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The Adolescents - The Blue Album

This time let’s take a step away from late 70’s New Jersey and into early 80’s southern California with the 1981 album from The Adolescents, which I still don’t really know the name of. Is it just Adolescents, is it The Blue Album, does it have a title? Who the fuck knows. It’s really good, and that’s all that is important.

Sometimes an album comes into your life at the right time, and completely changes the direction of your musical taste for a few years. This album is one of those for me, and led to me spending a lot of my late teens, into my early 20’s, watching punk bands in Elks lodges, garages, and basements. There’s maybe 7 or 8 albums in my life that have made me think “what the fuck was that?” and really influenced my taste or opinions from that point on, and this makes the cut in that department. I wouldn’t consider myself “punk,” I think anyone my age still claiming allegiance to a sub culture needs to do some deep self reflection, but at this point I’ve been vegetarian/vegan for about half my life, and have definite opinions on consumerism, the environment, and I vote very left. I think apparently somewhere along the line the music must have influenced me, but I also listen to a lot of country, and have some white trash tendencies, so who the fuck knows. It’s the chicken and the egg.

Going into high school I was already becoming a music nerd on a pretty base level, I knew a lot about Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Sabbath, AC/DC Nirvana, Motorhead, etc. I was starting to branch into punk territory by the end of 8th grade, with Rage Against The Machine, the Sex Pistols, Ramones, but nothing really deeper than that. Freshman year of high school one of my friends (who knew about a lot of punk I didn’t, and over the next four years would introduce me to a lot of my defining music from that era) was trying to get me into 80’s hardcore, and trying to get me to start a band with him. He was big into The Adolescents, and showed me their first album one day, I don’t really remember exactly when, but that’s not really important. I recognized that one song from Tony Hawk, thought it was kind of good, and didn’t think much else about it. After a few listens though, it really grew on me. It wasn’t like the punk I’d been into before, it was angrier, faster, had wild guitar solos and great riffs (something the Ramones had been lacking for me, coming from a kid who loved Angus Young). It set me down a path into more 1980’s hardcore, into Black Flag (who I would claim to be my favorite band until into my early 20’s), Circle Jerks, Minor Threat, Bad Brains, into the late 80s, with Youth of Today, Judge, Cro-Mags, Agnostic Front, Gorilla Biscuits, Fugazi, then into more current stuff with Ceremony, Have Heart, Righteous Jams, Rival Mob, Limp Wrist, No Warning, back to the early stuff with the MC5, Stooges, New York Dolls, and branches off all these and so on and so on. I don’t have the biggest record collection, maybe 300 with a big stack of 7” records to go with, but probably a solid 1/3 of it is punk related, not to mention the cds that ended up in my car, or slow as hell circa 2006 downloads. This album was the fuse that set off a lot of my musical journey, to steal a phrase from Rattle and Hum. And yes, you can listen to punk and still like U2.

I remember buying this record at an Adolescents show in 2006. 80’s hardcore revisionism was at it’s peak. American Hardcore had, or was just about to, come out, along with a handful of other documentaries. You could find Minor Threat shirts at hot topic. A lot of bands were on tour. Henry Rollins was on IFC. It was a good time to get into all this stuff. Me and a few of my friends got a ride from one of our parents (very punk) about 2 hours away to the city, and went to my first punk show that had over 30 people. They were fucking great, the openers not so much. The band was lacking in original members, but we didn't care. I guess the record is some 25th anniversary edition, in a swirly silver vinyl. I made the mistake of buying it at the start of the show so I had to shlep it around the whole time. The last track of the album has some sort of a pressing mistake, and sounds kind of muffled and fuzzy, but I still played the crap out of it. I still have the flyer from that show framed, and like the Boss, hangs above my stereo.

Times change, you grow up, friends grow apart, life happens. My friend who showed me this album went from being my band mate and close friend, to an old friend I see around town maybe once a year. We went to different colleges, changed a little, got different friend groups, everyone has this story. I don’t listen to as much punk as I used to, I had the opportunity to see the Adolescents last year, and figured I’d catch them next time, I had to work the next day, it was kind of far away, etc. A few days later one of the last original members, Steve Soto, passed away. In 2014 (I think? Maybe 2015) I got a chance to see Rikk Agnew, and he was really good, but I still regret skipping that show.

The Adolescents were founded in 1980, in Fullerton, California. I know Tony Cadena (singer) was only 16 when this album was recorded, Rikk Agnew would have been early 20’s, not sure about the rest, but they’re still a young band. Some of the songs reflect this, some of it hasn’t aged well (“I cannot live in a world this gay” for example), but the musicianship is still top notch. This isn’t The Germs, these guys are tight, fast, and can play well (maybe a bad example since the Germs guitarist would later replace Agnew). They would soon break up, and get back together for a few years in the late 80’s, but this album is their peak. It’s one of a kind, no other punk album really sounds like it. The guitars have a lot of treble, not Minutemen/JFA treble, but it’s definitely part of the vibe. The vocals have a small amount of reverb on them, which really adds something when Cadena pushes himself a little harder. It’s not a surf punk record, but you can tell there’s some so-cal influence there. It’s hard to describe what is so great about this record. It’s just straight up punk rock, nothing ground breaking. It’s like Johnny Thunders, but a little poppier, tighter, and a little angrier. So what? A lot of punk is like that. They just did it that much better than everyone else was.

There’s like 13 songs on this album, so I’m not going to review all of them, just the highlights.

“Who Is Who” is the second track on the album. The first song “I Hate Children” is okay, but a little immature and simple. The second song cranks up the reverb, and really gets the album going. It’s quick, angry, and has a quick Johnny Thundersy guitar solo.

“Kids Of The Black Hole” is the 5th song on the album, and is an epic (by 80’s punk standards) five and a half minute long ode to a party house. It starts off slow, the tempo ramps right up, and stays there for 5 minutes. There a siren sounding lead guitar line over the verse, it doesn’t ft fit with anything else on the album, but it sounds great. There’s a great bridge section that goes into another fantastic Agnew solo. I don’t know if he invented the octave chord (I don’t know what the technical name for it is, basically you play a power chord and mute the middle string to make an octave), but it’s all over this record, unlike any punk record I can think of before, and it appears on a lot of records after. If you can’t tell, Rikk Agnew is one of my favorite guitar players ever, probably in my top 5, and I think criminally underrated as far as punk guitarists go.

“No Way” is the 6th song. I don’t know why it’s so good, there’s like 20 words to the song, they’re immature as hell, haven’t aged well, but the music is really fucking good. The intro guitar solo sounds like an outtake from “Search and Destroy.” It’s a quick 2 minute song, but packs in the energy and music of a song twice as long. Sometimes you can’t explain why something is good, it just is. How exactly does the sun set? How exactly does the posi-trac rear end on a Plymouth work? It just does.

“Amoeba” is the 7th song. Now, while this is a great album, some of the songs on it are just okay compared the the rest. They’re still as good as any other punk from the era, but it’s this three song, ten minute stretch that sets it apart. I can't think of any other punk record with a three song run this solid. “Amoeba” goes right into full speed, has more great Rikk Agnew solos and riffs, tells the story of a scientists looking at some sort of a strange amoeba. Who the hell knows what it means? Everyone thought they were singing “Tony Haaaawk” in the background. It fast, tight, a little silly, and probably the best song on the album.

“Creatures” the last song, is just a quick angry sub 2 minute rant about not fitting in and jerking off. It’s really catchy, frantic, and one of the simplest songs on the album. It has a solo of just octaves, he’s not even playing single notes for solo’s anymore, just rubbing it in that “yeah I’m coming up with this thing punk bands are going to rip off for 20 years.”

Final thoughts:

Favorite song: “No Way.” I know I said “Amoeba” is the best song on the album, and it is, but “No way” is a sentimental favorite. I’ve spent way too much time playing guitar along to this album, I still run through it occasionally (and yes it is kind sad for someone who is almost 30 to still play guitar along to punk records), and I’ve never been able to get the solo right. It’s just a really fun song.

Least favorite song: “Democracy.” There’s nothing political on this record really, so one political song is kind of out of place. They would go into it more with their next album Brats In Battalions  but it just doesn’t really fit with the other songs about scientists, girls, drinking, or jerking white tears.

#the adolescents #adolescents #punk #punk rock #records #record review #amoeba #music #music review

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Bruce Springsteen - Darkness on the Edge of Town

For the first review why not start with the album this blog is named after, Bruce Springsteen’s fourth album, 1978’s Darkness on the Edge of Town. Why did I name my blog after this album? Is it my favorite album? Favorite album by the Boss? Nope. It’s not even my favorite Springsteen album (that would probably go Born to Run, but Darkness is close). It’s just what I happened to be listening to when I decided to start a blog because I needed a hobby, and I spend most of my time reading about whatever record I’m listening to anyway, so I might as well write down my half assed research and opinions.

I don’t remember when I got this record, a few years ago at some point. I bought it from one of my usual record stores. I had already tried to buy it once at a flea market, but when I got it home  the record actually was an Elvis Costello record inside of a Springsteen sleeve. And try as I might, I just can’t get into Costello. I learned the hard way (probably about $8 hard) that you don’t just look at some of the grooves for scratches, look at the label and make sure its the right fucking record in there. So I had to buy a second copy. It’s in decent shape, has a few crackles here and there, but I don’t go for mint condition stuff. I go for the record that’s the cheapest one out of the three copies the store has, because the sleeve is a little worn and one song has a scratch in it. I buy records to listen to first and foremost. I’m not rich, and I’m not buying them to look at, so some of my records are of questionable condition. 

The first copy I bought is now framed and hangs right above my stereo. A reminder not to be such a dumbass with my record shopping, and a reminder to stop being so quick to shit on artists based off mental cliches you’ve made about their fans. Basically a reminder to be a more open minded person, and less of an asshole.

Most of my life I had written off the Boss as boring baby boomer dad rock, stuff you hear on the radio in the waiting room of an automatic car wash, stuff along with solo Clapton, Toto, The Eagles, Journey’s slow songs. So you’re drinking free Keurig coffee while ESPN plays on the TV, hoping the balding, goateed man next to you doesn’t ask you you’re opinion on the draft because you didn’t watch it and don’t want to deal with the awkwardness of a judgmental look for being a 20 something man who doesn’t care about sports. In his mind my dull, offended, smart phone generation is destroying the spirit of the country, and in my mind, I thought Springsteen was his music, music from when “men were men”, worked at factories, ate McDonalds when it was still legally a food product, and Reagan was going to turn everything around from the malaise years of Carter. He probably listened to Springsteen back in 1980, played high school baseball, dealt with all the bullshit in his life by looking forward to Friday night when he could get drunk, hang out with his girlfriend, and drive around with his friends in a shitty rust box Nova (with the inline six, not even the v8 that still didn’t make 200 horsepower). Needless to say, I had judgmental opinions about Bruce Springsteen and the kinds of people who listened to him.

At some point something happened. I honestly think it was mostly just that I grew the fuck up just enough to hear Springsteen on the right day and it finally connected, finally all made sense. I remember where the change happened. I was sitting in one of my old apartments, a few years out of a bad break up (and dropping out of college), living with some of my best friends, working a dead end job, starting to drink too much, mentally planning a half impulsive move across the country away from it all…and binging The Sopranos for the first time. At the end of the first season finale, Tony and his family are driving in a bad storm, and seek shelter in the restaurant of Tony’s long time friend Artie. Artie, trying to close up, reluctantly lets them in to eat. Other friends and family are there dining, Tony and his family sit down, then Tony toasts to remembering “the little moments, like this…that were good.” Fade to black, and this faint acoustic guitar comes in over the credits, with this haunting voice, coated in a slap back delay, singing about having a “clear conscience for the things that I’ve done.” It’s a beautiful scene from one of the pinnacles of television. And I had to find out what the fuck that song was. It was like a combination of Elvis singing “Blue Moon”, Bob Dylan’s “The Ballad of Hollis Brown” with a touch of Suicide’s Alan Vega thrown in. I do some internet digging, and find out it’s this song called “State Trooper” by Bruce Springsteen. Bruce Springsteen? The guy behind that “Born In The USA” song drunk assholes ironically jammed on the Fourth of July, that I couldn’t stand? Was I wrong about him this whole time? So I started to dig into the Boss, first into the Born to Run album, since the song “Born To Run” I always had sort of guilty pleasure liked when it came on the radio. Within a year or so I would consider Springsteen a musical genius, and one of my absolute favorite musicians of all time (though I must admit I only deeply know his first 7 albums). All from hearing one of his least Springsteeny songs in the end credits of a tv show I was watching more than 10 years after airing.

On to the album. Springsteen had already recorded three albums, his last, Born to Run was a massive success, that had him maturing as an artist and writing songs that were absolutely beautiful and somehow could be absolutely depressing at the same time. Listen to “Jungleland". If it doesn’t make you feel every emotion at once, you’re not human. The lyrics tell a story I’m still not quite sure I understand, and it has the best saxophone solo ever put on a record (and for what it’s worth, the “Jungleland" sax solo is my favorite part of any song ever). It’s a perfect fucking song. It was a hard album to top, and I’m still not sure if he did. Darkness is a fantastic record, though I’m not sure if it’s as good as Born to Run (I’m also not sure if it’s worse). But you have to applaud Springsteen for not pulling an AC/DC, writing more of the same, and riding it out for the next 30 years. He came into the studio with a new band member, Steven Van Zandt (who I will still always think of first and foremost as Silvio Dante), and recorded a massive collection of over 50 songs. Some are available on the album The Promise which didn’t come out until 2010. 

Ten were picked for the record, which was harder hitting, darker, rawer, and more stripped down. It wasn’t as poppy (if you could consider Born To Run that), and wasn't as successful. The highest single off Darkness only made it’s way to No. 33 on the Billboard charts. How could he top Born To Run? He couldn’t, but the lack of relative success doesn’t make it any less of an album. It’s his In Utero, so to speak.

“Badlands” kicks off the album. With a rhythm Springsteen claims to have “borrowed” from The Animals “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” it moves quick. It has raw, crunchy guitars, you can already tell this isn’t Born To Run. The lyrics follow similar Springsteen territory, but you can tell right away this is a different album. The problem with “Badlands” though is the version on the Live 1975-1985 album just has that little bit extra. “Badlands” is a great song, but I usually find it just leaves me wanting the live version instead. The version of the live album comes from a 1980 show in Tempe, Arizona, which has concert footage on youtube. Honestly, most of the tracks from that show are better than the album. I have a hard time finishing Darkness sometimes without getting sidetracked watching Springsteen live videos on youtube about halfway through.

“Adam Raised A Cain” is maybe Springsteen’s heaviest song. It starts off with a fast, overdriven guitar, and goes right into a ripping, pissed off, guitar solo. The tempo picks up a bit in the bridge, and then the chorus hits you hard, with yelling background vocals and squealing lead guitar. The guitar solo comes in later, reminiscent of the intro solo, but with a few unique lines thrown in. At the end they go back into the chorus for a solid minute, and jam on it until the end. Springsteen doesn’t have many songs like this. I wish he did. It’s really fucking good.

“Something in the Night” is a slower tune. It’s not bad, but I find it a little forgettable. If I’m scrolling through Spotify for the car or something, it’s not the tune I’d pick out if I only have a 5 minute drive. I do really like last half though, where the vocals get a little less ballad, and a little rougher, a little louder.

“Candy’s Room” has just not aged well. Something about the piano line, the driving bass, the drums, I’m not sure what. Some of the production on this album is pretty dated, but for some reason more so on this one. Maybe because it’s about a girl named Candy, and nobody’s been born with that name in quite a while (at least not that I know). It just sounds very 1970’s, and not in the good way. It’s a little boring, and the lyrics don’t really do much for me. It has a pretty good guitar solo though, so points for that. Probably my least favorite track.

“Racing In The Street” heads right into a different direction. It starts off with a solo piano, and Springsteen singing about his 69 Chevy. I’m a bit of a classic car lover myself, so I appreciate the references, and only a few people could sing a love song about girls and muscle cars and not make it hokey as shit. It’s definitely not Van Halen’s Panama. How though? A song with this subject matter should be corny and terrible, but it’s really fucking good. It’s pure beautiful Americana. It’s the musical equivalent of having a fire on the beach with your best friends in the summertime. It’s simple, but taking simple stories and making them something relatable to everyone is what Springsteen is the best at. Even if you don’t like cars, anyone can listen to this song and have something in you’re life it could be about.

“The Promised Land” starts off with a midtempo guitar and a matching harmonica. I don’t quite know what the lyrics mean, but you sure as hell want to get to the promised land too. The song slows down in the middle, with a guitar solo, and rips right into a classic Clarence Clemons sax solo. This is probably the “poppiest” song on the album, which is not to say it’s “Dancing In The Dark.” It’s still in full rock and roll territory, but it’s fucking catchy. Another song you need to watch the footage of from the 1980 Arizona show. The album version is good, the live one is perfect.

“Factory” is one of the lesser songs on the album. I honestly usually skip it. It’s just a little too slow after “The Promised Land” and the song after “Factory” is really good. It’s not a bad song, but just a victim of track listing choice. Especially if I’m not listening to the vinyl, in the car or the gym or something, it’s getting skipped. If it’s on the record, I’ll listen, but I’m not that invested. The lyrics aren’t Springsteen’s best, a little too on the nose.

“Streets of Fire” is another slower tune, but a little harder. I doesn’t have that much in common, but it reminds me a lot of “Backstreets” off Born To Run. It starts off pretty mellow, with just an organ (some sort of keyboard, I’m going with organ), but starts to pick up and hits hard when the guitars come in, and then goes right into one of the coolest guitar solo’s on a Springsteen album. The guitar tone is just fuzzy enough, it’s loud, drenched in reverb, and the rest of the band just lays back. It comes out of nowhere. The rest of the song is more of the same and fades out, but that solo makes the song.

“Prove It All Night” is a classic mid tempo Springsteen rock and roll love song. Nothing ground breaking, but it’s still one of the better tracks on the album. In the middle it goes into a sax solo, and then up another level with another great guitar solo. This is definitely the best Springsteen guitar album. The solo’s hit hard, sound mean, but aren’t showy or lame 1970’s rock show off stuff. They serve the songs really well. Something about this song though makes me feel like it would fit better on The River. Another song to check out live footage of. It turns into an extended jam, and is just a little bit quicker. I think if they recorded it with the tempo of the live show, it would have brought it from one of the decent tracks on the album to one of the best. I don’t know why, there’s nothing about this song particularly interesting, but I find myself throwing it on quite a bit.

“Darkness on the Edge of Town” ends the album. It’s a little bit of a middle ground between “Racing In The Street” and “Streets of Fire.” It’s one of Springsteens more critically regarded songs, Rolling Stone rated it the #8th best song by him apparently, but I don’t really see it. It’s good, but even on this album there’s quite a few better songs. It’s okay, it’s a good outro to the album, I can see what they were going for, but it just never really jelled with me that well.

Final thoughts:

Favorite songs: “Adam Raised a Cain,” “Racing In The Street,” “The Promised Land,” “Streets of Fire.” 

Least favorite songs: “Candy’s Room,” “Factory”

#records #review #music review #music #bruce springsteen #springsteen #vinyl #darkness on the edge of town