CHIRP: The Chicago Independent Radio Project

Michael Bennett writes

Friday iPod/MP3 Shuffle -- Happy Birthday Nina Hagen Edition

Let’s pay tribute to one of the ’80s more unique figures, Nina Hagen. This German singer tapped into a special vein of weirdness, with vocals that ranged all over the place and songs that were designed to allow for that. Hagen was just as creative in her look, instantly standing out, even during the days of new wave and post-punk. Love her or hate her, Nina is a true original. In honor of Nina Hagen, please grab your iPod or MP3 player, hit shuffle, and share the first 10 songs that come up.

1. Cheap Trick — Down On The Bay (Samurai Rock Band): Cheap Trick is an amazing live band, and hearing this 1977 live concert, recorded in their native Rockford, Illinois corroborates this. This is a cover of one of Jeff Lynne’s songs when he was in The Move, and Rick Nielsen’s guitar playing is amazing. His tone on the rhythm parts is so rocking — it’s this sound that captured the hearts of soon-to-be punk rockers in the Midwest, while his leads are playful and hold the parts of the song together. Meanwhile, the rhythm section is as steady as can be, and Robin Zander is his usual awesome self.
2. The Guess Who — All Right (Shakin’ All Over): Before The Guess Who became a perennial on the charts in the late ’60s and early ’70s, they went through the typical phases of any ’60s North American rock band. First, playing the typical covers that bands like The Beatles and The Hollies and The Rolling Stones were doing, as is the instance with this R & B flavored song first waxed by The Searchers. Second, move in a more garage rock/psychedelic direction. This sounds like an early vocal by Burton Cummings, who supplanted original group leader Chad Allen. Without this move, we would have never know who The Guess Who were.
3. Surfer Blood — Fast Jabroni (Astro Coast): Despite the band’s name, this band does not have a surf sound. At times, they seem to come close to bands like The Shins and Rogue Wave, but with more of an old rock ‘n’ roll orientation. Here, you have vocals with a bit of echo, and a big melodic guitar part, on what is a really sweet traditional pop rock song. This is a band I discovered by volunteering at CHIRP, and just listening to this, I hope they have a new album out this year.
4. Chestnut Station — Elephant Candy (In Your Living Room): This is a collection of hip Chicago musicians from bands such as Eleventh Dream Day and The Coctails playing old rock songs. This album was actually recorded live. This is a somewhat garage rock take on the ’60s bubblegum gem from The Fun and Games. These guys are having fun, and it comes through in this performance.
5. Wavves — Linus Spacehead (King Of The Beach): I really enjoyed the second Wavves album, which came out last year. Stupid fun pop songs played with a lot of gusto. The first time I heard of it, I thought the music was somewhat in the spirit of the last couple of Jay Reatard albums, and then I learned that the members of the late Reatard’s band played on the album. This is a sing-songy tune with loud guitars that could have been done in the ’90s by a band like The Muffs or Flop. And I like that.
6. Roky Erickson & The Aliens — Don’t Save Me Lucifer (I Have Always Been Here Before): The two CD compilation that this track comes from is essential. From his days with the 13th Floor Elevators until now, Erickson has created a terrific body of work that touches upon blues, psychedelia, garage and folk rock. Erickson is an outstanding songwriter, with a distinctive voice and lyrical perspective. This is a very trad rock song — somewhere between Chuck Berry and Creedence Clearwater Revival. The guitars are smoking, Erickson is passionate and the song simply rocks.
7. Crowded House — Never Be The Same (Temple Of Low Men): Crowded House’s fourth album showed a band that had perfected its sound. Neil Finn’s songs ached with passion, even if his lyrics weren’t always clear, and Nick Seymour and Paul Hester were in lockstep with him. This song shows off Finn’s incredible facility with melody. The song is tuneful throughout, in a mesmerizing way, but the way he gets to the super memorable chorus is not obvious, making the pay off all the greater. And Finn is an understated guitarist, who shines here.
8. Ohio Players — Feel The Beat (Everybody Disco)(Ohio Players Gold): As the ’70s wound on, funk bands had to adapt to the changing landscape. This meant going disco. For the Ohio Players, as evidenced by this track, the way to do this was to use their usual funk tricks, but do them at a faster pace, and add a couple melodic flourishes. It’s an uneasy compromise, as the dance beat could perhaps be a bit better, and the funk is a bit distilled. But I still like this song.
9. The Blasters — Bus Station (Non-Fiction): A very typical Blasters’ song, with a ’50s rock and roll base and telling an evocative story. It’s about a struggling couple. The husband apparently can’t keep a job, so they move from town to town, living on the lies that things will be better at their next destination, when they both know it will just be more of the same. Phil Alvin’s vocal is fantastic, and in the context of a classic rock structure, the sadness of the situation comes through.
10. Neil Finn — Faster Than Light (Try Whistling This): A double dose of Neil Finn this week. A swell song from his nuanced and textured first solo album. I bet you that Neil’s son Liam was influenced by this song. It uses a drum machine and some spare guitar on a classically melancholy Finn melody. As with the Crowded House song above, the hook sneaks up a bit on the ears, but once the chorus hits, the song lodges in one’s brain.