Not many tunes in this Rewind post because otherwise, nothing will get written and finished – again. So, no actual words on cool new sounds like the noisy new mclusky EP or Dublin noisy bastards Bucket or Massive Attack with Tom Waits – but then again, Boots on the Ground is too intense to put words to anyway, much like Terrace Martin/Denzel Curry’s Pig Feet was 6 years ago. Sobering stuff, utterly mandatory. The shock of the news.
OK, before we get to Alabama, we’ve got another big A to check. Attack of the killer As? YES. You know who.
ANTHRAX – It’s for the Kids
Anthrax are BACK, on fire at speed. It’s for the Kids is a pristine crack of thrash whiplash which shows they still cut very sharp, especially Charlie Benante (how???). Nothing mould-breaking here obviously, just all your fave old ‘thrax bits (chugs and speeds, hooks and leads) tastefully done in exactly the right ways at exactly the right times with a shit-ton of age-defying energy. Pure old-school joy. There’s even an Indians-themed wardance breakdown, FFS. Thrashers’ delight.
But it’s the Madhouse-homage video that triggers a full-on blur of old and new and it’s a sweet touch. If you saw the Madhouse clip over and over and over again as a youth 40 years ago, It’s for the Kids is the best triggering experience of your week, guaranteed. All those deep memories you never knew you had – drools, straightjackets, grins, gurns, pliers, hi tops, headbanging freeze frames – come bubbling up fast, so much that you have to check the Madhouse original. A good-times double whammy. And even after all these years, Joey Belladonna still seems to appear from nowhere at the start.
ALABAMA SHAKES – American Dream
Allow us a Led Zeppelin divergence, just for a minute. A long slow blues minute.
Since I’ve Been Loving You is probably seen as a Led Zeppelin blues meisterwork – and maybe it is, if you’re a blues-er. If you’re not then Loving You’s histrionic take on trad-blues can be a bit much, perhaps made more palatable by context (side one of Led Zeppelin III) or live status (The Song Remains the Same).
But Tea for One has always been the true Zep blues benchmark in my book. Tea for One kills: a near 10-minute downer that chokes time and slows it right the fuck down, not just because of the tempo-dragging triple-time but because that’s what the song is about – time. Stretched over one of John Bonham’s tastiest reigned-in drum performances, Tea for One tackles a human condition and its desperate frustration could only ever find a home on the darkly intense Presence. It’s not Led Zeppelin playing the blues: it’s Led Zeppelin feeling despair. And the music is at one with that. There is no flash.
American Dream by Alabama Shakes has the same, deliberate, time-warping power. Stripped down, sparse and very much not afraid to use space/ambience as a lead instrument, its downbeat lack of pace mesmerises. But instead of a blues-ish backdrop, we get psyche-soul and gospel strength. For any non-Alabama Shakes devotees – like me, familiar only with past singles – this track is a heavy duty revelation, dripping with Curtis Harding funk, Algiers fire and masterful pacing and restraint. When the band drops out leaving nothing but a seductive drum shuffle, it snaps your attention completely. You can feel the echoes of instruments stopped. There is presence
which is kinda where we came in. Stunning. Check American Dream right here.
And that’s it for this month.
’til next time!
amplifier wordsmith 