Belly, "Star," Sire. I was never a big fan of Throwing Muses, so when Tonya Donnelly struck out on her own with Belly, I didn't pay much attention. That is until I saw the video for "Feed The Tree." Yes, she was pretty hot, but the music was the most appealing element. Donnelly took some of the strange quirks from her Throwing Muses days and combined them with a more commercial (and more listenable) pop sensibility. The rest of the album ranges from the strange to the wonderful. It's not solid all the way through, but it features some excellent pop songs like "Gepetto" and "Slow Dog." An interesting start to a band that would unfortunately only release one more brilliant album before breaking up.
Juliana Hatfield, "Become What You Are," Atlantic, Mammoth. Juliana hit her stride commercially and creatively with this album. The single "My Sister" was big on the new alternative radio stations that popped up in Nirvana's wake. "Spin The Bottle" was a neat song that was later featured on the "Reality Bites" soundtrack. And a third nifty single, "For The Birds," received a little MTV airplay as well. Hatfield sets the tone for the album with the powerful opening track "Supermodel." We get the idea that she's not a dim-witted beauty queen, even though she sometimes received that label in alternative circles. Among empowered female rock stars, Juliana was one of the most tuneful and poppy and therefore one of my favorites. "Become What You Are" features most of her best work in the 90s before she slid slowly into tuneless and rather boring hard rock.
Robyn Hitchcock and the Egyptians, "Respect," A&M. The last album Hitchcock released with the Egyptians was also one of the most interesting. The album is one of Hitchcock's most produced, featuring layers of atmospheric keyboards, reverbs and sounds. This adds an interesting touch to some of Robyn's best songs of the decade. The singles "Driving Aloud (Radio Storm)" and "The Yip Song" are the album's most upbeat moments. The rest of the CD is rather mellow with songs like "Arms Of Love," "Railway Shoes," "When I Was Dead," and "The Wreck of the Arthur Lee" sounding at times eerie and at times beautiful. The production seems to throw most Hitchcock fans, however, a closer listen reveals one of his most satisfying albums. Only the ridiculous "Wafflehead" (which takes Hitchcock's strange humor to an annoying extreme) gets skipped on my CD player.
Jellyfish, "Spilt Milk," Charisma. I was amazed after reading a review of "Spilt Milk" in the All Music Guide that called the album an overproduced and inferior follow up to Jellyfish's debut "Bellybutton." To these ears, "Spilt Milk" is not only a logical step forward, but a giant leap into the realm of brilliant pop recordings. The debut has an ambitious feel that is never quite fully realized, due possibly the band's lack of experience in a recording studio. This glorious pop vision comes to full fruition in the dense orchestrated production of their follow up.
It's not only the addition of strings and other assorted sounds, but also the band's song writing and musicianship that really comes to a fore here. Andy Sturmer really shines on this album with amazing pop vocals and great drumming. Roger Manning acts as a perfect collaborator, adding excellent backing vocals and keyboards. But the real star of the album is the Manning / Sturmer song writing team. Their influences range from The Beatles and The Beach Boys to 70s power pop, glam and guitar rock. While they clearly wear their musical influences on their collective sleeves, their clever lyrical style is something the band can proudly call its own.
The Pet Sounds-like interlude on "The Ghost at Number One," the obvious Queen references in "Joining a Fan Club" and the guitar glam of "All Is Forgiven" reflect obvious influences for the band. Tracks like the polka inspired "Bye Bye Bye," the pop hodgepodge of "Sabrina, Paste and Plato," and the chaotic circus sound of "Brighter Day" show the band moving into new territory. "Spilt Milk" has an incredible flow, with a dreamy theme throughout the CD that starts with crickets chirping in the night and then breaks into a new day a with the finale of Brighter Day.
It's unfortunate that Jellyfish broke up only a year after making this album, because since their passing, few pop bands have come close the ambitious heights reached on "Spilt Milk." It remains something of a mystery as to where the band might have traveled next in light of the criminal lack of solo material from its main members. Andy has fallen off the face of the musical planet, while Roger's Imperial Drag has given Jellyfish fans just a taste of what once was. "Spilt Milk" stands as one of my top albums of the 1990s and without question one of the greatest pop albums ever recorded.
Lemonheads, "Come On Feel The Lemonheads," Atlantic. The followup to "It's A Shame About Ray" found Dando reproducing a similar sound with the same sidemen. The results were generally pleasing but a bit more slick and commercial sounding (probably the idea of someone at the record company.) The single "Into Your Arms" was a pleasant alt-radio hit, while "The Great Big No" and "Down About It" reflect the pop brilliance of the previous album. The rest of the disc ranges from solid pop numbers to average and sometimes mediocre fare. While this one has since become a mainstay in the $3 section of used CD stores, it's still worthwhile for pop fans, especially at that price.
Liz Phair, "Exile In Guyville," Matador. Phair made a name for herself on the alternative scene with the frank expression of female sensibility, sexuality and emotion in her lyrics. Some were amazed by her references to blowjobs and the use of the word "cunt" in one song, while others called her the Patti Smith of the 90s. While her lyrics keep things interesting, again it's the music that really puts this album on my list. Phair has a knack for great pop hooks in songs like "Help Me Mary," "Never Said" and "Fuck and Run." Much of the rest of the album finds Phair singing slow and atmospheric songs behind bare arrangements of electric guitar and keyboards. At times this is fascinating and at times quite boring. She eventually abandons this practice on future albums for better or worse, depending on your point of view. While I prefer her later work, this album is quite solid and definitely worthwhile.
PM Dawn, "The Bliss Album," Gee Street. PM Dawn continues their journey into music-oriented rap with great results. Listen for an interesting cover of the Beatles' "Norwegian Wood."
The Pooh Sticks, "Million Seller," BMG. - The Pooh Sticks released a couple albums of silly pop before this album with mixed results. With "Million Seller" the band toned down the "cute" aspects of their sound and especially their lyrics to create a great pop album. It kicks off with solid power pop tunes like "Let The Good Times Roll" and "The World Is Turning On." While the cute elements remain in some songs "Susan Sleepwalking" and "Jelly On A Plate," there are some excellent Beatlesque tracks like "Rainbow Rider" and "That Was The Greatest Song." One of my favorite albums of this year, "Million Seller" is chock full of those catchy pop hooks that you can't forget.
Matthew Sweet, "Altered Beast," Zoo. The highly anticipated follow-up to "Girlfriend" was a dark and depressing record. "Altered Beast" finds Matthew Sweet exploring his dark side, musically and lyrically. It took me several years to really become comfortable with the album, and that was due mainly in part to listening to the bootleg demo versions of many songs before the dark production set in. When I finally developed an appreciation for Sweet's intentions, it was an album I had to start listening to all over again. The singles "The Ugly Truth" and "Time Capsule" are brighter highlights, but there is much to be found within Sweet's dark world. "The Devil With The Green Eyes" and "Someone To Pull The Trigger" are brooding pop songs with memorable hooks. I listen to the harder rock songs like "Dinosaur Act" and "Knowing People" with an evil pleasure. There are some moments of beauty as well, like the sweet vocal line of "Do It Again" and the piano finale of "Evergreen." While this is not one of Matthew's most accessible albums, fans will find it quite rewarding.
Pete Townshend, "Psychoderelict," Atlantic. Another of Townshend's rock operas that was based on some of the themes from the aborted "Lifehouse" project (the one that spawned the classic "Who's Next" album.) While the story line is interesting, it is at times abstract and obscure as Pete's projects often are. The story grew on me over time as did much of the music. However, the story receives more attention than the actual songs. To make matters worse, some of the songs are mediocre at best. But the few great moments here outweigh the bad. "English Boy" is Pete at his best, "Let's Get Pretentious" is pleasant and "Fakin' It" is nifty. The segments of "Lifehouse" demos for "Baba O'Reilly" are historically interesting, although the complete versions are now available on a boxed set. Not a great Townshend project, but certainly welcome for a hardcore fan like myself in 1993, when the last decent album he had released was 1985's "White City: A Novel."
Paul Westerberg, "14 Songs," Sire. Paul Westerberg's solo career looked promising when he had a couple of hits from the "Singles" soundtrack. His first full-length fulfilled that promise and then some. "14 Songs" is a wonderful collection of Paul's songwriting styles up to that point that doesn't strive to provide the glossy, made-for-radio hit. From the rocking ("World Class Fad,") to the sarcastic ("Mannequin Shop" and "Silver Naked Ladies,") to the beautiful ("Black-eyed Susan" and "First Glimmer") this album has it all. This is Paul's best work of the 90s, worthwhile for fans of the Replacements or those who know Westerberg only from his alternative radio hits.