotion, this is a song and dance number, a mass produced simulation of caring created to earn money.

311’s music gives the distinct impression of simulation. Funky and complex as it undoubtedly is, the wide ranging genre inclusion feels more like a ploy to incite a cross over and take advantage of trends that were big at the time (rap rock, sublime-esque dub reggae, sludgy nu-metal). This lack of passion undermines their whole philosophical rock musician image in a way that smacks of hypocrisy. They love to trot out the Buddhist crap, but if there was one thing The Buddah was not in favor of it was empty ritual. He reached enlightenment when he realized the rituals of the Hindu priests, while important in some ways, were mechanical and without joy. While important if it forces the observer to examine themselves, ritual for the sake of ritual is just another avenue for suffering created by a desire to avoid suffering. And here’s 311, mechanically trotting out the same songs that they have practiced to the point of complete perfection, ritualistically doing the same stage show every night, collecting the money at the gate, and then flying to their fucking island. They owned an island. I shit you not.

Their song on this album is everything I hate about 311. It is only one of two songs I skip on this record, and we haven’t gotten to the second yet. Like the Rancid song they have changed nothing except the vocals here. There is no difference between their version of (White Man) and The Clash version except the tone color of the singer’s voice. But I won’t say that they didn’t put their own spin on it. They managed to suck all the energy and life out of one of my favorite early Clash songs.

Also, cheap shot, being a sublime rip off and doing the reggae song. Way to stretch, asshole.

9. Afghan Wigs – Lost in the Supermarket

 What an odd choice of band, but it works. Considered by many to be the most influential of the early 90s post punk alternative bands, the Whigs bring what we would now call something of an indie sensibility to the album. I was at first a bit put off by how twee this one is, but upon repeated listens I’ve found it really works, especially with this song, which is probably Joe’s most emo song ever. Also one of my favorites and one that becomes more vital all the time. A good track.

10. Cracker – White Riot

Formed by a former front man of Camper Von Betthoven, Cracker is a country band in the vein of Wilco and Johnny Cash. I have nothing but respect for this band. All of which makes me confused and appalled by their choice to do White Riot as a honky tonk country tune. Was it a joke? It’s in poor taste if it is, and makes me wonder about Ice Cube’s track, which would be and even worse joke. I mean. Ok. You may be confused, let me back up.

White Riot is a song where the band bemoans the fact that black people seem to not be afraid to go out and demand what they need from the government, while white people toe the line and do what they are told. During a time when race riots were still occurring, a call for white people to join in was both inflammatory and racially progressive. Many took this song as racist, I guess because it mentions race at all, but it really is more of a call to arms. That said, given the historic associations of racism in the American South, homeland of country music, doing White Riot as a knee slappin, line dancin, dude lynchin humdinger of a good time is out and out inviting misinterpretation. Come on white people, we can go riot and get our money back from those welfare queens! Yi haw!

Or else the track is a joke; poking fun at the historic misinterpretation of the song with something that sarcastically makes the misinterpretation worse. I guess that is kind of funny, and makes more sense coming from a band whose big single was about trying to find a Eurotrash Girl. Except if that was intentionally stereotypical and uncomfortable, what was the deal with the Ice Cube track? Did the producers tell him to take these samples and go sing some songs for the urban market? Or were the artists given complete freedom, in which case why did Ice Cube choose to do it that way? And leaving that whole thing aside, isn’t the whole joke about racist assumptions being made at the expense of being racist against white folks? THE LEVELS! THEY HURT MY BRAIN PARTS!

11. Silverchair – London’s Burning

This song is grade A bullshit. It is nearly unlistenable. This is the other song I skip. I have many friends who love Silverchair, and not having listened to much I won’t make any critiques of the artist as a whole, but this track blows. The song starts with the singer wailing “London’s Burniiiing” over a completely pointless, mostly feedback and bass, noise jam. For like fourty-five seconds. Then they sing the song and that’s pretty good. Then there is fifty more seconds of him bleating out about London and the Burning and feedback and oh god I don’t care about London. This is a minute and fifteen seconds out of a three minute fifteen second song. A full third of this song is completely pointless and boring and fuck what is your problem you anorexic shit please go get mauled by a koala you worthless human being get out get out get out get out get out get out get out.

12. Moby and Heather Nova – Straight to Hell

I don’t know who Heather Nova is, but she has a really pretty voice. This track is mostly her voice. If you’ve listened to Moby, you know he does that kind of atmospheric techno thing. Techno that isn’t for dancing. It’s really slow and has no beat. It’s so slow that they only got through one verse before I guess heather fell asleep or something. I dunno. This is one of my favorite Clash songs and they don’t do it justice, but they also don’t ruin it. They definitely bring their own spin to it, which I definitely prefer to the alternative. It’s also very pretty, which is nice.

So all in all this is a fun album. If you are a Clash fan this is a nice thing to own. I’m not sure why you would want a tribute to the Clash if you’re not a fan but hey, there’s probably something on here you’d like if not. Go for it. A lot of the producer’s choices were odd to the extreme, but they are usually hilariously so. There’s some great performances here, sometimes where you do not expect them. Overall not the complete waste of time usual for tribute albums.

The Brainless Wonders - Plloyd Lumpstead

I forget if it was my junior or my senior year. I was attending a show at the Worcester Art Gallery, a somewhat hodgepodge affair as such places will be in Worcester. As the name implies it was an art gallery that let musicians use the space for shows whenever someone got around to making it happen. There was no PA, but the space was so small it hardly mattered. If your amp was half decent people would hear you.

My friend and I showed up on time and proceeded to wait around in this industrial area for 20 minutes for someone to find the key and open the place up. Also there were some local kids who looked like they probably weren’t even in high school. One of them had a broken leg, was clearly hyperactive, and the type of person the others would dare to do stupid things for their amusement.

They proceeded to pry up a sidewalk grate and dare him to jump down. He looked at them. They looked at him. He looked at them holding the grate up, and not placing it on the ground. We all knew if he jumped down they would close it on him. He shrugged, jumped down, and they closed the grate. He stayed down for 15 minutes or so. every few minutes he would say "so, can I come up yet?" Good times.

One inside we found a small room with art on the walls and in the middle of the floor. The exhibit on that day had some kind of media theme because everything involved tvs and cameras. The piece in the middle of the floor was a woman made of tvs, with a tripod above her holding a camera that projected video of the tvs onto the screens. As the first ones in, my friend and I naturally gravitated to this piece as it was in the middle of the floor.

We walked up to it, followed by the kid with the broken leg and one of his friends, united in trying to decipher what the fuck the artist was thinking. Already being an over-educated intellectual elitist, I proceeded to contemplate how the media portrays us as we attempt to imitate media; the role of the feminine in wider culture; whether my assumption that the arranged tvs were depicting a woman was not itself a bold assumption given the lack of details. Then the kid with the broken leg leaned over to his friend.

“Dude, its your mom.”

“fuck you that’s your mom.”

I cracked up.

That show was my first time seeing the Brainless Wonders. they were opening tor another well regarded Worcester staple, the Numbskulls, which many were busy calling the second coming of the Queers at the time.I always liked the Brainless Wonders more. Their music was more effortless and fun. None of those kids were in the band, but their exploits pretty well summed up the show, complete with the kid with the broken leg disinterestedly perusing a girlie mag during the Numbskulls set.

For a variety of reasons I have not listened to this album in a number of years. One of the big ones is the jewel case has no labels on the sides, so I never notice it in my cd collection. The Worcester music scene can also be very incestuous, and some of the band's fellow travelers are less than savory. It should also be noted that I have cooled quite a bit on pop punk in the years since 2004, and this album is as pop punk as they come. With all that noted, I really was not sure if I wanted to keep this album. I was ready for a very painful experience. In many respects the album is all I feared. It is a pop punk album with songs about how all the adults in the singer's his life are alcoholic and lazy, and how he likes to drink and drive, and how there are a number of people he dislikes. and its...a lot of fun. Ramones preserve us. 

 The music is pretty much what you would expect: three chords, fast, basic blues rhythms. On the other hand it is not boring, and at least avoids the song structure that every pop punk band from the late 90s used over and over. Definitely more Ramones than Blink 182. The lyrics are not high poetry, but they are well constructed, avoid all but the most broad clichés, flow well, and are right for the music.Stupid and juvenile maybe, but really fucking fun nonetheless.

The album is probably hard to find. The band is still together but I can't tell how often they play. The fact that the image on the cover of the album is still plastered across their web zones indicates a certain malaise in the band, but I suppose I shouldn't be throwing rocks in the malaise department. Whatever the band's story is, this a fun album. I'd pay a couple bucks for it. Its not gonna change your life but its some good fun. Empty calories maybe, but fun.

Bears of Blue River - The Killer Bee Scare

Hello all, it has been some weeks; I have quit my job and been depressed. Its time to take a shower and do something productive that doesn’t involve my x-box. Obviously that means working on my free music blog.

Bears of Blue River are an indie-folk pop sextet from Chicago. Or maybe I should classify them as indie-pop-country. They are definitely indie, but they are country they way Lady Antebellum is country. They have the twang, there are some melodic sensibilities, but don’t go into this looking for stories of outlaws murdering their cheatin’ wives. Unlike the latest crop of pop-country acts The Bears of Blue River are not laden with clichés and dead end melodies, but soaring slideshows on fondly remembered youth, relationships that end amicably, and other things that are pretty nice. Their world is hardly perfect, but it’s nothing to get crazy over.

There are other bands like this out there. They have the requisite guy with the nine foot beard a-la Samuel Beam, the perky lady with the 50s stylings, several nondescript guys with stubbly bears and short haircuts that look like they’d be up for a game of Mario Cart at a given time. But these guys do a good job. If you’ve been reading this blog at all you know I am hardly a person who demands a dark outlook. Given how bad things are right now, a band of nice guys (and gals) making nice music isn’t exactly unwelcome. And the music in question is intelligent and well written. They are more Roy Orbison than Johnny Cash but we can’t listen to Iron and Wine all the time, so I would definitely check them out. It’s a 5 song ep so don’t pay a ton for it, but I would say to go so far as to track it down on Amazon or their website and pay money for it if you have to. It’s a gem of an album, a fun little thing and definitely a good time.