Happy Holidays! Medicine - Shot Forth Self Living
Since nothing says Christmas like noise rock, today's MP3s are culled from the debut album of one of my favorite, often overlooked shoegaze bands--Medicine's Shot Forth Self Living.
Often derided as having been a My Bloody Valentine tribute act, I think a thorough listen to Shot Forth reveals something more substantial. Sure, it's pretty obvious that the track "Aruca" owes a pretty heavy debt to MBV's "Soon." And you could even argue that the whole album sounds like the work of a band caught in the damning riptide of hero-worship, destined to drown in a sea of fuzzed-out, blurry guitar textures. "American shoegaze?" you might scoff loudly. "That's a contradiction of terms."
Well, I would contest your argument with two points.
1. The fact is, SFSL is quite good, and although it sounds a lot like MBV, it's important to remember that Medicine developed concurrently with the UK's "Scene That Celebrates Itself";
2. Given Kevin Shields' notoriously lax work ethic, having something that sounds like another album from the undisputed kings (and queens) of early-90's blissrock is pretty awesome.
A bit of background info for those who need it: Brad Laner began playing in bands in his early teens, progressing from one shoddily-named experimental outfit to the next, eventually working up the ranks til he landed himself in one of Savage Republic's many lineups (as a drummer). Through these efforts, Laner eventually met the key players who would form Medicine with him. These parties included vocalist Beth Thompson and drummer Jim Goodall, with the bassist position being occupied by one dude after another throughout the band's history.
Obsessed with the idea of creating his own "sound" but unable to afford effects pedals through which to run his guitar, Laner experimented with a 4-track cassette recorder that he'd previously used to track demos at home. He found that by using the 4-track as an effects processor, he was able to create a particularly unique and harsh distortion sound. This texture lent itself rather well to the vision he had for Medicine, which was to combine sweet pop melodies with blazing, abstract guitar dissonance. With his guitar innovations matched by Thompson's lovely, atmospheric vocals and Goodall's solid, tasteful drum work, Laner and Medicine seemed destined for greatness.
But somewhere along the way, the plans unravelled. It wasn't easy for Medicine to secure a recording contract in America; they had to sign to the British Creation label first, and despite generating a buzz with their first couple of UK singles, the English press mercilessly painted the band as MBV-wannabes almost as quickly as their tour bus pulled up outside the tour's first venue. By the time they finally signed to Def American in the US, Stateside audiences were obsessed with grunge, meaning that Medicine's noisy, abstract pop-rock went unnoticed while interlopers such as Bush scored hit after hit.
Anyway, it's my hope that history's greatest mistakes are someday redressed. Aside from Native Americans being given a little something for their trouble (other than some farming-proof land and a few casinos), and other than a black man getting elected president--oh yeah!--I'd like to see Medicine acknowledged as one of the greatest bands to come out of the shoegaze movement. You can do your part to help by listening to the four tracks posted below and telling your friends about Medicine.
Normally, I encourage everyone to buy a copy of the album; however, it seems as though the manufacturer of the album has ceased production. So I'm still advocating for you to buy a used copy of the CD if you can find it, but I think it'd be even better for you to lobby Def American to reissue a lovely remastered set with bonus tracks (b-sides, acoustic cuts, etc). I've bookmarked American Recordings' website and as soon as Rick Rubin's email address is posted, you can bet I'll send the first of a series of strongly-worded letters.
Medicine - Shot Forth Self Living - 03 - Defective.mp3
posted by The Public Image at 8:47 AM
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