In 1959, novelist Peter De Vries dashed off a sentence
destined for cultural glory: "Nostalgia ain't what it used to be."
It's often used as a put-down for all things resurrected, but the phrase also implies
that once nostalgia was what it used
to be. I mused upon that phrase when two new releases made their way to me, one
of which does a fine job of reanimating an old genre and the second of which may
have its charms, but they were certainly lost on me.
First the good news: The New Orleans-based band The Revivalists makes no bones about
dusting off old styles. Their latest self-titled EP evokes the mid-1960s when
bands were grooving in the little seam that connected rhythm and blues to
"soul" music. These groups were usually stripped down versions of R
& B outfits for the simple reason that it was hard to travel with a big
band. Some critics complained that the instrumentation was 'thin.' The
Revivalists are a seven-piece lineup–large by today's standards–but they do sound thin if you compare them to
ensembles such as those that backed Big Joe Turner. That's not the standard at
which the Revivalists aim–try Van Morrison, whose tones lead vocalist David
Shaw eerily invokes. This is R&B/soul at its sexy and mellow best–the kind
that works up a sweat by degree, not a single burst. Shaw is a revelation–a
voice filled with grit, spit, and power. Check out tunes such as "Mary
Joanna the Music" and "Soulfight" and you'll definitely hear the
Van Morrison influences. You'll also hear another very good thing about this
band–keyboardist Michael Girardot, he of both the rolling thunder organ and the
cool-to-the-touch piano. Loved this band.
Alas, I have less affection for the Seattle-based The Bad Things (not to be confused with
Shaun White's band of that name) whose After
the Inferno (Silent City Records) is the sort I might have loved back in
1979 or so, but which now feels like a bird that has flown. Aren't we all a bit
tired of hearing about Seattle's grimy side? Especially when the antidote seems
to be clash, thrash, and embrace the decadence? The Bad Things are a nostalgia mash
up: the DIY ethos of punk at its height, an Irish bar band, and seedy cabaret.
I admired the politics and snippets of the writing, but I couldn't get past the
fact that lead vocalist Jimmy Berg lights no fires and that the instrumentation
is more laconic than iconic. The DIY vibe of punk made sense during the
stagflation of the 70s and heartlessness of the Reagan-Thatcher years, but it
simply sounds sloppy now. That's among the reasons that punk mutated into
grunge–a style that dressed up punk's anger with better sound and musicians.
Were I in my 20s and hanging out in a down-market Seattle club, this band's sideshowspectacles might intrigue, but the bird of youth has also flown. Rob Weir
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