The music of the Meat Puppets is a paradox. It's irony, happiness, anger, melancholy, carefreeness, drunkenness, stupidity, desperation. The music of the Meat Puppets is like an idiotic laugh right in the middle of a funeral ceremony.
And "Meat Puppets II" is spontaneous and original just as it comes.
If you can't stand the noise and the frustrating drums of "Split in Myself Two", don't worry, here comes "Magic Toy Missing", a straightforward and fast country tune that sounds like a brawl between gangs of drunken ruffians in any Arizona bar. "Lost" is a carefree and innocent sonata that makes us believe Kirkwood is optimistic; an illusion that is shattered by the sad "Plateau". Kirkwood's voice becomes the wail of a drunk, and the ballad is pervaded by rootless pessimism. More than sadness, I would call it discomfort, that discomfort that would lead to the metropolitan grunge sound of the Seattle scene. Then comes "Aurora Borealis"; two powerful guitar chords alternate with sweet arpeggios. It's just mocking us.
If "Plateau" was a lament, "We're Here" is a ray of sunshine that purifies hell. A calm singing, an evocative chorus, and a psychedelic glimpse halfway through the song. The calm after the storm. But wait, it's not over yet. Indeed, after Bostrom's steady drumming and the vaguely folk cheerfulness of "Climbing", comes the swift and frenetic "New Gods", with noise punk sounds. Distortions, screams, anger, and a decidedly out-of-place bass. Racket. "Oh Me", which is decidedly yet another mockery, prepares us for the peak of depression and discomfort: "Lake of Fire". This ballad, which is not really a ballad, is a gem to be held tight. The voice has never been so expressive, the guitars never so incisive in their "delicate distortions". Sublime whine. The pinnacle of these meat puppets.
"I'm a mindless idiot" is an immature and lazy fun, featuring a guitar with a Mediterranean sound. Kirkwood's Fender Telecaster speaks and says, "Enough, Curt, you've been torturing me for almost half an hour". It's irony. The masterpiece concludes with Kirkwood's chords and the western film-style whistling of "The Whistling Song", bringing the curtain down and putting an end to these pleasant complaints.
I consider "Meat Puppets II" as one of the all-time musical cauldrons; Country, Folk, Punk, Hardcore, Psychedelia, Noise, Grunge. You find all sorts of everything in this ocean of strumming and false notes. Few had the courage to do something like this and make it appreciated, excluding "Double Nickels On The Dime" by the Minutemen, "London Calling" by the Clash, and a few others.
This album is immature, and it is perfect as it is. Stunning and original.
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
04 Plateau (02:22)
Many a hand has scaled the grand old face of the plateau
Some belong to strangers and some to folks you know
Holy ghosts and talk show hosts are planted in the sand
To beautify the foothills and shake the many hands
Nothing on the top but a bucket and a mop
And an illustrated book about birds
You see a lot up there but don't be scared
Who needs action when you got words
When you've finished with the mop then you can stop
And look at what you've done
The plateau's clean, no dirt to be seen
And the work it was fun
Nothing on the top but a bucket and a mop
And an illustrated book about birds
You see a lot up there but don't be scared
Who needs action when you got words
Many hands began to scan around for the next plateau
Some say it was Greenland and some say Mexico
Others decided it was nowhere except for where they stood
But those were all just guesses, wouldn't help you if they could
07 Climbing (02:43)
climb, climb, i always climb
out of bed in the morning
on a mountain made of sand
and i know this doesn't rhyme
but the clutter on the table
has been getting out of hand
i know that you tried to see me through
but honey i'm still having trouble
finding out what's you
time, time, it's so sublime
well they say it's non-existent
but it's playing with my mind
and phone calls don't cost a dime
in the caverns of your feelings
where the sun will never shine
i know that you tried to see me through
but honey i'm still having trouble
finding out what's you
mine, mine, which things are mine?
well i thought i saw a few
before i found out i was blind
and i think i see a sign
and it's saying where to go
and when i get there what i'll find
i know that you tried to see me through
but honey i'm still having trouble
finding out what's you
08 New Gods (02:12)
how much do i owe you?
i'll pay but i don't want to
days of where i came from
in a restaurant in mexico
they told me not to drink the water
and not to touch the food
"all we got is pepsi cola
and we know that it won't hold you
but remember what we told you
no one else knows what's in store
remember that we told you"
09 Oh, Me (03:02)
If I had to lose a mile
If I had to touch feelings
I would lose my soul
The way I do
I don't have to think
I only have to do it
The results are always perfect
But that's old news
Would you like to hear my voice
Sprinkled with emotion
Invented at your birth?
I can't see the end of me
My whole expanse I cannot see
I formulate infinity
And store it deep inside of me
If I had to lose a mile
If I had to touch feelings
I would lose my soul
The way I do
I don't have to think
I only have to do it
The results are always perfect
But thats old news
Would you like to hear my voice
Sprinkled with emotion
Invented at your birth?
I can't see the end of me
My whole expanse I cannot see
I formulate infinity
And store it deep inside me
I formulate infinity
And store it deep inside me
10 Lake of Fire (01:56)
Where do bad folks go when they die?
They don't go to heaven where the angels fly
They go to a lake of fire and fry
see 'em again till the fault that you lie
I knew a lady who came from Duluth
Got bit by a dog with a rabid tooth
She went to her grave just a little too soon
flew and laid down on the yellow moon
Where do bad folks go when they die?
They don't go to heaven where the angels fly
They go to a lake of fire and fry
see 'em again till the Fault that you lie
people cry and people moan
look for a dry place to call their home
try to find some place to rest their bones
While the angels and the devils
Try to make 'em their own
Where do bad folks go when they die?
They don't go to heaven where the angels fly
They go to a lake of fire and fry
see 'em again till the Fault that you lie
12 The Whistling Song (02:57)
It's a shadow in the door
The silver in the park
It's a broken faded bird
You've learned to call your heart
It's hotter than you can seek
Plainer than you or me
I don't pull the lock back
And I dont have the key
It's a poor living room
Just above the dock
Wish those wild hens there
Feathers drip from every corner
It shows the spectacle of falling
And settles to the floor
It shows the spectacle of falling
and settles to the floor
13 Teenager(s) (03:36)
We will compare
We will be king
Gonna be all tongues
We with our us
You with your tongues
Gonna make it to the time
On is us
Is very us
Don’t down with my number; take it
Don’t you wash with my down
The top is very us
15 New Gods (02:13)
how much do i owe you?
i'll pay but i don't want to
days of where i came from
in a restaurant in mexico
they told me not to drink the water
and not to touch the food
"all we got is pepsi cola
and we know that it won't hold you
but remember what we told you
no one else knows what's in store
remember that we told you"
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By Festwca
20 seconds of Kirkwoodian music have more brilliant ideas than the entire career of _________ (choose an artist you can’t stand).
In two words: PURE GENIUS.