Ah, memories. This song is full of em for me. Or maybe it’s me that’s full of memories when this song is nearby.
Most Canadians above a certain age have heard of I Mother Earth, and plenty of them know many of the songs from 1996’s “Scenery and Fish” off by heart. This album came out when I was with my ex, and I played it as often as I could. My ex couldn’t stand it, so I think I like it even more as a consequence today.
This is one of the best albums to have been released in the 90s by any band. Anyone who has heard it is probably agreeing with me. This song was a single, and I remember seeing it on MuchMusic very often. Being poor back in the late 90s… well… I still am… anyway… being poor and living alone with my ex and spending all our money on beer, we didn’t go spending money on frivolous things like CDs. The TV with MuchMusic brought us our rock and roll, and I think I caught a window of decent modern music… before the likes of Limp Bizkit and Nicklecrack.
Shudder.
I did buy this one on CD, because it’s so fucking awesome. Plus, some of the lyrics from this song reminded me of fembots. What doesn’t remind me of fembots you ask? There are things actually. But the lyrics “But they came and they held me up and felt me up and left” always made me imagine sexy female robots from outer space coming to get me.
Not a bad thought, some might agree.
My ex and I actually had sex to this song… to the first half of this album. I don’t remember much of the experience because we were both VERY fucking smashed, hammered and knackered, not to mention drunk. My ex had “issues” and could only have sex when she was drunk.
Ever wanted to go back in time and cock-block yourself? Tell your younger self not to sleep with so-and-so because it’s not worth it? I’m sure I’m not alone in this. But back to the song I will go.
This band was fucking phenomenal. I said back to the song, didn’t I? I think I said all I could really say about it when I mentioned the lyrics that made me think of fembots. So about the band: great musicians.
The guitarist is one of those who actually can play melodies in his solos, and he’s got a very good sense of melody at that. He’s even got Sense of Henry. Google that if you don’t get it.
The drummer is also mainly concerned with playing what fits the song. He’s not just a time-keeper and he’s not one of those drummers who tries to sound like he has 4 arms. I like drummers like that too, but some of their constant fiddling and filling gets tiring after you’ve heard it repeat 30 times in one song.
The bass player is good. I define a good bass player as one who doesn’t play shit that makes you say “What the fuck is he doing?”. You’re supposed to not be noticed too much when you play bass. I’m not talking about doubling up what the guitars are doing, but playing something that fits. I find it hard to describe what I consider good bass playing. Let’s talk about something else.
The singer. Ah, the singer. Edwin’s voice has all kinds of character. Too bad for all of us he became somewhat of a heartthrob to the ladies, and quit the band to pursue a solo career. Yeah, it didn’t go anywhere. The band got a guy who sounds like Edwin after a few years of 3-pack-a-day smoking. I like the other guy’s voice too, but the band never had as strong material as they did on “Scenery and Fish”.
Popular music quickly soured to my tastes after the late 90s. There’s not a lot of new stuff I’m excited about. I’m rediscovering old 70s rock that I collected back when I was younger, along with some really excellent progressive rock. Being able to freshen up the sound as I do makes it sound even better to my ears. And commuting 1 hour to and from work each day of public transit affords me the time to just sit back and listen to some tunes twice a day.
Also, today’s date – 01 02 2010 – is a palindrome.