American Alternative music reviews

...and, if you are into grunge and don't have this CD, you're collection is incomplete. Not having this CD is like being a classic rock freak and not having Led Zeppelin IV, seriously.

This CD was released in '91, when grunge was just starting to hit the radio. The Seattle scene was going strong, with Soundgarden, Nirvana and Alice in Chains already putting out albums and having very strong followings. The craziest thing? I saw all of these bands in the early-early 90's, and I can't tell you how many band members were wearing Mudhoney shirts...all of the Seattle bands knew Mudhoney, did side projects with them, and respected them.

To date, I have all their releases up to and including My Brother The Cow (1995). I can't speak for any of the newer releases, because I haven't heard them, but I will say everything from 88-95 is incredible, with Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge being at the pinnacle of their musical genius. (For those of you who don't read music, the phrase 'Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge' is the way you remember the treble clef bars: E,G,B,D, and F.)

The biggest difference between this release and their others is simple. The music is good, all of it, but this CD doesn't reveal a weak track. Every song is awesome, and the production is great--garage sound, lo-fi muffled guitars, but the drums and bass are clean. When Steve or Mark switch to the acoustic sound, it becomes clean. They mastered the "garage" sound without sounding like your next door neighbor's garage band. Even the order of the tracks is superb. I could go on and on--this is a great CD, no matter what the price. I've owned this since it's release, and I may be ready to buy another copy--I've warped this CD like it was an LP, it sat in the CD player for so long. TRUST ME--this will be your favorite CD as soon as you hear it...I promise.

...only nine people have reviewed this album (actually, more like 8 - this Rubard fella's review is pretty obviously designed to be ignored). I also can't believe the people lining up to cry in this band's beer for them. I really doubt they're that broken up about how things turned out. It is also ridiculous to say that they could have "made it" if their sound had been more polished...polish is exactly what stole the magic away, starting with Piece of Cake: their last listenable album and a mere shadow of this fine, fine record.

I'm not going to blather on with some kind of social commentary about Seattle, and how sad it is that it's all over, and how music has gone to hell since then. Just suffice it to say that this album (or, arguably, the self-titled "Mudhoney") is what should be listed in the dictionary under "Grunge." I would hesitate to apply that term to Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, or even Nirvana, frankly. Those bands all seem much closer to metal than the fuzzed-out essence of the garage. Mudhoney were basically the Troggs on crack, and this album broke it wide open.

One other reason I have such a special affinity for this particular Mudhoney release is that while it has all the whacked-out dirty humor of their earlier stuff, this one seems to add the tiniest emotional element...it has a little feeling, and provokes a little feeling. The two-song group of "Pokin' Around" (harmonica!) and "Don't Fade IV" for some reason always make me a little sad. Maybe sad because it means I'm almost to the end of this SEMINAL album.

Mudhoney didn't suck, and didn't fail. They did exactly what they were supposed to do: hand us their dirty little defnition of Rock & Roll. It's a definition I can agree with.

if not one of the best probably actully the best album to come out of grunge town.it is way to bad that this album came out the same time as nevermind but it did.(ohhh welll).when i first saw the video for good enough (on 120 mins)it was an awesome sight.i looked for this album for weeks and listend to it for even longer when i got it.and it still sounds good today after all that hype of that scene has died down.this is great collection of songs when mudhoney took them selves very seriously.(not the last 2 albums (WOOFF).so this is there last album from there founding lable sub pop and its a shame at that.that lable cared about mudhoney.. so as far as the album its raw full of great riffage from steve turner(the eric claptin of garage rock) and madman drums from dan peters the bestrock drummer since keith moon.)and mark arms vocals are just amazing kind of sceaming wailing and talking all at the same time.the quality of the album is very much like listening to a garage band with massive talent.but thats what these guys were all about being one of the best garage bands of all time to bad they where thrown into that heap of music from grunge town.they were already doing just fine in the first place.so every track on this album is good so i cant tell ya the best.but what i can say this is to me a album that must be listened to VERY LOUD to be fully enjoyed !!!!! also if you decide like this one find the single that came out at the same time that features when the money rolls right in and a different version of cheakout time..then find marks and steves new band monkeywrench.which is a new band they are taking seriously again pure garage bluespunk rock!!!!!

By all definitions, Made to Be Broken is an indie album. It's short, it's loud, and sounds like it was recorded in a basement or garage.

But according to the band, Bob Mould was a valuable mentor to Soul Asylum while recording their first two albums, even if they did end up sounding like Husker Du. Soul Asylum was essentially a live act that tried to put their sound down onto tape. And even with Bob's studio experience, you just can't put a round peg in a square hole.

A majority of the songs are good, including Can't Go Back, Tied to the Tracks, and Whoah! But New Feelings and Lone Rider have only their attitude to stand on, and they almost don't hold up. Most of the guitar riffs border on overachievement and David Pirner is singing as if the world is coming to an end tomorrow and he won't have to worry about his vocal chords then.

So all things considered, Made to Be Broken's swaggering big sheet of noise is just one tiny step above Say What You Will, but a few notches short of While You Were Out and Hang Time. Only then would Soul Asylum learn how to work in a studio.

It's a treat when you discover a band has more albums before their major label record deals. After constant rotations to my cd player w/ all 3 of their Columbia albums, I searched amazon.com to see if there would maybe be a new album coming out. At the time, I came across a plethora of albums from their twin tone and a&m days. My first noncolumbia album was Made to Be Broken which I found used at a record store. I now own every album and will soon get Silver Lining this year!

MTBB starts w/ the only track on their greatest hits album "Tied to the Tracks." In my opinion it isn't the best on this album, but still has a great uptempo beat to it w/ that classic Dave scream.

"Ship of Fools" could be a ballad if slowed down, but I don't think the boys were quite ready for that, so instead they create an equally great tune w/ the message of the album I think "brokeness." I think the meaning is that the ship of fools is all the girls guys try to pursue that turn out to be just another mistake.

While "Can't Go Back," is a song about not going back through time, so you eventually will just waste time. It's just a great lesson about how time effects ones life w/ past experiences played by a great tune.

I think "Another World, Another Day" is basically the introduction to the rest of the album as it leads in hypnotic 2 minute festival of rock.

The title track has a quarky country upbeat aura to it which displays an almost rebellious side to Dave w/ the lyrics. "The rules were made to broken" chorus might attribute to that theory.

A good storytelling song that Dave perfects is in "Never Really Been." More or less telling us that what the future might be, if there was ambition.

"Whoa" is really just a nice scream fest saying well...um whoaaa

I'd say the closest song to the new sound later to follow soul asylum is "New Feelings" it sort of leaves that punk/raw feel, and just is a plain out rock song. Kinda short though.

I'm not sure what "Growing Pain" is really saying. Perhaps Dave is angry about something and needs to let out his frustration.

My favorite tune is "Long Way Home." Although rather a short list of lyrics, they are very meaningful. You get so far with something and realize it wasn't worth the time in the first place to do it, so then you have to go back home and start somewhere new.

Another 2 minute punk fest lies in "Lone Rider." More lyrics than "Whoa," and not as extreme, but rocks out.

The longest song, yes folks at 3min and 34 seconds is "Ain't That Tough" which has a great guitar beat, and good lyrics as well. Not as edgy or rough.

I'd put "Don't It (MYTSS)" before "Aint' That Tough" for the last song, but honestly this might seem out of place for this album, but nonetheless it still isn't bad.

Most devout fans should pick up this album, and most fans of the Columbia days should not, unless you do want to explore their roots such as I. What makes MTBB so great is that there is isn't just punk or just rock or just ballads. In fact there is a little bit of everything. There isn't exactly a "Runaway Train" type song on here seeing how most are under 3minutes and the album just being over 30 minutes or so. What's good is that you can put it on repeat and never get too extremely bored b/c each song is uniquely different. If you can get by some of Dave's screaming and catch all the lyrics some are simply mindblowing yet simple. A great album for 1986.

I just remember an article in Spin where they talked about a show during the Grave Dancers union tour when a fan made a screaming request for "tied to the tracks." All Dan said (as they instead began another of the weak poppy songs of their later period) was "that stuff is hard."

I was in a band in the mid to late 80's and I could barely focus on playing anything other than songs from MTBB and Hang time. These were unique albums in a way that the derivative post grave dancers' stuff cold never be.

And live they were even better!

R Williams from SF, CA has got it perfect...the decline of SA wasn't overnight and there were moments in each of the later albums (I tried for a long time to let them grow on me but couldn't get past the sugary sweet bit).

This one is from a time when they mattered!

It's a crying shame that Mannheim Steamroller's live Christmas album wasn't released in the early 1990s (i.e. between the 2nd and 3rd studio releases), instead of 1997. One only has to skim the track listing to see why. The album is loaded with relatively weak efforts from "Christmas in the Aire" ("Pat-a-Pan," "Rudolph," "Gagliarda," etc.) while Chip's masterpiece "Fresh Aire Christmas" is almost totally unrepresented. Someone was asleep at the switch on this one.

Not more than half, not nearly all, but all. These are decent renditions of material from The Roller's first two Christmas releases, they stand as proof that Chip & Co can do their stuff live, but the finale "Going To Another Place" isn't a holiday number, it's the finale from the "Fresh Aire II" release. Granted, it makes a good, bouncy sendoff from a live show after their pensive arrangement of "Silent Night", but its very existence proves that these guys could have come up with an upbeat prog lite instrumental that isn't a remake of a traditional Christmas song (e.g. "Deck the Halls"). If they were too late to get it on the third "Christmas In the Aire", they could have made it exclusive to this release.

This was my first experience with this group which I bought in a used bargin bin.

Frankly I was expecting some kind of cliched interpretation of xmas songs - the kind ussually advertised on TV during November to December and played in stores - meaning it would only be good to be played once a year at Christmas day.

What a surprise! On most of these songs; you can only barely tell that it is xmas songs being played with light touches of electronica with a strong emphasis of flutes, panpipes, recorders and other medieval instrumemtation thrown into the mix; thus sound very non seasonal therefore making it Christmas music you could play all year round

It could be said that this is the type of Christmas music a progressive rock band like Jethro Tull, Happy the Man, Camel etc would make.

Thus a more delightful suprise given that I thought it would sound something more ambientlike Yanni.

Given this, yours truly will checkout more of Steamroller's recordings and welcomes any suggestions of Steamroller recordings exhibiting their more progressive side.

For a Christmas recording that is non cliched and has the ability to be played all year round; it gets a 10/10

the japanese typing on the cover means "my mother went shopping". I just tought i should let you know.

I mean, let's make no mistake, any Sonic Youth record is better than most everything else on the racks. But when comparing this to other bootlegs from the "Sister" tour, you wonder why they chose this one to release. The sound is SO thin, and it really kills some of the songs. I would recommend tracking down "Be My Sister in Death", as it has almost all the same songs but a MUCH better sound.

Let's be honest, though: you are going to buy this for the enchore where they do Ramones covers. I will grant that this is one of my favorite Sonic Youth moments, as they really put their all into these covers, having fun but still treating them with the reverance they are due. This is the Sonic Youth that everyone forgets about when they talk about them being too arty - these folks also have their feet planted firmly in punk rock and can also display a wild sense of humor.

Having had Sonic Youth jackhammer my ears any number of times in varied locations, including "warming up" for a reunited Iggy & the Stooges at an outdoor amphitheatre to an audience of mostly middle aged guys wearing New York Dolls t-shirts, I've gotta say this live document from the "Sister" tour is like Manna from heaven, and I don't even believe in heaven. Other reviewers of this item have complained about bad sound quality, but clearly these people have hearing even more badly degraded than mine, since as far as I can tell the sound quality here completely outstrips any bootleg of the band that I've heard. For instance, this is in freakin' STEREO for crying out loud--I mean, a bootleg is just like being at the show, if "being at the show" means standing outside the venue with yr ears pressed up against the doors. Considering the recording here was engineered by longtime SY friend Wharton Tiers the results couldn't really be any better. Let me also remind naysayers that we're talking about Sonic Youth, a band that has done more for feedback and drone than anyone going back to Hendrix, a band whose love of lo-fi squall is pretty much unmatched. If all you really want is "perfect sound forever" then maybe you should stick with the Alan Parsons Project and leave living, breathing and bleeding music to the rest of us. Sorry for the mini-rant, but audiophiles annoy me like rock critics who insist on using nonsense terms like "collegiate rock" or "Coldplay."

As for the actual disc I had intended to review, it's an absolutely primo chunk of pre-"Daydream Nation" SY, at a Chicago show introduced by none other than Steve Albini. A huge chunk of "Sister" is performed, as well as a few from "EVOL" and even "Brother James." The encore medley of Ramones tunes is also a total thrill. There are no real freestyle sonic digressions, something they indulged in the last time I saw them about a year ago as of this writing, but the songs themselves contain enough nooks and crannies to fill a library of bent notes and alternate tunings. If played at the proper volume (i.e., maximum) you'll hear it in yr sleep. Pleasant dreams!

The "Live Phish" series contains many excellent editions, but 19 is not one of them, for me personally. I want to emphasize that other Phish phans may (and do, as some reviews here show) feel differently.

"Live Phish 19" (2CDs, 28 tracks, 148 min.) is from a 1991 show in New Hampshire. CD1 (79 min.) starts off in a jazz-like club atmosphere, with a lot of short tracks, and the horns up front. Concert staples "AC/DC Bag" and "David Bowie" show a lot of energy, but sound very differently than one might expect with the horns. CD2 (69 min.) is much better, with an excellent Gumbo>Mike's Song>I Am Hydrogen>Weekabaug Groove, the latter with a blazing Trey guitar solo, the highlight of this concert. The Doors cover "Touch Me" works quite well too, no wonder since the original song also featured horns...

In all, this is not a bad live set (is there such a thing with Phish?), but it's not my favorite. Check out instead for example Live 15 or Live 20, much better to my liking.

Phish live 19 in my opinion is one of the best releases of the series and in completely underrated. The horns just make everything funky and cooler.

First Disc- Great Bouncing Room, Reba, Bowie, Golgi, Coil, and the best Ac/dc Bag ever made.

Second Disc- Highlights of Tweezer, Gumbo, Mike's Song>Hydrogen)Groove, Touch Me, Suzy, Frank, and Tweezer Reprise.

I was at this show & several others that featured the giant country horns that summer. This show is as sick as I remember it being. I think the horns rock.

Do you get the picture?

When I was first introduced to the Swans, I was blown away by their grasp on the beautiful and the errie. My introduction was The Great Annihilator, which still holds a special place in my heart for it's pure grime and sludge of accoustic terror. But, on a limb I grabbed this up, which I was told wasn't that good, and was the Swans' last disc. Who ever told me that, obviously didn't hear "Helpless Child", a haunting song which makes you feel that you could possibly be at the end of your rope. The Swans' last stand is as mighty as any. It's true a few tracks are a bit long, but besides that, a great effort and a great way to end a carreer.

I was fortunate to hear this album when I first did. This was the last of the Swans albums I've purchased that aren't deleted. I listened to this the night after a hangover and my body and mind were limp. I listened to both CD's of this album back to back and discovered another side of Swans. There is no simple way to maufactuare a thought of this album other then its truely a brialliant way to say goodbye. This album will take you through the clouds(not unlike the pictures in the sleeve insert) and then it will remind you of the good old days and how Swans can and already have said goodbye to us from time to time.

Listening to "Soundtracks for the Blind" can find you in the origin of your thoughts as it seems to trikle through your own sine waves. You must be patient, you must be ready to be patient and then this album will take you on a alienating and then homecoming journey throughout. Like lift off and safe landing over and over again till the CD spins out.

Do you get the picture?

When I was first introduced to the Swans, I was blown away by their grasp on the beautiful and the errie. My introduction was The Great Annihilator, which still holds a special place in my heart for it's pure grime and sludge of accoustic terror. But, on a limb I grabbed this up, which I was told wasn't that good, and was the Swans' last disc. Who ever told me that, obviously didn't hear "Helpless Child", a haunting song which makes you feel that you could possibly be at the end of your rope. The Swans' last stand is as mighty as any. It's true a few tracks are a bit long, but besides that, a great effort and a great way to end a carreer.

I was fortunate to hear this album when I first did. This was the last of the Swans albums I've purchased that aren't deleted. I listened to this the night after a hangover and my body and mind were limp. I listened to both CD's of this album back to back and discovered another side of Swans. There is no simple way to maufactuare a thought of this album other then its truely a brialliant way to say goodbye. This album will take you through the clouds(not unlike the pictures in the sleeve insert) and then it will remind you of the good old days and how Swans can and already have said goodbye to us from time to time.

Listening to "Soundtracks for the Blind" can find you in the origin of your thoughts as it seems to trikle through your own sine waves. You must be patient, you must be ready to be patient and then this album will take you on a alienating and then homecoming journey throughout. Like lift off and safe landing over and over again till the CD spins out.

It's a good thing Beat Happening started their own label, otherwise this would have never been released. If you've listened to their later albums "Dreamy" or "You Turn Me On" and are looking to further explore Beat Happening, avoid this. The only really good song is "Foggy Eyes," while "I Let Him Get To Me" and "I Spy" are passably OK. Pathetic doesn't begin to describe the rest of it.

This isn't controversial "art rock" like Sonic Youth or Syd Barrett era Floyd exploring innovative sonic structures and don't let anyone convince you otherwise. It's not even an aquired taste. If I had put this together one night goofing off with friends, I would count it as a supreme embarrassment if it ever made it to the web. Like the Jedi kid video. It literally sounds like someone threw a guitar and drum set into a pre-school. Heather's vocals are OK but whenever Bret and Calvin sing, it sounds like they threw the microphone into a special ed class who attempt to sing along to the aforementioned pre-school soundtrack. Before they heard it. I know I sound high on the Hatorade, but this "release" is really that bad.

If you're a completist and just HAVE to HAVE it, buy it used.

The best that can said of this is that it should have been released as a poetry book instead of an album.

I would also like to point out that 4 and 5 star reviews gave it also used words and phrases like "musically inept," "talentless," "tuneless," "rudimentary musicianship" and so on. Everyone here is in agreement, but those are qualities I normally associate with BAD reviews.

For a couple years, I had a few Beat Happening tracks on my hard-drive that I'd randomly downloaded simply because I'd heard the name and how influential they were. Too cheap to invest, I left it at that for a while. I received the Beat Happening box set as a birthday present, and was excited to find out what the band was really all about. I popped Disc One into my CD Player while I had a couple of friends over, and minutes into it grew truly embarassed at how amateur and just plain "AWFUL" it sounded, and removed the disc. As days passed, I began to get really into some of their more developed discs, like "You Turn Me On" and "Dreamy"; this was a really amazing band...

To make a long story short, I will say that Beat Happening quickly became the most frequently played band in my stereo. As I got more into them, I decided to give Disc One ("Beat Happening") another chance, and let me tell you... THIS IS NOW BY FAR MY FAVORITE BEAT HAPPENING RECORD.

Is it their most finely crafted album? No. Is it their most mature? Definitely not.

I must say, though, that there is something about the songs on this disc (yes, ALL of them!) that blows me away, no matter how many times I listen to them. Calvin's lyrics are so simple--almost as though they were written/sung by a kindergarden student--yet they are profound in their simplicity, perfectly expressing the very essence of the most basic human emotions--love, loneliness, fear, excitement, etc.

I never thought I'd claim that a song consisting of fuzzed-out droning vocals and some random guy beating on a tin can was an absolute classic--but this is what makes Beat Happening such a phenomenal group. This is where lo-fi began, and I doubt if any super-hip band in the 2000's will ever match the simplicity and utter beauty of these early recordings.

If you have the patience to really give this album a chance, I am sure that you will agree that it is a hands-down classic--five stars, no doubt. I do not lie when I say that this record changed my life and will always be remembered as THE soundtrack to the random, confused, but exciting years of my early 20's. Thank you Calvin Johnson.

THIS RECORD IS AMAZING.

I own the box set, and would encourage everyone that is interested to make the investment. The reason why I'm writing this review is to stick up for an album that I believe to be worthy of five stars. This album will show you how diverse and ahead of their time Beat Happening really was. With out a doubt my favorite album by Beat Happening and you'll see that even though it has a rough sound there really is a lot going on here.

Fresh Aire VI opens with perhaps Mannheim Steamroller's best song ever: Come Home to the Sea. It's a stirring piano and orchestra 5 minute symphony with (surprisingly) very little synthesizer augmentation. It simply soars. The rest of the album struggles to reach the heights it set for itself with its first song. The Rhodes sequence is mostly undeveloped, though Night Festival is an interesting if forgettable time signature experiment. Nepenthe is very pretty, but then again we've heard a derivative of it on nearly every previous album. The descent sequence has some cool musical themes....but Chip plays them once and turns on the "loop" button. All of them repeat three times, with no bridge, and fade out. Sirens attempts the collage sound of Escape from the Atmosphere (FA5) but ends up sounding unconnected.

Sadly, the fact is that despite all these critiques some of the musical themes displayed here are among Mannheim Steamrollers more original work. It just seems like not enough time was spent on them. Only recommended if you must have the entire series or Come Home to the Sea.

I recommend track one on this cd because I have Liberty Weekend Video since I was 5 and I am now 22, I love it. It brings me back and reminds me of that part of the tall ships. It was reall
really nice.

Nick

Last night, I heard a radio station broadcast this album in its entirety, and boy did it bring back so many memories! "Fresh Aire VI" was one of my most favorite albums during my high school years, and upon listening to it again the other night I was really surprised just how well the music works even today. Not only do many of the tracks stand the test of time, they also leave so much to the imagination with fantastic references to Greek mythology and maritime traditions. Finally, with electronic instruments seamlessly weaved into orchestral and choral sounds, what we have here is very a interesting, very rich, very musically noteworthy album.

Just a couple tracks sound dated. "Ascent From Hell" sounds 80'ish and a little annoying. "The Olympics" suffers from age as well, as it sounds like something from the TV show "CHiPs." Still I always get a kick out of listening to it.

As for the remaining tracks, musically they stand very well on their own, some better than others. I think the best tracks in this album are the raw "Descent Into the Underworld," the mysterious "Sirens" suite, and the highly memorable "Come Home To the Sea."

So, am I glad that I happened to catch that broadcast on the radio... It would have been a pity to have all this great music be lost from my life. Now that I have the recording once again, I am confident I can draw much pleasure from listening to this CD for a very, very long time.

Fresh Aire VI opens with perhaps Mannheim Steamroller's best song ever: Come Home to the Sea. It's a stirring piano and orchestra 5 minute symphony with (surprisingly) very little synthesizer augmentation. It simply soars. The rest of the album struggles to reach the heights it set for itself with its first song. The Rhodes sequence is mostly undeveloped, though Night Festival is an interesting if forgettable time signature experiment. Nepenthe is very pretty, but then again we've heard a derivative of it on nearly every previous album. The descent sequence has some cool musical themes....but Chip plays them once and turns on the "loop" button. All of them repeat three times, with no bridge, and fade out. Sirens attempts the collage sound of Escape from the Atmosphere (FA5) but ends up sounding unconnected.

Sadly, the fact is that despite all these critiques some of the musical themes displayed here are among Mannheim Steamrollers more original work. It just seems like not enough time was spent on them. Only recommended if you must have the entire series or Come Home to the Sea.

I recommend track one on this cd because I have Liberty Weekend Video since I was 5 and I am now 22, I love it. It brings me back and reminds me of that part of the tall ships. It was reall
really nice.

Nick

Last night, I heard a radio station broadcast this album in its entirety, and boy did it bring back so many memories! "Fresh Aire VI" was one of my most favorite albums during my high school years, and upon listening to it again the other night I was really surprised just how well the music works even today. Not only do many of the tracks stand the test of time, they also leave so much to the imagination with fantastic references to Greek mythology and maritime traditions. Finally, with electronic instruments seamlessly weaved into orchestral and choral sounds, what we have here is very a interesting, very rich, very musically noteworthy album.

Just a couple tracks sound dated. "Ascent From Hell" sounds 80'ish and a little annoying. "The Olympics" suffers from age as well, as it sounds like something from the TV show "CHiPs." Still I always get a kick out of listening to it.

As for the remaining tracks, musically they stand very well on their own, some better than others. I think the best tracks in this album are the raw "Descent Into the Underworld," the mysterious "Sirens" suite, and the highly memorable "Come Home To the Sea."

So, am I glad that I happened to catch that broadcast on the radio... It would have been a pity to have all this great music be lost from my life. Now that I have the recording once again, I am confident I can draw much pleasure from listening to this CD for a very, very long time.