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[ Welcome Back, Old Friends - May
5, 2001 ]
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Welcome Back, Old Friends
written by Steve Reynolds
 I've
got a confession to make - I'm out of MTV's target demo.
They're not looking to play music that appeals to a 31-year-old
male. They're looking for an 18-year-old female (and being
my age, who isn't?) to entertain. The music I listened to
in my late teens and early 20s was on the fringe of the
mainstream back then. But, quite surprisingly, some of these
artists have returned in 2001 to make this old man feel
like he's stepped into a time machine.
 Seattle's
Young Fresh Fellows have made some of the wittiest rock
records of the past 15 years (check out 1987's
Men Who Loved Music and the hysterical "Amy Grant"),
but have been silent since 1992. Singer-guitarist Scott
McCaughey has spent the time touring the world with R.E.M.
and cultivating another group, The Minus 5. Both sides of
McCaughey's musical vision are served on a double disc featuring
separate albums from both bands. YFF's Because
We Hate You is 40 minutes of outright happy music,
which is harder and harder to find these days. Silly songs
about drums ("My Drum Set"), Krispy Kreme employees ("Mamie
Dunn, Employee of the Month") and flower shops ("Lonely
Spartanburg Flower Stall") fit snugly next to a cover of
the 70s pop gem "I Wonder What's She's Doing Tonite." Because
We Hate You also features one of the best songs ever written
about a tour, "Good Times Rock 'N' Roll," that should be
a staple of any mix tape you make this year. The Minus 5's
Let the War Against Music Begin
(featuring an all star cast of R.E.M's Peter Buck, Robyn
Hitchcock, The Posies and more) shows off a slightly odder
and darker side of McCaughey's songwriting while still delivering
gem after tuneful gem. The album is billed as "YFF
vs. Minus 5," but in the end, I say YFF wins. Overall,
anyone that gets to sample this double album is a winner.
[ buy Because
We Hate You/Let The War Against Music Begin or more
from Young Fresh Fellows or The
Minus 5 ]
Blake Babies was the band that Juliana Hatfield led before
evolving into the mid-90s alterna-pop poster girl. The trio,
featuring Hatfield on bass, John Strom on guitar and Freda
Love on drums, made two studio albums of rough pop songs that
put Hatfield's squeaky baby girl vocals front and center.
Last year the group unexpectedly reconnected, creating God
Bless the Blake Babies. They haven't tried to duplicate
what they did 10 years ago - they sound like veterans that
have never been apart. Hatfield's vocals have lost the rough
edges over the years, gaining a fuller and warmer sound that
shines on tracks likes "Until I Almost Died" and "Nothing
Ever Happens." Strom even gets in on the singing this time
around, harmonizing sweetly with Hatfield on "Baby Gets High"
and taking the lead on "Picture Perfect." God
Bless the Blake Babies is the strongest project Hatfield
has worked on in over 6 years - hopefully she'll give it more
than just one album and an oh-so-brief reunion tour. [ buy
God
Bless The Blake Babies or more
from Blake Babies ]
 Lloyd
Cole hasn't released an album since 1995's Love
Story, and to be brutally honest, has never released
an album as good as his 80s work with the Commotions. The
Negatives changes all of that. Cole's sharp lyrical
wit and ear for a fine melody have returned with a vengeance.
Songs like "Impossible Girl" and "Man on the Verge" stick
in your head after just one listen. Cole gets as lighthearted
as his ever has been on "What's Wrong With This Picture?,"
which is the standout track on an album filled with many highlights.
This return to form must be due, in part, to Cole's work with
a set band for the first time since the Commotions. The Negatives
(the band) feature two musicians that have their own careers
- guitarist Jill Sobule (of "I Kissed a Girl" fame) and bassist
Dave Derby, leader of the late Boston band The Dambuilders
and currently heading up Brilliantine. It seems obvious to
these ears that working with two fine songwriters helped Cole
recapture that missing spark and (pardon the obvious pun)
turn a negative into a positive. [ buy The
Negatives or more
from Lloyd Cole ]
Official Sites: The
Young Fresh Fellows/Minus 5 at Mammoth Records | Blake
Babies | Lloyd
Cole
May 2001
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©
Figgle 2001-2003