After a brief period where the number of discs from the eighties and nineties were tied, we seem to be in the midst of a run on the nineties.
Here's a disc that I always enjoy more than I think I'm going to.
Disc 182 is...Heated
Artist: Big Sugar
Year of Release: 1998
What’s Up With The Cover?: It's a head shot cover - a giant picture of frontman and guitarist Gordie Johnson. He's all sweaty, but not in a gross way.
How I Came To Know It: I saw a video on MuchMusic for "Better Get Used To It". I really dug the song (and the hot girl dancing about in the cowboy hat didn't hurt either) so I bought the album.
How It Stacks Up: Big Sugar apparently have six albums (thank you interweb powers) but I only have the one. Of the single album that I own, it is my favourite.
Rating: 3 stars.
Big Sugar is a Canadian band. I don't let that influence how much I like them, but it is fun to note.
This album is rock and roll in pure form, without a lot of window dressing. Driving guitar riffs, pounding drums best heard at high volume. There is a bit of that reverb guitar sound that was pretty common in the late nineties, but they use it well, and it fits in nicely with their songs. There is also the faintest tint of a reggae beat in a few songs, but it is a very far cry from actual reggae.
As for the songs, "Better Get Used To It" is a modern classic, which I expect will survive on radio play for many decades to come. I won't know though, since I almost never listen to the radio - that's just how I imagine it would be. It is a five star song, despite having a bit of that disturbing "No More Love At Your Convenience" vibe I just mentioned in my recent review of Alice Cooper's "Lace and Whiskey."
I suspect "Better Get Used To It" - which was a minor hit in Canada (top 20, but never top 10) is all most people will know about "Heated", and that's a shame. There are a lot of other great tracks on this record.
I particularly like "100 Cigarettes" a song about a guy waiting for his girl to call, and nervously smoking 'rette after 'rette (thanks to my brother for the expression - 'rette')
Although not one of my favourite tracks musically, I enjoy "Turn The Lights On" for its subject matter. It is a song about someone asking their partner to wake them up when they get home late for a booty call. Chosen mode to wake them up: turn the lights on.
Maybe it is an age thing, but I don't think it is a high percentage play to come home late (and likely drunk) turn the bedroom lights on and try to interest your partner in amorous pursuits. In fact, it is probably more hazardous to your health than smoking those 100 cigarettes. I catch hell for just turning the hall light on.
There are a good collection of other tracks with less interesting topics, but that rock just as hard, including a remake of B.T.O.'s "Let It Ride" that I prefer over the original.
On the downside, I have a couple minor quibbles. First, the songs when you upload the album are all labelled incorrectly. Argh. Also, the final track, "Heart Refuse To Pound" would be an OK song, but it has one of those nineties 'hidden tracks' where a bunch of dead air is recorded, followed by something that sounds like a jazz odyssey crossed with trance music. 12:55 later, I was not pleased.
Overall though, this album is a solid bit of rock and roll, and even more than solid as a driving album. I was even tempted to give it 4 stars, but I decided it was a strong 3 instead.
Best tracks: Better Get Used To It, Girl Watcher, Hammer in My Hand, 100 Cigarettes, Let It Ride.
Here's a disc that I always enjoy more than I think I'm going to.
Disc 182 is...Heated
Artist: Big SugarYear of Release: 1998
What’s Up With The Cover?: It's a head shot cover - a giant picture of frontman and guitarist Gordie Johnson. He's all sweaty, but not in a gross way.
How I Came To Know It: I saw a video on MuchMusic for "Better Get Used To It". I really dug the song (and the hot girl dancing about in the cowboy hat didn't hurt either) so I bought the album.
How It Stacks Up: Big Sugar apparently have six albums (thank you interweb powers) but I only have the one. Of the single album that I own, it is my favourite.
Rating: 3 stars.
Big Sugar is a Canadian band. I don't let that influence how much I like them, but it is fun to note.
This album is rock and roll in pure form, without a lot of window dressing. Driving guitar riffs, pounding drums best heard at high volume. There is a bit of that reverb guitar sound that was pretty common in the late nineties, but they use it well, and it fits in nicely with their songs. There is also the faintest tint of a reggae beat in a few songs, but it is a very far cry from actual reggae.
As for the songs, "Better Get Used To It" is a modern classic, which I expect will survive on radio play for many decades to come. I won't know though, since I almost never listen to the radio - that's just how I imagine it would be. It is a five star song, despite having a bit of that disturbing "No More Love At Your Convenience" vibe I just mentioned in my recent review of Alice Cooper's "Lace and Whiskey."
I suspect "Better Get Used To It" - which was a minor hit in Canada (top 20, but never top 10) is all most people will know about "Heated", and that's a shame. There are a lot of other great tracks on this record.
I particularly like "100 Cigarettes" a song about a guy waiting for his girl to call, and nervously smoking 'rette after 'rette (thanks to my brother for the expression - 'rette')
Although not one of my favourite tracks musically, I enjoy "Turn The Lights On" for its subject matter. It is a song about someone asking their partner to wake them up when they get home late for a booty call. Chosen mode to wake them up: turn the lights on.
Maybe it is an age thing, but I don't think it is a high percentage play to come home late (and likely drunk) turn the bedroom lights on and try to interest your partner in amorous pursuits. In fact, it is probably more hazardous to your health than smoking those 100 cigarettes. I catch hell for just turning the hall light on.
There are a good collection of other tracks with less interesting topics, but that rock just as hard, including a remake of B.T.O.'s "Let It Ride" that I prefer over the original.
On the downside, I have a couple minor quibbles. First, the songs when you upload the album are all labelled incorrectly. Argh. Also, the final track, "Heart Refuse To Pound" would be an OK song, but it has one of those nineties 'hidden tracks' where a bunch of dead air is recorded, followed by something that sounds like a jazz odyssey crossed with trance music. 12:55 later, I was not pleased.
Overall though, this album is a solid bit of rock and roll, and even more than solid as a driving album. I was even tempted to give it 4 stars, but I decided it was a strong 3 instead.
Best tracks: Better Get Used To It, Girl Watcher, Hammer in My Hand, 100 Cigarettes, Let It Ride.
2 comments:
"Turn the Lights On" was a minor radio song - I remember it being played.
I find it funny that this song led to a big argument over dinner last night about turning the bedroom light, hall light, etc. on. Thanks for turning the light off this morning!
Find Big Sugar's early stuff - 500 lbs and the Dear M.F. ep, which contains a rather experimental and unusual track on it. I've hated everything they've done after this (left their crunchy blues sound for a more refined stadium-friendly pop), but have to commend them for doing their subsequent albums in both french and english.
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