Album Review: Cracker - Berkeley to Bakersfield (2014)

Cracker - Berkeley to Bakersfield (2014)

To add to the surprisingly long list of seemingly dormant 90s bands that miraculously resurfaced with new albums in 2014, the very last but certainly not least is Cracker.  Barely sneaking into December 2014 with their first album in five years, Cracker made up for lost time with Berkeley to Bakersfield, a double LP with an interesting twist that might just befuddling be their finest work to date.

The last time Cracker graced us with their presence was 2009's Sunrise in the Land of Milk and Honey, in which they proved that not only were they survivors, but also still relevant as it was their hardest rocking album yet.  Despite that energy (and a surprisingly damn good set of tunes), the band wasn't at their sardonic best lyrically, largely trading irony for bitterness.  Don't get me wrong, Sunrise was one of their better albums and even managed to crack the charts, but it's their lyrical sarcasm and sense of humor that has always given them a distinction among their 90s alt-rock peers.  Regardless, Sunrise showed there was still a fire, and they fortunately were able to bottle it for the next five years.  But it also seems that the time off was well spent in refection.  Interestingly enough, the original lineup regrouped for a few shows.  It worked so well that they all decided to record together again, which finally brings us to Berkeley to Bakersfield.

With the original Cracker lineup in place, it would be tempting to assume that the resulting album would be a rehash of their early 90s heyday (with their eponymous debut Cracker (1992) and the subsequent watermark Kerosene Hat (1993)), but amazingly that is not the case at all; in fact, the only thing consistent with that period is the overall quality - it's clear that these guys really gel creatively and are just meant to be together!  On the other side of things, neither is this a straight continuation of the punky Sunrise.  It's in a way a combination of both, and they do it in an interesting way - remember when I said this was a double album with a twist?  Well it is, and the key is in the album's title.  Berkeley to Bakersfield: one disk Berkeley, one disk Bakersfield; urban and rural; punk and country!  While this may sound like a cheap gimmick, in actual fact the album effectually kills two birds with one stone by presenting the sum of the band by separating the genres that have always been a part of their music.  And the music is truly fresh and better for it!

The first disc, "Berkeley," is no doubt the punky one. And for the most part it burns from start to finish.  Songs like "March of the Billionaires," "Beautiful," and "Reaction" are fast, quick, and absolutely irresistible.  But what's great is that they are hilarious.  While the politics is very much in tow (as it was on Sunrise), the tongue is very much in cheek.  "El Cerrito" is an amusing take on the Googleization of the Bay Area, while "El Comandante" wears its hilarity on its sleeve with the refrain "it's just a bag of weed."  Once again, it's the humor that really sets this apart from its predecessor, but it still rocks.  And even if the set closes with a song that sounds suspiciously close to "One Headlight" by their peers The Wallflowers, the band has still delivered - "Waited My Whole Life" is still great though and different enough.

Side two: "Bakersfield," to switch it up, is all country.  While Cracker has as always played a bit of alt-country (especially early on), they have never played anything this true to form.  Keep in mind, this isn't Nashville style; Cracker could never be that squeaky clean if they tried - this is the rough and tumble country of well... Bakersfield.  Obviously, the volume and tempo have largely been turned down, but there are a few quick ones like "The San Bernardino Boy" and "Get On Down The Road" that are just as fun and energetic as their punk counterparts.  The real surprise, however, is that when Cracker do eventually lay off the humor for a song or two, then end up with some of their most melodic and touching songs.  Both "Almond Grove" and "I'm Sorry Baby" are both incredibly heartbreaking as they are excellent.  This is just another reason why this country side is far more than just a gimmick: the band completely sells it by producing some of their best work out of left field.

Of course, the whole point of this outing was to showcase that Cracker is a product of both punk and country, and that they are well versed in both.  But what's more is that in separating their music into two different offerings, the band shows a focus that serves them better than on many of their other albums that tended to be somewhat scattershot.  It's no surprise then that their earliest successes tended to be more straightforward.  Indeed, Cracker is weakest when they put too much into the mix, as they did on albums like the extremely garbled and uneven The Golden Age (1996), or the better but still frustratingly busy Forever (2002).  It's this lean effortless approach that makes the band shine, and they have managed to rediscover it almost twenty years down the road from where they left it.  I hope they can keep it up, because this is the most enjoyable and just plain fun Cracker release yet!

McS

Album Review: Manic Street Preachers - Rewind the Film (2013) & Futurology (2014)

Manic Street Preachers - Rewind the Film (2013) & Futurology (2014)

Out of the vast lexicon of terms used to label the Manic Street Preachers over their 25 plus year career, the word hip never really came up.  Even during their well deserved time in the sun during the 90s britpop movement, the band always seemed to be more serious and more sober than most of their peers - lacking both the alcoholic swagger of Oasis and the ironic chic of Blur.  However, unlike many of their peers, they are still standing and have made it to this point without any major detours and really only one arguable stinker of an album (2001's Know Your Enemy).  But what's truly amazing is that the band, in spite of itself, has finally managed to grow up without losing its fire.  Call it middle age, call it making peace with their bizarre past (the mysterious disappearance of their primary lyricist Richey Edwards), or just call it figuring it out, the Manic Street Preachers have at last embraced who they are and let go of all their inhibitions.  The result of this is the one-two punch of Rewind the Film (2013) and Futurology (2014),  their most original, ambitious, and satisfying works to date - and dare I say it, they actually sound hip.

It's important to note that while both albums are certainly their own separate works (with an even year between them), they are definitely cut from the the same philosophical cloth, or more appropriately, they spring forth from exactly the same point in time and space for the band; they are two sides of the same coin, heads and tails, one looking forward and one looking backward - you get the picture.  It's probably not difficult to guess which one's which!  Sonically, however, the albums couldn't be more different.  Yet, what's truly interesting is that the previous statement not only applies to the two albums themselves, but also largely to the rest of the band's discography.

Starting with Rewind the Film (or "tails" if you've been taking notes), it might be tempting to assume that the band would be revisiting their wild youth... you'd be wrong.  As said before, the band is indeed looking back into their past, but they remain rooted in the present, older and wiser.  The key word here is reflection, and as such the album is gentle, somber, and sonically unplugged.  The band has never been this calm, with a restrained musical approach that verges on acoustic folk - maybe that's why it sounds hip!  Without a doubt, this is the most melodic Manics album, by a long shot.  The title track is as beautiful as it is personally heartbreaking, a rare intimate window into a band that has consistently put abstract political rhetoric in front of everything.  This song alone conveys the band's hard fought and hard won battle out of adolescent rage into middle-age contentment. However, despite the album's overall tone, it's not particularly depressing, no more so than most of their work.  Tracks like "Show Me the Wonder" and "As Holy as the Soil (That Buries Your Skin)" have a sense of celebration to them.  That being said, this is still the Manic that we're talking about, and there is still the constant sense of caution and critical social observation even if the despair is downplayed by the album glittering finale.  It's hazy morning music for sure but intelligent as always, and that's why it's so listenable.  But that's nothing compared to what follows.

Futurology, the other side of the coin so to speak, is about as much of a musical about-face as you can get.  And while some might expect this to mean that the Manics come roaring back to life by turning up their punk roots, you'd still be wrong.  The beats are back and the guitars are very much plugged, but the true surprise comes in the form of electronic flourishes and danceable blasts of krautrock injected into a wider Euro-encompassing vibe.  While the band had slightly flirted with this motif on past records, they have never jumped in so wholeheartedly.  Even the electro-heavy Lifeblood, released a decade prior, came off more Coldplay than anything, and in no way matched the raw edge of Futurology.  The Manics immediately blast off on the opening title track, and they never let up.  They march like never before on "Let's Go to War," "Europa Geht Durch Mich," or "Sex, Power, Love and Money."  Nor have they equally traded simmer to boil like on "Walk Me to the Bridge."  "Dreaming a City (Hughesovka)" is right out of an anime film!  Even when they lighten up just a bit for "Between the Clock and the Bed," they still retain a freshness that is so unlike them.  It's all incredibly perplexing, but it's excellent and still possesses their political ranting (though that part is buried in the mix more than usual, which is arguably a good thing for the band at this point in their career).  Even compared to their excessive trash-rock beginnings, with Futurology they seem to not care and just go for it more than ever.  Of course, they have the skill, experience, and confidence to truly pull it off.

In the end, it's anyone's guess where the band will head next.  It's been roughly two decades since their biggest albums, so I'm sure some celebration will be in order.  Regardless, the twin triumphs of Rewind the Film and Futurology at this point in their career serves as a reminder of the fire that put them on the scene in the first place.  But what's more, they can now finally add "hip" to their laurels, whether they like it or not!

McS