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April 04, 2007
Retrohump Night: Darkness and Light
Alas, a spotty wi-fi connection has pushed our Wednesday feature deep into the evening. Not that it matters, especially. If anything it is for the better, the switch from day to night further expressing the post's themes of duality.
You buy that?
Smog - "Bathysphere"
(live @ the Cooler, NYC, 10/23/95)
I posted a very recent rendition of this '95 classic on the Prefix blog a day or two ago, and it piqued my interest to check out some prime footage. While the biggest knock on Bill Callahan is probably his flat vocal delivery, I think he actually summons quite a bit of emotion from the stark and alienated lyrics. Of course, the descending "ah's" add quite a bit of color, the short gasps vaguely hinting at some kind of stabbing pain. The rest of the words are delivered in deadpan, as usual, but the imagery demands the detachment. What could be a harmless bit of childhood fancy, living under the sea, is rendered black and creepy by Bill's numb baritone. We get the sense that the boy in question's motivation is to be as far from contact as possible, not on a Cousteau adventure. This footage, of the babyfaced troubadour, sells it even further. As if he learned all he needed to about life back then, and had just been consistently disappointed ever since.
No live version I've ever heard can touch the studio work, from 1995's Wild Love. The sharp edges of the electric guitar, and the creeping strings are still spine tingling on listen number four million. Easily one of my favorite songs of all time.
Chris Knox - "Not Given Lightly"
(Live on Australian televsion, 1997)
Kiwi rock scene titan Chris Knox, member of the Enemy, Toy Love, and the occasionally brilliant Tall Dwarfs, on the other hand, exudes warmth. It's not just the jam shorts, either. He is outgoing and self deprecating, leading off this performance of this love song from his 1989's solo album, Seizure, saying, "God, admit it you've never heard of me. Oh, that's alright," without sounding bitter in the least. That spirit informs the charm of this song, an open hearted declaration of love. There's nothing sinister about it. When about a minute in, our man breaks his guitar's string, he's forced to sing it a cappella. Compensating by offering even more emotion, more good humor. He's also forced to navigate around a really dopey host, but that's neither here nor there.
The funny thing is that, although he seems in this clip like the Kiwi answer to Jimmy Buffet or something, he's was actually the alpha punk, the Iggy Pop of early 80's New Zealand. A testament to chilling out as the years progress, I guess. A well earned sunny disposition to counter Smog's young frost.
Chris Knox - "Not Given Lightly"
Posted by Jeff Klingman at April 4, 2007 08:35 PM
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Comments
I am fortunate enough to have actually caught Mr. Knox's act in a small NYC club back when Kiwi Rock was all the rage (remember that week in 1988? Seriously, this brings a smile, and "Not Given Lightly" is certainly one of his high-water marks. (The song was twee-ly covered by Frente, who also twee-ly covered New Order. The twee cover was really its stock in trade.) I'm also partial to "Meat," which builds to a finish that I still find spine-tingling. Might be a good one to post on Retrohump Spine-Tingler Day.
Posted by: skysby at April 5, 2007 12:59 PM
