John Cale Extravaganza II

 

There is a noticeable gap in my updates to the extravaganza hell I've made for myself in regards to John Cale's discography. I love this man, I swear I do. I love him and so I ruthlessly analyse and tear apart his records for my own amusement, like the masochist I truly am. The greatest sadist is John Cale, music's best kept secret. So here are a few more reviews of records in his discography. the sequel to my first published article in this venture. This is a mission to extract the reason why I love this manifestation of Satan's deranged genius, a little lamb and the slaughter house, the complete contradiction: John Cale.

Paris 1919 (1973)

SCORE OUT OF 100; 68.

i have to admit that this record is daunting for me as a john cale fan due to my having been introduced to it rather late in my career as a john cale fan, so seeing the hype around it is genuinely surprising. hype for anything john does is weird enough, but for this record, it seems even stranger. starting us off is a track entitled child's Christmas in wales, a jaunty sort of country-glam crossover which is deeply creepy for some reason I can't quite put my finger on. it fires on all cylinders, but perhaps too much of each genre it attempts to represent. always over powering but never quite accomplishing a harmony.

some of john's best vocal performances are in our second track, titled hanky panky nohow which I just fundamentally reject after the first minute and twenty. it is not enjoyable to listen to these words, these syllables, structured together in the way they are. these noises should not be coming after one another in an attempt to make a sentence or phrase. i reject this track from the record, it's lexicon is dastardly and strange. i find this issue with the entire record; it's just sort of a little creepy and inconsistent, isn't it? this must have been written through one of john's poetry phases due to the heavy verbiage but it pays off in some aspects,as many of these songs have some of john's best vocal performances but simply lack the surrounding structure to reinforce them as classics like fear is a man's best friend.

i can acknowledge that this is a good record without necessarily enjoying it. i like my john cale a little more manic. someone in the reviews here wrote that the album sounds like the cover, and perhaps that's where a bit of my dislike comes from. english nobility, or welsh nobility, and the aesthetics of it are not something I particularly find interest in. perhaps it is a record to mostly soundtrack a thought, but only a fleeting one. like blooming flowers, some things are meant to be beautiful and simply such. this is how I feel about the track 'andalucia;' it is a beautiful melody with lovely, almost twee-like vocals, and an amazing hook. it is beautiful and I don't want to think about it too much; it's just that lovingly charming.

on macbeth we get to hear a little bit of john cale screaming, something I appreciate in spades. the glam rock aspects return here. and of course, the alternative classic which is the title track, which is undeniably a beautiful and intricate track worthy of all of it's laurels and respect.

i suppose it simply isn't manic enough for me? i like john cale sloppy, over-eager, and perhaps absolutely demented. this record is a little too glossy for my liking.

Animal Justice (1977)

SCORE OUT OF 100: 80

often glossed over when discussing cale’s discography, “animal justice” is a short but exciting excursion into those nooks ov john’s psyche that isn’t mentioned in thee mostly cursory looks. i find that john’s mental/emotional state in his career is deeply understated, while most artists will be talked in depth concerning their emotionality. i suppose it’s just a side effect ov john being kinduv overlooked overall, and still in reed’s shadow.

“animal justice” is fantastic, energising even in it’s deeply slow but horrifically saddening track “hedda gambler,” which may be it’s standout track despite electric tracks like “chickenshit.” you will rarely hear such amazing art rock as this, it is absolutely worth thee listen. this is a hidden holy grail ov late 70’s experimentation. don’t overlook this!!!

points deducted due to length <333

Sabotage/Live (1979)

SCORE OUT OF 100: 87

not originally on my list ov cale records to review, but seeing as how it was one ov my most sought after vinyl finds from him, it only seems fair i give it a shot under thee microscope. naturally, as it is a live record and henceforth not reinforced by thee backings & surroundings ov a contained studio record — you can’t really judge it on the same grounds.

… lucky for me, john cale’s live performances are one ov my favourite spectacles to experience!!!! cale plays a variety ov instruments in this record from fretless bass to piano to his signature electric viola, and his grim state ov anger and paranoid are on full blast on this recording. it is almost terrifying to hear thee frustration & sadness laced in his recording, john straining his voice to it’s limits, emitting growl like noises from his vocal chords & unlocking a sortuv savagery that his live performances tended to hold back in these days.

though it was admittedly an incredibly difficult period for cale, drowning in addictions & social isolation, he was able to pursue an emotional output that was stupefying in it’s raw honesty. marc aaron’s lead guitar here is striking & sharp, akin to richard lloyd [from television fame] in many ways. an enthralling, classic new york record.

this is perhaps my favourite type ov cale exhibitionism, & considering my love for his live recordings, i maaay be a bit biased. giving a live record thee highest score ov my john cale extravaganza so far!

Honit Soit (1980)

SCORE OUT OF 100: 90

going into “honi soit” i expected it to be a very bad album as it is one ov thee records which don’t fall heavily into cale fan’s favour. however, i was surprised to recall that thee opening track, “dead or alive,” is one ov my favourite john cale songs ov all time. it’s an astounding [albeit cheesy] song which is criminally catchy. for thee most part, thee album is filled with that intricate descending guitar and awkward instrumentation that bolster’s cale’s intimidating vocal performance. thee weakest and only outright bad song on this record is “streets of laredo,” but after you get through that you’re met again with thee charismatically upside down instrumentation and unique delivery. it’s a solid record, cheesy at points, for sure, but also veers towards sounding like what tuxedomoon would in their mid-80s output such as “ship of fools.” this is, without a doubt my favourite john scale album. it is jaunty, stupid, and downright fun to listen to.

don’t skip this!!! it’s so much fun!!!