Mudhoney
This Gift / Baby Help Me Forget

Thanks to the "killer" listen of heartshapedbox, I still have an insane craving for Mudhoney on this warm late March afternoon.

We are at the end of the eighties; right after "Superfuzz Bigmuff" and just before the eponymous long-play debut.

"This Gift" opens the disruptive triptych: ultra-acidic fuzz guitars, a chorus as catchy and engaging as it is abrasive and graceless. Moreover, Mark's voice is synonymous with (non) auditory quality. Raw energy that draws on the sacred trilogy of Stooges, MC5, and Blue Cheer, with an added oblique and visceral Punk impetus. One of my favorite tracks from this sick congregation.

The 12" inch I own is a 45 rpm; I remember, with great laughter, that I first listened to the single by setting my turntable at the usual speed of 33 rpm: it truly felt like dealing with Black Sabbath sabotaged by such slowness. But let's return to the Music, which is better.

Side B opens with the two minutes of "Baby Help Me Forget": a melancholic beginning, almost heartbreaking. But the unusual calm lasts for just a handful of seconds; a psychedelic-garage acidness, as dense as anthracite, takes over the track until its end. There's also room for a cover that closes the work; "Revolution" by Spacemen 3. A ruinous and incredibly noisy journey; a steady build-up until the final explosion, with the excessive use of the fuzz pedal by both guitars. A roaring ride of primordial ruinous energy... ASTONISHING... (in every sense).

Ad Maiora.