Review Summary: Alienation, inner groove distortion and property law. [The right of self-defense pt. 2]
The term alienation could be interpreted as estrangement or detachment from the community or the surrounding environment. Yet, when one is looking at the spin of the vinyl through bare eyes, he could picture the grooves as coaxial cycles of regressive diameters. The outer cycles seem more detached from each other with plenty of space to move. The producer might justify it: superior appeals, the catchiness… marquee or plain opening act value. The cycles condense as we move towards the centre; the proximity of the inner grooves -apparent company- is the actual reason that can bury them under a sea of distortion. Some seem to lack the space necessary to express themselves, and therefore act over protectively towards what little they have.
Switch sides and repeat.
Greg Sage is neither a misanthrope nor a hermit. He has an affinity towards those who were caught inside the vortex, the ones who could not be heard. He has a soft spot for those with the inner groove distortion - longing for clarity as the opening tracks on each side. Moreover, Sage knows that the underground cycles have always set the higher pitch and volume... frequency standards for their surroundings or the surface.
Static.
Fittingly enough, Wipers underwent a hiatus as the '80s drew to a close, while the grooves became a series of zeros and ones, as global aesthetics plundered by a sea of glam, hair spray, and artificial white denture. Some years later, the first three albums of the Oregonians found their way a few miles up the sacred mosaic and were included in the top 50 list of one possessed with a more unkempt taste. More importantly, their influence resonated as their essence resurfaced through his tunes. Fortunately, when it pertains to property law, alienation refers to the legal transfer of title of ownership to another party.
Carefully tucked into the sleeve and back to the shelf, in a non-alphabetical order, somewhere between The Sonics and Nirvana.
In conclusion, I will not risk a fine or being reprimanded, by stating that this 1983 album merits a place amongst the top punk albums ever recorded, nor am I claiming that the placement on the above shelf suggests ranking. Nonetheless, for what it’s worth, “Over the Edge” can provide a valid musical case. The rich minerals actuating tectonic movement under the Pacific North West or elsewhere, over time - in one form or another - are meant to find their way and govern the apparent surface, rightfully claiming their own, distorted marquee spot.
