"Too High To Die" by the Meatpuppets is approximately their 8th album, from 1994. The Meatpuppets began their career as a folky, very sloppy, country-ish grunge band. they slowly changed their sound into a melodic, upbeat, sometimes spacey, alternative rock band, while still sticking to their grunge roots. Til this day the Meatpuppets are one of the most influenciable grunge bands of the 80's and 90's and the current years, and this album, IMO, is the best example of their ability.
The Meatpuppets:
-Curt Kirkwood: lead guitar and vocals
-Chris Kirkwood: bass and backing vocals
-Derrick Bostrom: drums
Track Listing:
1.)
Violet Eyes
one of their louder, faster, spacier songs on this album. the intro to the song is the perfect intro to the CD. its starts with a loud, harmonized "DUUUUUNNNNNNNN" of the guitars, bass, and drums. the vocals are like a mix of very drowzy, very cheery, and very airy. this song contains some of those all too familiar, but sometimes cool "noise" solos, made up of line noise, ultra sustained notes, and constant sliding.
2.)
Never To Be Found
this song contains a bit of their more recent style, with the less off-key vocals, but still uses their older styled folky sound. not bad, but im not that much of a fan of it. gets very irritating and repetitive after about 5 listens.
3.)
We Dont Exist
another "spacey" song, its very heavy, fast, and upbeat. it has a cool palm-muted guitar line in the verse, and the intro is an awesome high-pitched guitar-line, sort of like surf-rock on acid.
4.)
Severed Godess Hand
ive skipped over this song a fair share of times, but when i really got into it, i loved it. one of my favorites of this CD. very melodic and soft, but still happy and upbeat. the solo after the first chorus is very whistle/piano-like, and im not too sure if its a guitar with lots of effects, or a keyboard. this song really makes me think of driving on a summer day through a big green valley.
5.)
Flaming Heart
ive skipped over this song a LOT of times, but i just realized how good it really was. it is great. very similar to the previous song in many aspects, though.
6.)
Shine
a very soft, very happy, country-like song. this one i actually like. its pretty much a love song. it has a few blue-grass like elements, too.
7.)
Station
very goofy. VERY. their bassist demonstrates his awkward song writing in songs like this. this song also has worse recording quality than the other songs on the CD, but it still sounds fine.
8.)
Roof With A Hole
this song struck me when i first heard it. its just plain awesome. its very bluesy and depressing sounding, and has a good mix of an acoustic guitar with an electric.
9.)
Backwater
IMO the Meatpuppets best song ever. i love it. it captures a very upbeat, yet grungey kind of feeling, with one of my favorite lead riffs ever. the vocals in the verse a good, but when you hear the vocals in the chorus, you will be astounded. its hard to go from one of the Meatpuppets CD's from the early 80's and go to this, and realize they are still the same band.
10.)
Things
this song is a little heavier and more depressing. it has a gloomy, airy feel to it. im suprised at how well they mixed the acoustic with a VERY fuzzy distorted squeely guitar line.
11.)
Why?
a very soft, happy song. really makes you think of old memories for some reason. a sweet clean tone guitar riff, mixed a smooth drum line, and a simple yet perfectly fitting bassline that i love.
12.)
Evil Love
another song written by Chris, the bassist, and strangely, this song also has poorer recording quality. but the sound quality does not hinder the song at all. i frankly am amazed by this song. it has a very "punky" drumline, a fast, scratchy, chorded guitar-line, and a bassline that ties the rhythm and melody sections together perfectly.
13.)
Comin' Down
i dont like this song. i just dont like it. it sounds almost like a campfire folk song, i could honestly picture a camp-councelor teaching this to boy-scouts.
i give this CD a 4/5. anybody who likes alt. rock or grunge should pick this up immediately. despite its VERY few flaws, it is worth every penny. if it had not had Comin' Down or Never To Be Found, i would have given it a 5.
