Puppet show
The Meat Puppets are back after a five-year hiatus
By Sarah Lee
Staff Writer
''We go from punk to country to rock to psychedelia,'' says Kyle Ellison, left, who joined the Meat Puppets in 1995. The band performs Saturday at the 40 Watt Club.SpecialWith intelligent lyrics, sweeping guitars and something that sounds like a xylophone on track 10, the Meat Puppets' newest CD ''Golden Lies'' is an irreverant tumble through rock 'n' roll.
Whether or not Meat Puppets appeal to the average, mainstream rock fan is of little consequence -- considering the band has greatly influenced others like Nirvana (at least three of the songs off the Seattle band's ''Unplugged in New York'' album are Meat Puppets originals). The band has undoubtedly changed the popularity curve of rock music. After one listen to ''Golden Lies,'' it's easy to see why Kurt Cobain wanted the Austin-based rockers to back the ''In Utero'' tour and subsequently accompany Nirvana on its 1994 live album.
Originally formed in Arizona in 1980 by lead vocalist and guitarist Curt Kirkwood and his bassist brother Cris Kirkwood, the Meat Puppets were originally a trio that included drummer Derrick Bostrom that fused punk, blues, rock, country and psychedelia into a seamless mix of original sound.
In the course of recording numerous EPs, including 1994's ''Too High To Die'' featuring the group's biggest hit to date ''Backwater,'' Cris Kirkwood became addicted to heroin. The personal problems have kept the band from recording since 1995.
''Man, has it been six years?'' asks guitarist Kyle Ellison from Florida, where the band is on its third day of the ''Golden Lies'' tour. Ellison was recruited to join the band in 1995 after the release of the album ''No Joke.''
Curt Kirkwood apparently sent Ellison the CD and, he says, he had it memorized in a week. So Ellison was in
''Yeah, I guess it's been that long,'' the 30-year-old Ellison says. ''I know that we are ready to make music and let it be healing in a way.''
Adding to Ellison and Kirkwood's dueling guitars are former Bob Mould bassist Andrew Duplantis and Ellison's Pariah co-hort Shandon Sahm on drums. With this line-up, the Meat Puppets have created an album of both musical diversity and emotional variety, going from light-hearted and fun to darkly brooding and, well, somewhat disturbing.
''We go from punk to country to rock to psychedelia,'' says Ellison, whose band credits include Pariah, the Butthole Surfers and Primus. ''There are moments, as a guitarist, on the CD and on stage, where I can really let go.''
And let go he does, at least on the CD, where his guitar playing is simple in its approach to complicated chord construction -- the effect being somewhere between a childhood ditty and an underworld work song.
On the introduction to ''You Love Me,'' for example, his style is heavy and almost stringent to the ear. Until, that is, Kirkwood's lyrics of a ''lamb/hovering in the moonlight'' come in and Ellison's guitar begins to sound amazingly unreal, as if he was playing miles above the studio.
Certain tracks, like the manic ''Hercules'' could probably cause small children to either sit in astonishment or run cowering under the bed. However, the emotional ''Endless Wave,'' where Kirkwood describes ''The endless wave that crashes over (him)/I could never make the journey/I can hardly even swim/That's why I'm so fascinated/Just how deep I've been pulled in'' is a deeply personal song.
In fact, for a hard-rockin' band that is lumped in with the post-punk era of Husker Du and the Minute Men, Kirkwood's lyrics can be downright pretty.
''The whole idea, from the beginning, was just to have fun,'' says Ellison of Meat Puppets ideology. ''And to have a constantly moving energy. I hope that people will just see the good stuff about us.''
Staff writer Sarah Lee can be reached at [email protected] or (706) 208-2229.
Accessed: 4/11/15
http://onlineathens.com/cgi-bin/rockathens/stories.cgi?/stories/012501/roc_0125010012.shtml
The Meat Puppets are back after a five-year hiatus
By Sarah Lee
Staff Writer
''We go from punk to country to rock to psychedelia,'' says Kyle Ellison, left, who joined the Meat Puppets in 1995. The band performs Saturday at the 40 Watt Club.SpecialWith intelligent lyrics, sweeping guitars and something that sounds like a xylophone on track 10, the Meat Puppets' newest CD ''Golden Lies'' is an irreverant tumble through rock 'n' roll.
Whether or not Meat Puppets appeal to the average, mainstream rock fan is of little consequence -- considering the band has greatly influenced others like Nirvana (at least three of the songs off the Seattle band's ''Unplugged in New York'' album are Meat Puppets originals). The band has undoubtedly changed the popularity curve of rock music. After one listen to ''Golden Lies,'' it's easy to see why Kurt Cobain wanted the Austin-based rockers to back the ''In Utero'' tour and subsequently accompany Nirvana on its 1994 live album.
Originally formed in Arizona in 1980 by lead vocalist and guitarist Curt Kirkwood and his bassist brother Cris Kirkwood, the Meat Puppets were originally a trio that included drummer Derrick Bostrom that fused punk, blues, rock, country and psychedelia into a seamless mix of original sound.
In the course of recording numerous EPs, including 1994's ''Too High To Die'' featuring the group's biggest hit to date ''Backwater,'' Cris Kirkwood became addicted to heroin. The personal problems have kept the band from recording since 1995.
''Man, has it been six years?'' asks guitarist Kyle Ellison from Florida, where the band is on its third day of the ''Golden Lies'' tour. Ellison was recruited to join the band in 1995 after the release of the album ''No Joke.''
Curt Kirkwood apparently sent Ellison the CD and, he says, he had it memorized in a week. So Ellison was in
''Yeah, I guess it's been that long,'' the 30-year-old Ellison says. ''I know that we are ready to make music and let it be healing in a way.''
Adding to Ellison and Kirkwood's dueling guitars are former Bob Mould bassist Andrew Duplantis and Ellison's Pariah co-hort Shandon Sahm on drums. With this line-up, the Meat Puppets have created an album of both musical diversity and emotional variety, going from light-hearted and fun to darkly brooding and, well, somewhat disturbing.
''We go from punk to country to rock to psychedelia,'' says Ellison, whose band credits include Pariah, the Butthole Surfers and Primus. ''There are moments, as a guitarist, on the CD and on stage, where I can really let go.''
And let go he does, at least on the CD, where his guitar playing is simple in its approach to complicated chord construction -- the effect being somewhere between a childhood ditty and an underworld work song.
On the introduction to ''You Love Me,'' for example, his style is heavy and almost stringent to the ear. Until, that is, Kirkwood's lyrics of a ''lamb/hovering in the moonlight'' come in and Ellison's guitar begins to sound amazingly unreal, as if he was playing miles above the studio.
Certain tracks, like the manic ''Hercules'' could probably cause small children to either sit in astonishment or run cowering under the bed. However, the emotional ''Endless Wave,'' where Kirkwood describes ''The endless wave that crashes over (him)/I could never make the journey/I can hardly even swim/That's why I'm so fascinated/Just how deep I've been pulled in'' is a deeply personal song.
In fact, for a hard-rockin' band that is lumped in with the post-punk era of Husker Du and the Minute Men, Kirkwood's lyrics can be downright pretty.
''The whole idea, from the beginning, was just to have fun,'' says Ellison of Meat Puppets ideology. ''And to have a constantly moving energy. I hope that people will just see the good stuff about us.''
Staff writer Sarah Lee can be reached at [email protected] or (706) 208-2229.
Accessed: 4/11/15
http://onlineathens.com/cgi-bin/rockathens/stories.cgi?/stories/012501/roc_0125010012.shtml