833. Marilyn Manson - Antichrist Superstar (1996)

Track Listing

1. Irresponsible Hate Anthem
2. The Beautiful People
3. Dried Up, Tied And Dead To The World
4. Tourniquet
5. Little Horn
6. Cryptorchid
7. Deformography
8. Wormboy
9. Mister Superstar
10. Angel With The Scabbed Wings
11. Kinderfeld
12. Antichrist Superstar
13. 1996
14. Minute Of Decay
15. The Reflecting God
16. Man That You Fear
17. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
18. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
19. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
20. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
21. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
22. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
23. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
24. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
25. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
26. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
27. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
28. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
29. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
30. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
31. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
32. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
33. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
34. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
35. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
36. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
37. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
38. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
39. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
40. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
41. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
42. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
43. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
44. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
45. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
46. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
47. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
48. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
49. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
50. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
51. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
52. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
53. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
54. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
55. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
56. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
57. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
58. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
59. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
60. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
61. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
62. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
63. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
64. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
65. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
66. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
67. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
68. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
69. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
70. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
71. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
72. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
73. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
74. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
75. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
76. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
77. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
78. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
79. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
80. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
81. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
82. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
83. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
84. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
85. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
86. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
87. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
88. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
89. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
90. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
91. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
92. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
93. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
94. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
95. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
96. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
97. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
98. Non-Musical Silence (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)
99. Ghost Track (Marilyn Manson/Antichrist Superstar)


Review

Yes, there is no mistake, that is the actual track listing. And the ghost track after all that is not really worth it. So we come to what is doubtlessly an era-defining album. To me this marks the death of Metal as previously known, the success of Marilyn Manson created a whole different musical industry, where metal is mixed with Industrial and Grunge and lives somewhere in the middle.

The old long-haired guitar heroes are dead, Marilyn brings theatre, high production values and a grimness which was absent from the increasingly obsolete and repetitive metal. This is not to say that I really like this album, which I don't, but to recognise how smart the album actually is. Marilyn gets elements from diverse musical styles both in terms of the music itself but also the image. From glam to JRock to krautrock his influences are very diverse and combined in a way that was revolutionary to a western audience.

This album is the product of someone who is perfectly conscious of what will undoubtedly sell. It is a commercial endeavour, in this sense the music is not particularly exciting, half the interest is in the theatricality of it all, the transgressional elements which the rather tame mid-90s were desperate for. Punk was dead, metal was moribund and did not shock anyone anymore, Manson stepped into the vacant place of the Satanic Majesty on earth, after the Stones and the Sex Pistols. That was a really smart move, teenagers lapped it up, as they did in all ages. Musically: Blah.

Track Highlights

1. The Beautiful People
2. Man That You Fear
3. Tourniquet
4. Worm Boy

Final Grade

7/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

There have been a lot of rumors regarding the name for Track 99. No name has been confirmed, however there are alternative titles such as "Better Massiah", "Empty Sounds Of Hate", "Untitled", "Track 99", or "Dying Years". None of these are confirmed titles. It is rumored that an alternate version of the track exists.

Beautiful People Live:

832. The Cardigans - First Band On The Moon (1996)

Track Listing

1. Your New Cuckoo
2. Been It
3. Heartbreaker
4. Happy Meal II
5. Never Recover
6. Step On Me
7. Lovefool
8. Losers
9. Iron Man
10. Great Divide
11. Choke

Review

You know what I didn't expect? To like this album just as much as I did. The only song I really knew here was Lovefool, the big single and part of the soundtrack to Romeo + Juliet, with such overplay that that particular song got, it is hard to listen to it with new ears.

You are kind of able to do it, however, in the context of what is a pretty great album. The Cardigans mix sweet vocals and what at first seem to be quite pretty music with heavy metal riffs, Black Sabbath covers and some of the most depressing lyrics ever. Surprisingly it all works really well.

It is the contrast between the several elements of the album which really catches you, and as you pay more attention you realise that each little song is really well crafted and that the Black Sabbath references are not limited to the strange cover of Iron Man, the beginning of Heartbreaker reminds one of Black Sabbath only to devolve into a quite sweet song (if you don't listen to the lyrics). And then the cutesy voice of Nina Persson lulls you into a fake sense of security which is slowly peeled away, this album was a great hit in Japan, where I bet it was all seen as Kawaii... if only they understood it. Slut (that's "The End" in Swedish).

Track Highlights

1. Step On Me
2. Happy Meal II
3. Heartbreaker
4. Lovefool

Final Grade

9/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

With this album, the band had developed into a more complex, darker animal, the songs included themes of heartbreak, infidelity and despair. "Lovefool" was a hit across the globe, especially in the United States and again in Japan, where the album reached platinum in only three weeks. However, it was unrepresentative of the album as a whole and, although it helped it achieve gold sales status in America, many critics branded them saccharine soft-pop on the basis of "Lovefool".

Iron Man Cover:

831 - Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Now I Got Worry (1996)

Track Listing

1. Skunk
2. Identify
3. Wail
4. Fuck Shit Up
5. 2 Kindsa Love
6. Love All Of Me
7. Chicken Dog
8. Rocketship
9. Dynamite Lover
10. Hot Shot
11. Can't Stop
12. Firefly Child
13. Eyeballin'
14. B.L. Got Soul
15. Get Over Her
16. Sticky

Review

In this Rockabilly Oeuvre Jon Spencer shows how you don't need to be metal to make really heavy music. In fact it also reminds us that the greatest part of metal are the Blues, and from the moment that was lost from sight it all turned to shit.

If there is one main problem with this album, however, it is that it can often be too grating, as exemplified by the piercing screams that start the album. However, the album also shows a loving respect for his sources and the blues are updated as well as treated with great respect.

The Blues were originally about transgression, and even if that was lost due to slick bluesy singers who wouldn't know transgression if it buggered them in the shower, Jon Spencer makes the great point of bringing it back to its origins, by fusing it with punk sensibilities the Blues gain the edge they need to have that same feel that they were originally all about.

Track Highlights

1. Fuck Shit Up
2. Chicken Dog
3. Identify
4. Wail

Final Grade

9/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

The album opens up with Spencer screaming. "Fuck Shit Up" is a cover of a Dub Narcotic song. The man depicted on the cover is Jon Spencer. "Wail" became a brief hit for the band and its music video was directed by "Weird Al" Yankovic.

Wail:

830. Underworld - Second Toughest In The Infants (1996)

Track Listing


1. Juanita
2. Kiteless
3. To Dream Of Love
4. Banstyle/Sappys Curry
5. Confusion The Waitress
6. Rowla
7. Pearl's Girl
8. Air Towel
9. Blueski
10. Stagger


Review

More electronic music in the list, fortunately, however, this is more interesting than most of the bland crap we have been having. Underworld clearly have more influences of the greats of electronica like Kraftwerk, matching it with trip-hop sensibilities so present in the mid-90s.

So there are some vocals here and even if none of the songs are particular hits they are still good enough to make listening to this album a comparatively enjoyable experience.

The music here is more confrontational and aggressive, substituting the soporific chillout style with a harder edge that is more than welcome in an electronic music album. Still not amazing, but much better than most of the competition in 1996.

Track Highlights

1. Confusion the Waitress
2. Juanita
3. Pearl's Girl
4. Stagger

Final Grade

8/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

The album opens with one of Underworld's longest tracks to date; the multi-suite "Juanita : Kiteless : To Dream of Love", which features all three parts intersecting each other at various points during the piece. The loungy, drum and bass track "Banstyle" follows, alongside its downtempo, half-speed counterpart "Sappy's Curry". The rest of the record showcases advancements in the Underworld sound: both "Rowla" and "Pearl's Girl" feature club-ready abrasive beats and basslines, while "Blueski" and "Stagger" incorporate live acoustic guitar and light, melancholic arrangements, respectively. "Pearl's Girl" is one of the few Underworld songs to use breakbeats.

Due to the success of the single "Born Slippy .NUXX", Second Toughest was re-issued with a bonus disc containing the single-only tracks "Born Slippy .NUXX" and "Rez"; Japanese editions also featured "Cherry Pie", an early version of "Rowla"; and the "(Carp Dreams... Koi)" mix of "Pearl's Girl".

Juanita/Kiteless:

829. L.T.J. Bukem - Logical Progression (1996)

Track Listing

Disc: 1

1. Demons Theme - LTJ Bukem
2. Links - The Chameleon
3. Music - LTJ Bukem
4. One and Only - PFM
5. Bringing Me Down - Aquarius
6. Dannys Song - PFM
7. Vocal Tune - Peshay
8. Coolin' Out - LTJ Bukem
9. Western [Conrad Remix] - PFM
10. Horizons - LTJ Bukem

Disc: 2

1. Airtight [Remix] - Funky Technicians
2. New Element
3. Drum in a Grip - Wax Doctor
4. Soloution - Ils & Solo
5. In Too Deep - JMJ & Flytronix
6. So Long - Seba & Lo-Tek
7. Pharaoh - Photek
8. After Hours - DJ Trace
9. Groove Therapy - Universal
10. Mind Games - DJ Crystl

Review

So two album reviews in a day. That can only mean that I can't stand listening to this album any more, so I am getting it out of the way. The reason why I am doing the equivalent to taking this album out back and shooting it in the head are various. First reason would be the length of the fucker, at 140 minutes it is a chore to listen to. Second, even if it was short, it is so bland I wouldn't want to listen to it anyway.

So this is an album lauded as meeting the mainstream audience half-way when it comes to drum 'n' bass. So it is an album which is all about compromise. While Goldie's Timeless was about doing his thing and quite well, this is dumbing down music so it can fit in fancy hairdresser and design shops nicely.

The fact that it is 140 minutes and each track is around the 10 minute mark should show you how the music is produced: by the metre. "Hey we need an extra 5 minutes here" "Just loop it!". Fuck that. Fuck that particularly hard when it makes an album 140 minutes of excruciatingly dull "chillout" music.

Track Highlights

It's all pretty much the same, a beat and some chimey ambient sounds in the background, occasionally a voice sample. Take your pick.

Final Grade

4/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

Viewed as an innovator in the drum and bass style, LTJ Bukem is known for developing an accessible alternative to that hardcore genre's speedy, assaultive energies.

Turning it into lowest common denominator shit!

One and Only: