pretazzo

Ramona, did you play in Big Black?

hahaha W I CASONSEI!!! :-))) I’ve never heard of this bepi, but it gives me the vibe of a folk singer... I thought it was a side-project of the Aborti... anyway, provincial-pop is spreading in a capillary way: the other day on a local satellite channel (which I believe was broadcasting from Val Camonica), there was the videoclip (!!!) of the song "El Cuntaden" (!!!), sung by a guy who looked just like my crazy uncle... the video was set in the valleys and there was this guy singing, then his son (I think), a dazed guy with an accordion in hand, and his girlfriend (I think), who was wandering among the sheep, the vakke, and the pigs!!! :-D

Of course, Philosopho, but let’s not forget that, after all, the absurd and satirical aspects of Zappa only pertain to the surface of his music (as well as his persona); I believe that Zappa's greatest legacy is found in the purely musical realm. Zappa was certainly a freak (and everyone knows this), but even more so, he was an avant-garde musician (and this is NOT something everyone knows). Yes, he was mad, but at the core of his music was a rigorous method. He may have been the most influential musician of the last 40 years. Just think about the idea of conceiving an album as a collage: it’s a concept that many avant-garde groups (both rock and non-rock) adopted in the years following, from Faust to Residents, from Foetus to Vampire Rodents. Then think about Parable of Arable Land by the Red Crayola (released in 1967), one of the most "forward" albums of all time: there are certain moments in "Freak Out" (released the year before) that fully anticipate Mayo Thompson's insights!

Forgive this outburst from a morning drunk <<< hehe, I've always said it: the best breakfast is a kinder brioss dipped in Baileys! ;-)))

So, I already voted for the review, now I'm voting for the album... I'm giving it a solid 4... I think it's a great album, even if it doesn't have the imagination of a Nail (Foetus), which is 40 minutes of astonishing ideas... Moreover, I believe Thirwell surpasses CSC also in terms of tragic power, as well as ironic-grotesque verve... My favorite tracks from Consumer Revolt are the shorter ones, devoid of vocals, all based on sampling (like the short circuit Disconnected, the centrifuge Smash Retro, the nervous breakdown System Test). Also nice is She's like to shot... In the more intricate tracks, I can also hear a bit of Big Black... Anyway, they deserve it; they are as gray as steel...

I hold the Nation Of Ulysses for half an album (Play Pretty For Baby), then they give me nausea... I mean, they have heavy debts to Pop Group, Pere Ubu, and Fugazi, but all in all, they have some good ideas... it’s just that they’re not always supported by inspiration (and so, after a while, they end up seeming a bit self-indulgent), unlike the Pop Group... One of the many bands from the 90s with tremendous potential, but not always able to effectively translate it into expression.

This album deserves 5 stars for a simple reason: the first part (the one with parodies of pop songs) is a 4 (inspired but a bit verbose here and there); the second part (the one with long experimental tracks, like the incredible Help I'm A Rock) is a 6 (PURE AVANT-GARDE, even today, 40 years later). Freak Out is unmissable, but Absolutely Free is, if possible, even better, because it’s there that Zappa's two souls, the funny-satirical one and the serious-avant-garde one, merge perfectly.

I was planning to review this album, but I would have done it only in a few months. So you did well to review it, given the excellent results.

Immense Zappa.

It lasts too long.