A CD retrospective - Stoosh

Stoosh by Skunk Anansie
Stoosh is actually one of only a few albums where I have no recollection of how I obtained it.  How I come across music is usually something I remember - because I find music very personal it's important for me to remember the exposure.  1996/7 were good years for me and new bands, anyway.

My mum hated this album, and very likely still hates it.  Something about Skin made her very annoyed.  Such a shame then that one of my favourite tracks on the album was the opener.  Yes, it's fucking political is almost spat rather than sung.
The album switches from mellow occasionally balled rock, to almost militant post-punk.  All the while Skin wails, screams and whispers over the top of it.
Instrumentally the bass ("Cass" Lewis) is the best thing throughout the album, if you read the blog I wrote about Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds you'll recall I do enjoy a good bit of bass.

It'd be wrong not to mention the last track, Glorious Pop Song is a wonderfully tongue-in-cheek and bass driven...pop song, complete with "Nah nah nah's", and perpetual tambourine shaking.  The chorus is the most surprising thing, as it consists entirely of the lines "You're still a fucker", gently sung with a catchy melody.

Four of the 11 (named) tracks were released as singles during the year that followed it's release - Twisted and Hedonism would probably be the two you'd know if you weren't familiar with the band.
I actually think it's quite underrated - if nothing else Lemmy agrees with me.  Just a shame that around the time the album came out everyone was far too busy arguing whether Oasis or Blur were better.

A CD retrospective - Infinity Land

Infinity Land by Biffy Clyro
Mr K introduced me to Biffy Clyro, around the same time he introduced me to Muse and the Kings of Leon.  This album certainly was an eye opener.

I'm going to write about the album cover first, as it's always confused me.
The main element being the dictator-esque (black jacket, red armband) Mickey Mouse-eared character.  The gas mask has appeared in at least one other image by the artist,

It's meaning is far too ambiguous for me to make a suggestion - and I honestly don't know where that other image is from.
The heart with the upturned infinity symbol is also a bit confusing, coupling a heart and an infinity sign usually associated with polyamory.  I know the album is called infinity land, but that's supposedly inspired by Jeffrey Dahmer.  Infinity land is supposedly his heaven.
He's also blessing someone or something, he's made the sign of the cross with one hand - the other rests on his heart.  The light shining from behind also strongly suggests something religious.
Then there are the two chaps in the background, who I take to be priests of some description, dressed in white robes with their heads bowed.  They're also wearing armbands, but theirs have a white stripe around them instead of a black one.  And why do their heads strongly resemble the high-peaked early Disney drawings of Mickey Mouse or Oswald the Rabbit? Why do they have ears like that naked fellow in the gas mask?

I'm not complaining about any of this stuff. I just don't get it.  Perhaps they just wanted the cover to be as fucked up as Dahmer's head.  Or as abstract as their music.

Speaking of...I probably should write something about the music.

It's awesome!

This still is Biffy Clyro's best album.  As a three piece they make up for any risk of an empty sound with an astonishing variance and instrumental talent (coupled with a considerable amount of aggression).
I've never heard anything quite like Infinity Land since, Biffy throw more key changes, time signature changes and stop-starts in amongst the almost schizophrenic changes in vocal style, grungy chorus', intricate melodies and tempo than you'd think healthy.  Infinity Land holds nothing back - it pushes, and keeps pushing.  Amazingly it doesn't alienate in the way prog might do - it simply fucking rocks.
I can't imagine what recording this album must have been like, I can only imagine it was about as intense as forgetting how to sit down.