Nineties I

Owen in Rock 2012 - 90s I by Owen In Rock on Mixcloud

WELL I NEVER - who knew that the nineties could fit into one show...and avoid all the groundbreaking things being done by shoegazers, trip hoppers, indie poppers and art rockers? Instead I focus on the heavy dogs, the lardy canines wot dominated the lank-haired greasy eared headphones of those in shirts and jeans.

Magic Roundabout by Acid Reign. Off of "The Worst Of" which this show's cover is STOLEN from. Except instead of Les, the bald mute assistant of Vic Reeves' Big Night Out fame, it's me. I have no fear of chives, I have no love of spirit levels. All I feel is a trepidation that I'll potentially go bald. Acid Reign were prime "silly thrashers" from t'North. It's a barren land and needs all the silliness it can get.

Megadeth, on the other hand, are not that silly. Well actually yes they are. This song isn't too silly though - the title track from 1992's Countdown to Extinction. Here they are ECONOMICALLY ANXIOUS thrashers. Admire the melodies and carefully dissect the Mustaine drawl to access the meat within.

Stevie Salas is a funk guitarist - who as a young man toured with the Parliament Funkadelic P-Funk roadshow - on this here record, he and a bunch of mates recorded covers and basically had a lark. It's good fun - and here Zakk Wylde plays the solo and VINCE RUBY sings - it's a Rick Derringer song. WHO'S VINCE RUBY you ask? I don't fucking know.

and then Arcturus appeared and ruined the party by freaking out. This seminal Norwegian bunch of AVANT GARDENERS tramped about Europe in the dark nineties days and bugged people. Garm sang, Hellhammer drummed, and I was at school. Knowing little about it. It's an incestuous thing, Norwegian metal, and you'll find a veritable who's who of them swanning about the Arcturus family tree. Stepping on apples.

What happened to Anthrax in the nineties I hear you ask with barely any interest - well they got less silly and hired John Bush. That was it.

Groove metal.

What's that?

I don't know. It's what they call Pantera.

Why?

Not sure. Sounds good though.

Does it?

To me it does.

Why do you like it?

It's heavy.

Fair enough.

Animal by Pearl Jam - from that TRICKY second album - a short sharp blast of grungy fury that I'm rather fond of. It's basically Eddar Veddo (actual name, look it up) ranting about record company bosses. Or something. He liked to rant that boy. Now he likes to surf, which I understand is much harder to do and therefore more rewarding.

Ah... stoner. My favourite of all nineties musical movements - the heavy riffage, the grooves, the obligatory use of the word "stoner". By all accounts Orange Goblin are more drinkers than tokers - by god I love them hairy bastards. Also - possibly the best album title in recorded history.

What is this?! The Zakk Wylde show? No, no that would be awful. Pride & Glory are a sort of countrified metally type project by the bikery bloke - it's all good solid fun and great to play the popular drinking game "SPOT THE OVERUSE OF PINCH HARMONICS" ahh yea mamma lawd

Morphine. A sort of strange laid-back "low rock" trio from Massachusetts formed by the now-dead amazingly-named Mark Sandman whose sonorous tones and two-string slide bass playing make Morphine ALRIGHT WITH ME.

Talking of "low rock" no other early band from the early nineties make such a fucking horrendously muddy racket than White Zombie - culty as the day is long. Interesting fact: The album appeared in it's entirety on the soundtrack to "Way of the Warrior" an ultra violent beat-em-up on the rarely-seen 3DO console.

I mean... WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?! Why has it got a bright orange revolver?!

Lord of Putrefaction were Jus Oborn's first band (that's RIGHT Electric Wizard's Jus Oborn)ad it's foul funeral doom of the grimmest order. It was recorded in '91 for a split EP with Mortal Remains - who as far as I can tell never did anything ever again. None of them. They just dug holes and climbed in them and stayed there. The compilation record Pre Electric Wizard also contains two other pre-Electric Wizard bands "Eternal" and "They Grief Eternal" and is ordered backwards so it gets harder to listen to the further it goes on. Which is, you know, basically what the entire genre is about. Doom, it's a beautiful game.

...now for ANTI DOOM. The Black Crowes - a sort-of nineties revival blues band who produced feather-shakin' tamborine-tappin' retro rock for people who were FAR TOO TRENDY to like The Allman Brothers Band. That's alright with me though, lawdy mamma. After all, is this not a BOB MARLEY song?! Oh my my.

Look at that pretentious sod. It's Steve Vai - guitar botherer and producer of DISTINCTLY nineties sounds. If I had to define the early nineties gloss - that sort of eighties hangover with more fringes - I'd go here. Neat little tune is this.

THAT'S IT - THIS WAS THE NINETIES. Next week, we'll be dipping our face IN THE NOW


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