Disc of the day
Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley
Magnificent late-'50s singles round-up that keeps on giving.
Features Disc of the day
The Jesus And Mary Chain
Psychocandy
(Blanco Y Negro, 1985)
East Kilbride's premier all-male girl-group's titanic debut.
CDs were taking off in a big way and the smooth sounds of Linn drums, the Fairlight sampler and gated reverb were everywhere. How bracing it was, and still is, to be exposed to Hurricane Psychocandy. Channelling beehive'd pop fizz and S&M Warhol drugginess, the Jesus & Mary Chain conjured a mid-'60s New York of the mind, unhinged by mini-cyclones of feedback, intoxicated by sugared melodies and driven on by relentless, one-armed drums (thanks, Bobby Gillespie), while singer Jim Reid breathily daydreamed of being infected with parasites, feeling quick in his leather boots and unreal girls called Honey and Cindy. This was pop and experimentation in disharmonious harmony with itself, vivid and three-dimensional as it shimmered and raged on such being-fed-into-a-screaming-maw-of-slashing-knives triumphs as The Living End or Never Understand. There are moments of poetry as well - try Reid's plea, "Don't want you to need me" at the end of The Hardest Walk for a teenage breakup tune at odds with their destructive, dark side. Speaking of which, their early career saw rucks, tabloid thrill-seeking and suspicions of blasphemy (mooted B-side Jesus Suck suggested those, at least, were justified), but such concerns seem a long way away in 2009, especially when compared to this.
Ian Harrison
Posted by Ross_Bennett at 6:00 AM GMT 24/09/2009
Further Listening
The Jesus & Mary Chain – Darklands (Blanco Y Negro, 1987)
My Bloody Valentine – Loveless (Creation, 1991)
The Velvet Underground – White Light/ White Heat (Verve, 1968)
Previous Disc of the day
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Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley
Magnificent late-'50s singles round-up that keeps on giving.
6:00 AM GMT 20/11/2009
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Isley Brothers - The Brothers: Isley
The Cincinnati siblings bed into their heavy period.
6:00 AM GMT 18/11/2009
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Lee Morgan - Search For The New Land
The trumpeter's most soulful excursion entrances MOJO messageboarder.
6:00 AM GMT 16/11/2009
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