WEEN Quebec (2003)
Week: Thu 22nd to Wed 28th Aug 2024
Format: CD, iPod
Producer: Andrew Weiss
Tracklisting:
1. It's Gonna Be a Long Night
2. Zoloft
3. Transdermal Celebration *
4. Among His Tribe
5. So Many People in the Neighbourhood
6. Tried and True *
7. Happy Coloured Marbles
8. Hey There Fancypants
9. Captain
10. Chocolate Town
11. I Don't Want It *
12. The F**ked Jam
13. Alcan Road
14. The Argus *
15. If You Could Save Yourself (You'd Save Us All) *
TOTAL RUNNING TIME: 55:07
Our son Lachlan loves Ween. Like, super loves them. He went through a big Daft Punk phase a fair few years back, but Ween overtook them. He's been on a mission to find all of their albums on vinyl, but had to succumb to purchasing a few CDs in order to complete the set. He still doesn't have a copy of GodWeenSatan, but he'll get it after he turns eighteen, I reckon.
Because of his passionate pursuit, I have been introduced to some of their music that I might not have sought out. In the nineties, I was aware of Ween, but only really knew the song Push th' Little Daisies and Voodoo Lady. Another of their songs turned up on the South Park Chef Aid album in 1998, The Rainbow, which I kinda enjoyed. Then in 2000, Ween released White Pepper, which boasted the amazingly poppy Even If You Don't. Side note: that single's video clip was directed by Matt Stone and Trey Parker of South Park fame. I loved it instantly and pretty much bought the album on the strength of it. This was the first time I got to appreciate the band's insane genre-hopping. There was no cohesion, just great songs with productions that seemed to have been inspired by other bands. Back to Basom always reminded me of Pink Floyd and Bananas and Blow felt like an outtake from a Los Lobos album. Such an amazing album with gentle ballads, heavy rockers and everything in between.
So, for a while, that album was my go-to for Ween. I possibly downloaded a few songs from other albums via Napster or AudioGalaxy or something, but didn't get too seriously into them. Some years afterwards I got a copy of Chocolate and Cheese, possibly just to have Voodoo Lady on CD somewhere. That album was just as genre-hoppy as White Pepper! Another great album, but that was where my interest in the band left me.
Until the boy discovered them.
I'm not really sure what got him through the door there. I must check in with the lad*. Anyway, discover them he did, and he jumped down the rabbit hole with both feet. As he set about acquiring physical copies of each Ween album that I didn't have, my music world got a little broader. As with a lot of Ween offerings, each album has some brilliant work, some silly tracks, some immature songs and some bizarre tunes. This record is no different, but I've come to realise that there a few numbers on Quebec that are now big favourites of mine.
As I usually do with these Album of the Week blog posts, I asterisk my five highlights of the album. Each of these asterisked tracks would possibly rank in my Top 10 Ween Songs. The first of these, Transdermal Celebration, has a real Foo Fighters-y vibe and a riff that got stuck in my head for days after hearing it for the first time. Some people might know Tried and True after it was used in a episode of Superman & Lois with the same name. It's a great acoustic number with a severe vocal effect that deepens Gene Ween's voice.
Oh yeah, if you didn't know, Dean Ween and Gene Ween are pseudonyms for the main creative duo behind the group, Michael Melchiondo, Jr. and Aaron Freeman. Freeman does the majority of the lead singing, the only exception being the raucous mess of the opening track It's Gonna Be a Long Night, he he he. It's an acquired taste, but sets the scene...anything goes!
When this album is good, by golly, it's so good. Along with the aforementioned Transdermal Celebration and Tried and True, other big highlights for include the prog-influenced mini-epic The Argus which features one of the best opening lyrics I've ever heard:
Boasting a subject that's deeply steeped in Greek mythology, and married with some guitar harmonies that would make Mike Oldfield envious, this is an absolute gem. I find it bizarre that it's at the end of the album, indeed it is the penultimate track. The ultimate track is killer as well, If You Could Save Yourself (You'd Save Us All). It's a great closing song, as it feels like it could accompany the credits of a movie or TV show. In fact, it was actually used in an episode of Apple TV+'s Morning Wars. It's just verse, chorus, verse, chorus, but the second chorus is sung a full octave above the first to great effect. Love it!
The absolute jewel in this thorny crown is I Don't Want It. Possibly my favourite ever Ween song, it features a magnificent, soaring guitar solo outro with lovely 'ahhh' backing vocals. It's truly sublime, and it takes me somewhere. Can't praise it enough.
Originally, this record was perhaps going to be longer. While working on the album without their regular drummer Claude Coleman Jr., who was recovering from car crash injuries, the Weens released The Caesar Demos. This was a two disc, MP3-only collection of tracks that the pair mostly recorded by themselves. Possibly, that would have revealed an even bigger scope of themes and genres. I do think that what became Quebec could have actually been a little leaner. I feel that the album might have benefited from excluding tracks like The F**ked Jam and Happy Coloured Marbles, which feel a bit like filler to me. The playful Hey There Fancypants and the dreamy Zoloft add to the zany appeal of the album though.
All in all, it's a great effort from a band that likes to push themselves and their fanbase, and one that I wouldn't have listened to without our son taking such a keen interest in them.
* It turns out that Lachlan just really liked the handful of Ween songs he'd heard, and then saw them included in a WatchMojo Top 10 video. It was something like the 10 Best Underground Bands. When Ween was being talked about, their song Transdermal Celebration was played, which he really dug. That was the impetus that sent him to deep dive through all of their stuff. He just kept liking what he heard!
No comments:
Post a Comment