Sunday, May 2, 2010

Jandek - Blue Corpse (1987)


Listen

"This is probably the most accessible album Jandek ever released. Which is not to say that it isn't a difficult listen, because it is. It still features his trademark mumbled, moaned vocals and enigmatic lyrics. But at least this time we aren't subjected to his awkward attempts at guitar playing. The music here is almost certainly played by a different guitar player (who may be named Eddie, because Jandek says 'Take it, Eddie' at one point in the album). The other guitarist is a much more melodic, conventionally 'skilled' player who strums chords instead of just plucking strings, pitch-bends, etc., and generally just owes a lot more to the kind of guitar playing you learn from records and from your guitar teacher. So, that renders the album more listenable than usual. The songs generally have sad lyrics, which seem to be about the ending of a romantic relationship. Some people have speculated that Jandek broke up with 'Nancy', the girl singer on many of his previous albums, but of course we don't really know if Jandek and Nancy were ever a couple in the first place. This album is also notable for having the only cover song Jandek ever recorded, 'House of the Rising Sun'. If you are interested in giving Jandek a listen, this would probably be the best album to start with." - Johnny Heering

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