You can never be sure what’s going to happen when you put on a Chicago record for the first time. What’s coming first? Soft rock? Swing? Progressive rock? In the case of V, the answer is “the closest Chicago ever came to free jazz.”
Month: May 2015
Record #308: Bad Company – Bad Co. (1974)
I have never given Bad Company much thought. They have some good singles on the classic rock station (Bad Company chief among them), but I never would have guessed that they were a supergroup comprised of members from Mott the Hoople, Golden Earring, and Paul Rodgers–all bands I HAVE given much thought.
Record #307: Bruce Springsteen – Tunnel of Love (1987)
Record #306: Do Make Say Think – Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn (2003)
I have spoken before about the two major camps post rock. On the one hand, you have the cinematic climax chasers like Mogwai, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and Explosions in the Sky. These are the thrill seekers, the masters of bombast and heart wrenching emoting. On the other, you have a more measured, cerebral approach, utilized by bands like Tortoise, Collections of Colonies of Bees, and Do Make Say Think. These groups are closer to architects than artists, but that doesn’t mean their works are any leas awe inspiring. After all, the Sistine Chapel isn’t notable for the ceiling alone. These groups get most of their affect not from crescendo and decrescendo, but from construction and deconstruction.