Photo by Chris Glass
The
Breeders
LS
XX
4AD
Last
Splash didn’t sound like anything else in 1993, and that still is true 20 years
later. This box set marking the 20th anniversary of its release
makes that clear, as well that every single song in the set is indispensable,
because that’s how much of a classic landmark this album is.
The
foundations of Last Splash were laid with Pod, released in 1990, ostensibly a
collaboration between Kim Deal and Tanya Donelly, rounded out by bassist
Josephine Wiggs from The Perfect Disaster, and Britt Walford
of Slint. It’s
roughly melodic quirky punk, musically and lyrically, and with Kim and Tanya,
showing that they were more than what they’d been in their main bands. It’s a fine debut, but one that only
hints of what was to come.
The Safari EP followed in 1992, with a
slightly different lineup. Kim’s sister Kelley was now in the band, having
learned on the fly how to play guitar, and drummer Jim Macpherson. Tanya left the band to form Belly. The overall sound is more
melodic, but still retains the quirks. The Kim/Kelley co-write “Do You Love Me
Now” is the standout track here.
sweet, gentle, lovelorn, and starts a theme that would become more
pronounced on Last Splash, of unrequited love and lust, or requited love now
gone, wishing there was more. There is also a fine cover of The Who’s “So Sad
About Us.”
Last Splash, released
in 1993, exploded into an immediate hit, catapulted by “Cannonball.” That song, the finest of that year for
me, takes on so many meanings. Unrequited love and lust, wanting someone badly,
not sure if they want you, not sure of anything at all, and hoping that you get
clarity at some point. Wishing you’re the “coo-coo“ and “cannonball,” the
object of interest of the other person, that you’re not the “last splash.” “Divine
Hammer” is a variation on that theme, wanting to find love. “Do You Love me
Now,” when you loved someone once, are now apart, and want them back. Even more melodic, but not pop in
the traditional sense, the album put up two more hits, the sweet, lovely “Divine Hammer” and the revved up “Saints” about good times at the fair,
my second favorite track on the album. All the hits deserved every bit of
airplay they got.
The Deal sisters’
harmonies perfectly complement each other. Kelley is the guitar god to end all
guitar gods. Wiggs, with her famous intro to “Cannonball,” and she and
MacPherson are fantastic throughout.
Kim sounds on fire when she takes the lead vocal, and sizzles on guitar,
and Kelley’s “I just Wanna Get Along” establishes her as a world-class
songwriter and singer. Carrie
Bradley’s violin on “Driving On 9” is also a standout moment, a change of pace,
on a song that approaches country. Not for nothing did Kurt Cobain praise this
band.
The
live disk The Stockholm Syndrome, was recorded in Sweden in 1994, the band’s
last European tour for that year. The first seven tracks were from a fan club
CD, the other nine unreleased tracks from the same show. Sloppy in a good way,
frenetic, ferocious, but always friendly and funny, it’s the band at their high
energy best. Kim’s stage banter is
cool, and fun, as is Wiggs doing the intro to Saints. The band attacks their instruments with gusto, and the crowd
eats it up. An excellent recording
in every way.
When
I saw the band on their tour earlier this year in Philadelphia, they were
tighter and more precise, without sacrificing any of their energy. Kim played acoustic for some of the
songs, a good surprise, as it gave the songs new textures. Kelley roared and
revved up her guitar like a Harley to complement Kim’s playing. Almost twin
lead guitars. Jo Wiggs’ playing was skillful, as was Jim’s drumming. And as on
the live disk, the band was friendly and funny, happy to be onstage, and
playing for a sold out house. I’d never seen the band back in the day, so this
was a treat for me, and one of the best concerts I ever saw.
The
first five tracks from the demos/rarities disk are from a BBC radio session on
July 24, 1993 and available for the first time. The rest are the demos of Last
Splash, recorded in November 1992. The BBC session has the energy toned down a
little, but the band is very focused, and the relative quiet of the music shows
their chops. They could play rings around most bands, and that’s still true
today.
“Grunggee,”
which is the demo of "Cannonball," as rough and unfinished as it is, shows how
inspired their ideas were musically, and lyrically. The other demos are much the same way. They’d caught
lightning in a bottle, and knew it. These songs have solid foundations, and
also show them at their most punk rock.
The
next three EPs are some more fun. First is Cannonball, centered around that
song, an alternate punky mix of “No Aloha,” a funny, out and proud cover of Aerosmith’s
“Lord of the Thighs” sung by Josephine, and “900” which is kind of grungey. This is the playful side of the band. I
smiled all through the EP.
The Divine Hammer EP has the single mix of the song, with the vocals and guitars
emphasized, and while this version is interesting to listen to, it flattens out
the magic of the original version.
“Hovern’” is more punk rock. “I can’t Help It (If I’m Still In Love With
You)” is just Kim and Kelly playing a country/folk song that is reminiscent of
Katryna and Narissa Nields, and “Do You Love Me Now JR?” where J Mascus duets with Kim. More smiling from me. How great that
even the tracks surrounding the singles are just as good as what made the cut
for Last Splash. If you want to
hear more of the Nields, who have very Breeders-like harmonies but in a modern
folk context, their current album The Full Catastrophe is the place to
start.
The
last EP, Head to Toe, is more punk rock, from covers of GBV’s “Shocker In
Gloomtown,” Dinosaur Jr.’s “The
Freed Pig” the growling title track, and an alternative version of Saints,
rougher and somewhat disjointed compared to the version on Last Splash. I prefer the Last Splash version, as it
has more propulsion. All three EP
are great, and treats for whoever can’t get enough.
The
24-page booklet that accompanies the box set has a lot of cool photos, graphics
and comments from the band about the making of Last Splash. The comments from
the band, and people like Kim Gordon, and J Mascus are informative and
instructive, especially when it comes to the famous video of “Cannonball.” Even though I’m not one
for videos in general, I’ve always loved the clip for “Cannonball” for its
terrific imagery. The great
graphics extends to the box set cover and individual sleeve artwork by Vaughan
Oliver, whose starting point was the original cover artwork for Last Splash.
His upgrade is very pleasing to the eye, and perfectly in keeping with the
spirit of the music.
So
what’s the legacy of Last Splash? That there aren’t more bands around to day
that have that spirit of wild abandon, the off-the-cuff feel of music at its
most organic. So many bands, while great at what they do, aren’t really
adventurous, in finding something new to work with, in the mad rush to reclaim
the past, instead of pushing things forward. Make no mistake, I’m not suggesting Breeders clone bands,
but what I’m saying is that the whole attitude of “everything’s been done, so
there’s no way we can do anything original,” is cynical and defeatist, and is
helping kill the music. The
Breeders never had that attitude. While they knew what they were doing, they
also knew they were making a statement about how rock could be played. But
these days, I don’t really hear these kind of statements, or at least not often
enough.
I’m
not whining. I love today’s indie rock.
But there’s got to be more to good music than good songs. More magic,
more creativity. Naturally,
you can’t predict the future, but the fact that Last Splash sounds like nothing
else today gives me hope that in the future, people will shake off that
attitude and make music that takes things in new directions. That there were so many young fans at
the show I saw is one indication of that. Let them start bands, using the
spirit of the album as their guide, and let’s make everything new again. Really
new, not just an update.
The
Breeders are touring all of this year. Take the hint and see them. Kim, who is
cool. Kelley, who is as much a knitting goddess as well as a guitar god,
Josephine, lord of the bass, and Jim, who keeps the beat, and you won’t be
sorry you did so. You will have a
blast and some fantastic memories.
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