I once read an article in which Steve Albini said an album should start with the three best songs, starting with the strongest – or something to that effect. I’ve read a lot of things Steve Albini’s said, and he’s said a lot, which means locating or even verifying the quotation now has proved impossible. Anyway, whatever the sequencing of an album, you need a strong opener, and ‘Forever Sounds’ has one which sets the bar high. ‘Dropping Houses’ punches heavy with a lumbering bass groove and hefty drumming. Lyrically, it’s bitter-bitter (rather than bittersweet), but Lisa Walker’s vocals are as sweetly melodic as they are bruised. Careening without pause into the chunky grunger ‘She’s Killed Hundreds’. With raging guitars and a killer hook, it’s one hell of an opening.
‘Donny’s Death Scene’ slows the pace and proportionally increases the emotional poignence without resorting to mushiness. The amped-up alt-country leanings are reminiscent of Thalia Zedeck and Come.
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The swampy post-blues rumble of ‘Hand of God’ and the churning garage bluster of ‘Sidewalk Sale’ radiate different kinds of energy, and the penultimate track, ‘Majestic—12’ is a sparse, haunting sliver of reflection.
There isn’t a duff track on the album, and when you pack 10 top-drawer tunes together with no filler, you’ve got a killer record on your hands.
Wussy Online
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