Review Summary: It’s not that Big of a Wreck, quite the opposite really.
1997 in music was a somewhat typical year. The echoes of the alternative rock explosion of the early 90s were still in the air, though the popularity of the genre was on a downward trend. In terms of major records, a certain diversity was present:
Foo Fighters,
Faith No More,
U2,
Oasis, and others all released long-awaited follow-ups with varying degree of success. There was also a number of intriguing debuts by new bands. It is into this category that the first record by Canada’s Big Wreck falls. The album’s name was
In Loving Memory Of….
The LP clearly sounds like a product of its time. The musical framework is alternative rock with its overloaded, fuzzy guitars and somber lyrics. However, the band refuses to remain bound by strict genre boundaries in their quest to find a distinctive sound of their own. That is why the record is peppered with elements of Southern rock (represented, among other things, by occasional slide guitar) and a smidgen of blues. Overall, in their approach, Big Wreck is evidently more inspired by ‘70s rock pioneers than by their own contemporaries. This is quite possibly the reason for the lack of polished pop hooks aimed at an unpretentious audience, requiring instead a more reflective immersion into the atmosphere and textures of the songs.
For those with fleeting knowledge of Big Wreck, the first two songs that open the album –
The Oaf and
That Song – may sound familiar, and not surprisingly so, as both were released as singles and enjoyed considerable popularity. The contemplative ballad
Blown Wide Open belongs there as well, having also been released to promote the album. Following these, the subsequent tracks begin to blend together to a certain degree, perhaps due to a lack of distinct elements to give them more personality. This sameness slowly starts to dissipate around
Under the Lighthouse, after which Big Wreck unleashes a solid triplet consisting of
Fall Through the Cracks,
By the Way, and
Between You and I. The final track,
Overemphasizing, is also worthy of note, particularly for its vocals: on the one hand, Ian Thornley delivers a heartfelt performance, but at the same time, it feels almost as if he is parodying the vocal style popularized by
Eddie Vedder, which later became a cliché due to numerous imitators.
This illustrates quite clearly the main issue with the album, which prevents it from being rated higher than simply “good”. And this has less to do with a handful of filler tracks in the middle and more to do with the fact that only a select few songs feel truly cohesive. As for the rest of
In Loving Memory Of…, it possesses a certain unpolished quality. By no means is this the fault of the musicians, as they know their way around their instruments, and listening to their playing is a genuine pleasure (particularly the expressive moments featuring slide guitar). Rather, it’s that these various compositional choices do not always gel. This might have to do with the fact that the album is essentially a collection of demos (as Thornley noted in one interview) that the band submitted to their label for appraisal and which was later released following a firm decision by management. This explains the sense of inconsistency the LP leaves behind.
One more thing that should be noted is Thornley’s voice. Despite an initial, superficial similarity to the inimitable
Chris Cornell, one soon realizes that the Big Wreck vocalist is not a clone, but a distinct entity in his own right. Ian possesses individual tones and emotional palette, so regardless of a certain rawness to his vocals on this album, he definitely has character and uniqueness. And even though
In Loving Memory Of… is an uneven record, one thing is certain: the foundation is set, and the signature Big Wreck sound takes root on this album.
