Reviews (page 2 of 8)
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion is the coolest band ever to exist. This isn't even their best album and it's an easy 5. Rip roaring, no holds barred, rock 'n roll
Repleto de atitude, já no começo com a gritaria e com as letras aleatórias e grotescas. O instrumental auxilia em vender essa imagem Punk, com barulhos distorcidos e, como o nome sugere, uma explosão de guitarras tonificadas em ambientação blues. Sinceramente, os vocais nem sempre são do meu maior agrado. Eu estava cético nas primeiras faixas do disco. Demorou até ele desenvolver melhor o seu som, mas ali na metade eu já estava engajado em sua proposta. E a partir daí, cada faixa me parecia melhor que a anterior, cada vez mais audacioso e energético, elevando sempre o patamar, o barulho, o ritmo incessante. Que bomba! 5/5
Why haven't I been listening to this my whole life?
Man this RIPS! How did I not know about this band/album. The smoky garage sound incorporating blues and punk and rockabilly. Good stuff!
This is another one that seems to get bad reviews, but I loved it. It’s messy, weird, loud, and has a ton of personality. The whole thing sounds like it’s about to fly apart, but in a way that makes it more fun. This album just has a nasty little swagger to it that kept me hooked the whole time. The guitar on “Skunk” was really good, and the Elvis sounding vocals on “Wail” were a little weird but somehow still worked. Outside of the vocals, parts of this actually reminded me of early Cage the Elephant, just with more rockabilly in it. The slide guitar on “Eyeballin” was great, the piano on “Can’t Stop” sounded like something out of a saloon, and “RL Got Soul” is a straight banger. The guitar solo on “Get Over Here” even had a Kurt Cobain, grungy kind of feel to it. “Sticky” was weird, but the rest of the album was so good I can let that slide. Favorite song: “RL Got Soul”
Прикольний гурт.
I was never a huge fan but listened to this album today and this later album was more mature and much better i. Terms of what they wanted to do than earlier records. You can see their earlier experimentation lead to this punk-garage-hardcore-style that was pretty unique. Now I feel they are underrated and must revisit their discography once again to see what my older self this of the band but if all the later stuff sounds like this I will be I will be a fan and on heavy rotation.
4.5. Rolling Stones and Stooges influences
The first seconds of Skunk had me real worried. Then it turned around in a very real way. Beast mode I fear.
THE BLUES…THE BLUES IS NUMBER ONE eu tenho uma relação muito boa com JSBX, apesar de ainda não ter achado um cd/dvd deles pra minha coleção. Descobri igual a maioria, com baby driver, com bellbottoms, mas só serviu pra aumentar o meu interesse com essa banda, que por mais q pareça q eles estão somente fazendo barulho por fazer, todos são muito bem treinados (por mais que também não pareça XD). Por mais que eu aprecie mais Orange, é inegável que esse é um dos melhores deles, por pôr mais em voga essa atitude e explosão q eles são conhecidos. A melhor banda de Jam q existe, barulho puro mas que não deixa a desejar. THE BLUES IS NUMBER ONEE HIGHLIGHTS: WAIL, Skunk (depois do grito), Chicken Dog, 2Kindsa Love, Dynamiye Lover, Rocketship 9.5/10
What a fun fucking album! I had low hopes going in not knowing anything about the band, and the name had me thinking it may be some boring retread of the blues. I was immediately happy when the first track came on screaming (literally), and was lo-fi as hell. Such a unique brew of different styles, like mixing early Beck, punk, and the White Stripes (who weren't even a thing yet). Awesome. 4.5/5
☄️🙌🏾
I love this and immediately connected with it. Genre defying in the best way. Such fun energy and captivating hooks. Can’t get enough, where has this been hiding all my life!
I was fully prepared for this to be a 1-star, chaotic mess of noise. But then "F**k Shit Up" started and my entire outlook on this album changed.
Uniquely affronting, and musically arresting, without being gross or shock jockying
Got myself addicted to the rush of this one
Aptly named blues band Burst forth with boisterous sound And heavy weight jams
YES! Just saw Jon Spencer a few weeks ago and he was amazing. Love him, love his music.
Had this in college, couldnt get into it... Maybe because i played my music on shuffle and never was ready for it... But holy crap this album has so much depth and would be so good for a sludgy bar in a swamp somewhere or a dirty college bar in a midwest town. I love it.
Very interesting album. I like it! I never heard it before. Thanks. Some songs are perfect.
Real electric noise garage blues rock… a very aptly name band. Also lots of screeching here too Top songs 1. Rocket ship 2. Fuck shit up 3. RL got soul
What an incredible album! This artist creates a sonic overload experience in their recorded work, something typically experienced only in live music. Maybe this album is not as diverse as the other album on this list, but this is by far my favourite!
Good stuff.
Loud and hard
Ok that was fun as hell. Wild garage blues rock, I guess you'd compare to like a drunken, coked-out White Stripes cover band at points, it's all over the place. Noisy and lo-fi, it's unhinged rock music which is exactly how rock music should sound like.
BOOM
I like the energy here. Madness combined with noisy guitars.
perfect album
This was great! Loved it!
Some very bluesy wailing delivered with a lot of force-bordering-on-abuse. I guess I was feeling musically masochistic, because much to my surprise I found myself really enjoying this album.
An unexpected treat. It's raw and chaotic, with bits of Iggy Pop and Captain Beefheart pulsing throughout. I saw the low reviews and feared the worst, but this was a belter.
so cool
Another surprise home run that makes me so glad I started this project! I had heard of this band before, but somehow never listened to them. I don't know exactly what I *thought* they were, but it certainly wasn't the awesomeness that I just had the pleasure of hearing! This album is searing, aggressive, technical, and so damned fun. it starts with a weird, primal scream and gets weirder from there. At no point did I ever *really* know what I was listening to, it's so unique and unlike anything else I've heard. Although I could definitely hear the blues inspired riffing in the guitars, this album is more unabashed in-your-face rock than anything else. An easy 4.5 stars, a hidden gem, and one of the most pleasant surprises I've had in the 80+ albums I've reviewed
Good but not groundbreaking.
This is an awesome blending of genres. It has elements of punk, blues, jazz, even some 90s hip-hop beats and record scratches. It makes me want to hear more by this artist.
Aaahhhhaaaaahhhh! Top album from begin to end. Love the energy, the variation, the combination of modern blues, straight rock and noise, the length of songs (usually 3 minutes maximum, no 20 minutes phychedelic stuff). Clear that he liked the same Industrial/Punky/Bluesy stuff I do and he combines it in a really good album Chicken Dog, the fun song Fuck Shit Up and the frightening Sticky (reminds me of the Deaf album by Foetus, DIY music!) my favorites.
unhinged, experimental, and fun
Big fan of JSBX since high school when I bought an LP of "Orange" cause Beck was on the track "Flavor" and was blown away by the rest. Ended up seeing them multiple times in concert, and you better believe they were great live. This album is like the apex of their creative peak from Orange through Acme, where they really started blurring genre barriers and experimenting more in the studio. It kinda surprises me there's so much disdain for this album on here, when the line between this and The White Stripes, etc. is absolutely clear. Yeah, it's a ton more aggressive and chaotic, but those are good things in my book when it comes to rock n roll.
belbottom! belbottom! belbottom!
5 stars!! Fucking LOVE this album! Jon Spencer at his best! There is not a bad track on this record!
I WILL ALWAYS 5 STAR JSBE
This needed a bit of time to settle in but holy moly it's worth preserving. Big Presidents of the US, Beck, kinda chaotic QOTSA, Dave Graney energy.
Fucking great album!
Første møte med dette bandet — wow!!
10/10 One of the best modern rock bands
Wow! Awesome! High energy!
Interesting alternative. Like gorillaz, but earlier
Wow. Esto se siente vivo.
This was awesome. Like a punkier version of White Stripes. I'm mystified by some of the harsh reviews. Must suck not being fun.
Rough and dangerous blues, ready to battle. I love this. 4.5/5
As a Gen X, firmly rooted in music of the 90s, how did I miss this? Why was I subjected to Spin Doctors when The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion could have been taking up those precious airwaves? Not every song hits but they take chances and a lot of it works. It's of its time but its postmodernism keeps it relevant.
Not what I was expecting at all, based on the name I thought I was getting a Blues album lol. The scream at the start really took me by surprise. It did take a couple of tracks for it to click with me but it was great once it did. Definitely one I’ll be going back to and I’ll have to check out more of their albums. Top Track - Dynamite Lover
En 1996, alors que la Britpop s'embourgeoise dans des stades pleins à craquer et que l'electro commence à imposer sa loi lourdement métronomique, un trio de New-Yorkais débarque avec un disque dont le nom sonne comme un aveu ou une menace : Now I Got Worry. A cet oeuvre, je donne un solide 4 sur 5 et même si son manque d'accessibilité immédiate pourrait en refroidir plus d'un, et ce dès les premières minutes. Après avoir exploré le chaos avec Pussy Galore, Jon Spencer, flanqué de ses fidèles complices Judah Bauer et Russell Simins, s'est mis en tête de célébrer la puissance et la virulence du blues originel, mais en lui injectant une bonne dose de rage punk et de crasse garage. Le résultat est un assaut sonore d'une rare violence. Le disque s'ouvre sur « Skunk », et l'entrée en matière est tout simplement incandescente : un cri strident, viscéral, qui déchire le silence avant que la batterie lourde et résonnante de Simins ne vienne vous enfoncer le thorax. Ce qui me fascine dans la performance de Spencer, c'est cette manière unique de vampiriser l'histoire de la musique américaine. Il prend le déhanchement sexuel d'Elvis et lui donne une inflexion totalement punk, presque malsaine. Sur « Wail », il se transforme sous nos yeux : moitié prédicateur baptiste illuminé du fin fond du Sud, moitié pilier de bar vicieux prêt à déclencher une bagarre générale. C'est théâtral, c'est outrancier, et c'est diablement efficace. Sur « 2Kindsa Love », le morceau bascule constamment entre les hurlements possédés de Spencer et les attaques discordantes de la guitare rythmique de Judah Bauer. On est au bord de la rupture, le son est saturé, la production de Jim Waters et de Spencer lui-même est volontairement brute, capturant l'essence même de leurs concerts. Pourtant, sous cette couche de distorsion et de fureur brute, le Blues Explosion connaît ses classiques sur le bout des doigts. L'hommage aux anciens n'est pas une posture de petit étudiant en musicologie, c'est un cri du cœur. Prenez « Chicken Dog » : le groupe y invite la légende du R&B Rufus Thomas en personne. À 78 ans, le vieux lion pose sa voix avec l'énergie d'un adolescent éternel sur un morceau qui salue directement ses propres classiques, « Walkin' The Dog » et « Do The Funky Chicken ». Plus loin, « R. L. Got Soul » vient enfoncer le clou en rappelant la complicité du trio avec l'énigmatique bluesman du Mississippi R. L. Burnside, qu'ils venaient de backer sur le monumental An Ass Pocket Of Whiskey. Je vois là une tentative brute, honnête et viscérale de reconnecter le rock moderne avec ses racines les plus sombres et les plus terreuses. Alors oui, l'album perd sa cinquième étoile à cause de ce mur du son parfois impénétrable qui attend l'auditeur non averti dès les premiers instants. Now I Got Worry est un disque exigeant, bruyant, parfois épuisant, qui exige une reddition totale de vos tympans.
Love it from the beginning
Gritty noisy hell rock, more of this please
Fun. This has aged very well. Before I listened I was worried it might sound corny or sarcastic/ironic or like bad blues karaoke, but this thing sounds great. I imagine seeing them perform in a small club would be great.
Hey, fun times! I haven’t really thought about Jon Spencer in years, this was a good time revisiting.
This was great. I never gave this band the attention I maybe should.
I was skeptical but it won me over. It was like having a pile of scrap metal rubbed on your face
Some great riffs. I liked the bluesier ones more than the punkier ones.
Didn't love this...but can't deny it. 4
After the initial scream and reading the top three global reviews I was pretty prepared to hate this album. But it was so fun! I loved the energy, I loved the weird Elvis vocals and the more spoken Fuck Shit Up, I loved the genre combination! I could have done without the initial scream and the last song but overall a much better type of explosion than I feared. Favourite song: Rocketship (or Fuck Shit Up) Least: Sticky
Rate: 8/10.
I had never heard of this before and it rules.
Loose and raw, punky garage rock blues. These guys don’t give a fuck about anything except fit riffs, funky drumming, and attitude. Noisy, unfiltered, and chaotic, commercial appeal has no home here. My only issue is that the album comes out firing on all fucking cylinders that just keeps ripping for the first half, but by the back half the songs and energy are not quite as strong. While “fuck shit up” isn’t necessarily my favorite song in the album, it perfectly encapsulates their credo - “Make it fucked up”
Crass and feral, a love letter to Captain Beefheart
That first track is a little much - definitely an explosion! Not sure if it's an explosion of the blues kind though. Ha! More experimental blues, but good.
Some sick guitar work, very elvis vibed
Looked at some reviews before I listened and based on them, expected a messy disappointment. It was anything but that. Super fun album with a lot of great high energy tracks! So glad I got introduced to this. Had never given these guys a listen. Will definitely be listening to more of them.
Identity
was kind of dreading this listen after a few seconds, but it seems like “Skunk” is a good way to filter out posers. this shit rocks. will listen to again
wierd, funky, and horny. what else can i ask honestly
First impression was obviously pretty low, but I embraced the weirdness factor and landed on a shakey 3/5... But then I reminded myself about active listening and eventually that led me to bump it up to a 4. It not just weird for weirdness sake, there's some real substance throughout the album. If the Flaming Lips had stuck to blues rock, this is what they would have sounded like. It also reminded me quite a bit of various Jack White productions.
Muy bueno, pense que no me gustaría porque es como muy de experimentar sonidos y cosas en las canciones, pero re bien. Temas top diría que hot shit y wail.
Much better than expected. ★★★★
This really straddles the line between my three and a half and four and I'm going to give it the 3 and 1/2 mainly for the tracks that quite frankly felt like desperate screaming period but the overall feel of rockabilly Punk and blues Punk when it got more towards that it was something I really liked and sometimes even reminded me of what would go into the the garage Revival in the early 2000s. I guess some of the more out there tracks just for a little bit too out there for me. (7.95) ★★★½
I think this is a cool album that mixes punk, garage rock and blues and filters it through a scrappy 90s indie aesthetic. Although it doesn't reach the highs of Orange, this might be their most consitent album. Highlights for me are "Wail", "2 Kindsa Love", and "Firefly Love". High 4 stars.
Consistently great
Started out weird but I like it!
1 - Skunk (a startling opener with a terrifying screamy passage. What follows isn't exactly reassuring as the guitars play the main riff out of tune. The singer sounds like he's singing into a blown out speaker and is blasted out of his mind. Really, the whole song sounds like a garage jam session gone horribly wrong. Very memorable start to this album) 4/5 2 - Identity (the bells at the start fake out the listener before a hardcore cowpunk thrasher takes over. It also fakes you out by making you think it will be a simple interlude) 3.5/5 3 - Wail (the first proper riff on this album makes way for a superb bar-band styled performance. Again, everything on this album sounds uncanny as can be; it ALMOST sounds like a normal rock record but your mind immediately recognizes that it isn't) 4/5 4 - Fuck Shit Up (The ramshackle, barely-held-together sort of instrumental sounds it's coming out of a decayed tape. Some monotone speak-singing talks about generic unambitious rebellion. This one is more of an interlude than anything despite being a full 3 minutes) 3.5/5 5 - 2Kindsa Love (I really like the blown out riff on this track, but the singer is starting to sound samey with the rambling, speak-sung and occasionally screamy style. This track is quite catchy which works solidly in its favour though) 3.5/5 6 - Love All Of Me (a more conventional garage rock styling on this song, though the sliding rhythm guitars set it apart from the rest. This time, the singer sounds like a deranged redneck Elvis parody, which honestly might be the style he was going for all along. This one feels like it ends just before it gets really good) 3.5/5 7 - Chicken Dog (another standard garage rock romp made more interesting by some deranged screaming, a bluesy vocal from a second singer and some pounding drums. The middle section riffs approach an arena rock chant along for just a brief second before quickly going back to the regular fare) 3.5/5 8 - Rocketship (this is the clearest vocal I've heard on the album so far, mostly because there's only a quiet guitar and some toms being played. This is also where the listener will notice that most of the lyrics make little if any sense and are mostly satirical mishmashes of pre-1980s rock and roll imagery, which is sort of a trademark of garage punk since it doesn't take itself so seriously) 3.5/5 9 - Dynamite Lover (a cross between Raw Power-era Stooges and the Rolling Stones to my ears. This one sounds like a satire of cowpunk or, like some of the previous songs, the bluesy bar band. This is the closest to a coherent melody I've heard from this singer on this album, so his avoidance of a clear or "proper" melody is actually somewhat impressive even if this isn't the most melodic album or genre. The straight-up noise explosion towards the end ties everything together perfectly) 4/5 10 - Hot Shit (sort of the garage punk version of "Jesus Built My Hotrod. The whole song reminds me of driving down a country road in pitch dark in a beat up car that can barely handle the speed it's going at. The fake out towards the end honestly got a chuckle out of me) 4/5 11 - Can't Stop (the most normal-sounding song on this album, featuring a honky-tonk piano that makes itself known between the noisy guitars and the occasional yelp from the singer. Sounds like the band was trying to play a classic rock song but got stuck on the same riff with no one remembering the next notes. More half-serious lyrics about defiance fill in the "bridge" this song has, if it can be called such a thing) 4/5 12 - Firefly Child (the fiery mid-tempo guitar complement the almost-there but not quite vocal melody and makes it so that this song could pass for a long-forgotten acid rock classic. The middle section almost turns into a metal breakdown before almost switching up the song somewhat leading to a louder climactic section. Easily the highlight of this album for me) 4.5/5 13 - Eyeballin (coming off the heels of the previous track, this song doesn't really do anything that the previous 12 haven't already done. The slide guitars and occasional harmonica carry the song to a 3 minute run time, which honestly feels too long for something like this. This song is mostly saved by the sudden noise freakout at the very end) 3.5/5 14 - R.L. Got Soul (this one picks up right where the last track's ending groove left off; it's like they wanted one song to lead to the other but figured that was too ambitious for an album that tried to satirize rock and roll as this one does. The harmonica interrupts the groove here and there but this is otherwise an extended "jam" session. The buzzsaw guitars that come in later add a lot to this one, as does the electric piano. I love the idea of the noise and chaos brewing just under the groovy surface of this song) 4.5/5 15 - Get Over Here (the shouty vocal returns for the first time in what feels like a while. This is a rock song stripped to the absolute essentials only. The out of tune guitars return to solo once again on this one; being the penultimate track it feels like an odd full circle moment) 3/5 16 - Sticky (a song that's fallen apart. The instrumental is largely vestiges of instruments covered in static and noise, with an occasional word from the singer to be made out. It feels like the entire band, people and all, have fallen apart just before the closing track. There's a strange hum and buzzing noise throughout that adds to the broken machinery atmosphere. This wouldn't sound of place on an early 80s industrial album. One last megaphone rant closes out the album with rock and roll lyrics mashed together as always) 4/5 OVERALL - 7.6/10
Never heard of them before, but a pleasant find
I can't tell if I actually love this record, or if l just love the memory of being 20 something and staying out until the bars closed.
The songs come and go with little to show for them. And yet, I dug pretty much every second. This is more like a 3.5 for me, but I'm feeling generous
My kind of explosive experience !
Sometimes you just want music to be an enjoyable racket, with a group thrashing around and having a good time, without overthinking anything. This album does exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a mix of blues, random screams, punk riffs, a bit of dub, weird shit and a very creditable Elvis impression. You really can’t go wrong with tracks like Fuck Shit Up and Chicken Dog which brings back veteran bluesman Rufus C Thomas to reprise his classic hits Funky Chicken and Walk the Dog, and apparently have a whale of a time doing it.
I really enjoyed this, I’d never heard of the artist.
This is a hot mess of rock blues with jazz and funk influences thrown in. There is enough structure for each track to be listenable and it's generally a fun listen. It's loosely corralled chaos which with some punchy lyrics (chicken dog). My only area of criticism is that this seems to have been made fairly late. It's like it missed the boat of true experimentalism and potentially edges into the pretentious or self indulgent. That said I can see this sliding into my listening rotation when I'm feeling a bit Avant garde.
Where have you been all my life? I'd heard the name but not bothered listening because I was ‘busy‘?! It's got energy, it's frequently got the groove, it’s helter-skelter, the wheels come off sometimes but no-one's fallen off, and key point I haven’t spotted any bad vibes yet so SHAKE IT!!! It's Good - 7/10.
Erfrischend!
Hyper. Masculine. Kinda hate that I loved it—he just seems so pleased with himself, with his off-center album cover... Also kinda mad about my eardrums getting blown out at the top, but I guess that's the explosion he spoke of. Is this blues? I didn't know it could go this hard, definitively. Anyway, pairs well with a tensely packed 3 train at 8 in the morning.
What an opening moment holy shit. Can't say it tries to trick you in anyway. It hits you with its mission statement immediately. Its kinda blues but mostly its just noise, in a good way. I love the silly almost Elvis thing the singer does. Its goofy and fun. The music itself is sick too. Generally at least. I like alot of it for sure. Not everything but mostly its good and had be bobbing my head along. I got some almost pixies vibes in a way and I love them alot. Its less structured than alot of pixies stuff. Or at least less tonal or rhythmic. That sounds bad but in this context its great. I even listened to all the bonus tracks. And there was just as much good shit in there too. Not that that factors into the review but just saying. Its a sick little batch of tracks and im into looking at the rest of rhe music they made
Oh, Jack White before Jack White was Jack White. Noisey Velvet Underground? whatever it is, I dont hate it.
This is a fun band
Great when it's at its noisiest, it's pretty fun overall!
Cool
This is wicked. I can see how this might be to everyone’s tastes, but this is the extreme end of garage rock that I love. Almost venturing into repetitive rhythms akin to The Fall, this is a great jam record and just pure energy. It’s runtime is obnoxious but also feels like a bit of a fuck you to what they “should” have done, so for that I like it. Can really feel the influence this had on early albums from The Hives and Les Savy Fav. Great stuff.
Raw and visceral. Very different and weird. Dig it though. Something I'll explore deeper further on.
Good stuff, great energy, cool songs. Doubt there would be a White Stripes without this happening first.
A bit more chaotic and rawer than I expected, based on some of the other JSBE stuff I've heard. But I quite enjoyed this, 45 minutes of punk/blues energy that's greater than the sum of its parts.
Місцями альбом хочеться назвати всратим, але незважаючи на це мені переважно все сподобалось. Багато драйву з сирим гаражним звуком. Оцінив би десь на 3.5.
Loud, Messy , and Noisy in all the best ways. Loosely bound chaos just on the verge of spinning out of control masterfully held on the edge.
I likes this, except the end was terrible. But theres no reason for this to be on this list
i finally get a random album and this one was such a great album. here i am thinking it was going to be a typical blues album nothing out of the ordinary. so so good i really like the sounds of this album. i’d genuinely listen to this on my own, the intro song skunk was good, chicken dog, dynamite lover, hot shit, get over here and most of the album actually. i’m glad i heard about this album i’d listen to it again . needs more recognition and this will be a 10/10 but i need to listen to it more if im being honest. 8/10
Really enjoyed this, it is just raw energy, aggressive. Like dragging the blues to a dive bar, forcing it to have a few lines of coke, and down 10 pints.
Felt like punk, felt like blues, and kept the energy up all throughout the album. Got a lot of Dead Kennedy's vibes from this album especially from guitars, vocals, and that punk sound. 8.5/10, Favorite Song: R.L. Got Soul.
Super fun!
This is hard to rate, I am giving it a 4 because I think a few more listens and I am really going to enjoy this beautiful mess, Truly an explosion
grimy
Definitely not what I expected. Pretty cool and adventurous. I thought it was going to be much more mellow like Ben Folds Five or something but this is closer to the zaniness of Zappa. 4/5
If you take out the first and last song, its becomes a pretty sick album. The instrumentals go hard
I've heard if this band but didn't really know. Good
I had zero expectations going into this and kinda loved it? This was such an interesting album, full of good songs. I was really bopping around listening to this - great vocals as well.
I wish i had heard this when it came out. Super well done dance/ blues/ whatever album.
This grew on me. I was a bit skeptical when the first song opened up with screaming, but as the album progressed, I rather enjoyed the funky groove. It kind of reminds me of a mix of Dex Romweber with Southern Culture on the Skids. Favorite song: R.L. Got Soul
'Now I Got Worry' sounds like a live album capturing an intense blood pumping performance by three wild men hellbent on making you dance till you drop or just drop. That a couple of cheap guitars and a drumkit can make such a loud blast of controlled chaos is nothing short of impressive. The sweet sixteen songs on 'Now I Got Worry' at times sound a bit too alike (how could they not?) but they never overstay their welcome in fact after 45 minutes when the album ends it leaves your aching for more. If Alfred E. Newman had a band it would sound exactly like The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion- warts & questionable decision-making skills included. What me worry?
Upbeat and weird. I like it
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion was also the name of one of Len Houmous’ bedroom techniques. It won him 4 wives. 3.5 10/17 Hot Shot
At its peaks, the album is a 4. Fun, explosive garage blues rock. At its lows, the album is a 2. But the peaks outweigh the lows, so I'd peg it at 3.6, rounding up to 4.
And that's why you don't judge a book by its cover - here's me thinking it'll be a blues album then suddenly - BAM - the vocals of Jon Spencer pierce into my headset, a welcome relief. Gritty classic garage rock all day. Best: Fuck Shit Up Worst: R.L. Got Soul Note: I only listened to the original 16 tracks
bumping up because I want to explore more from this band
Really digging this album. Think it's the drum swagger. Great to listen to while coding.
"it does capture their taut, blazing, live sound and their eccentric studio"
Did not know what if Elvis made dance punk was a question I needed answered but here we are.
Both progressive and regressive in equal measure… Highly influential on the blues rock boom of the early 2000s while borrowing heavily from the 70s. I did enjoy the odd moments of experimentation (use of electronic beats, etc.) and found it has aged well.
"This doesn't look like Blues" I think seeing the cover. Didn't take many seconds to confirm, indeed not a Blues album. Not sure I would listen to this again, but I definitely enjoyed it.
Interesting stuff here.
I'm here for funky time. I was skeptical after the first couple of songs, but was hooked at "Wail." Never heard of these guys but they certainly are fighting for your attention. Loud guitars and never knowing what volume the lyrics will hit you will do that. There is a very interesting style at play here. Never quite blues, rock, punk, or electronic at the same time (at leave I've never seen them in the same room together!) The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion is definitely unique. Maybe a little psychotic, but in the best way. Standouts on this listen were "Wail," "Can't Stop," - a banger for both the piano and guitar pieces - and "Eyeballin" - that slide guitar riff will be in my head for a while. The downsides of Now I Got Worry for me are the "yelling into a megaphone" style vocals present on most tracks kinda piss me off after a while. But it's their vibe, I get it. Some of the songs get a little annoying though. The lyrics can be pretty dumb too. I had fun with this but struggle to rate it. It's dumb fun. The music is decent. The lyrics and content matter are meh. There are several songs that could have been left off the album to die. Do I want to listen to more of this again? Yeah, kinda. Maybe I'll check some of their other records out. I'd give this a 7 or 8 out of 10, so it can have 4 stars here. I've given dumber shit 4 stars, so why not?
Rating: 3.5 Really cool album. You have to be weird guys to make rockabilly Nirvana songs and whatever they have going on here is working. I would have gone with a different name though, I thought I was going to be dying of cringe and corniness but I really had the exact opposite reaction.
Want to like this album so bad, the ending ads were weird but the songs were great!
4,5
Unexpected cracker.
A very weird garage rock album. I didn't hate this, aside from the opening screams, but I don't know that I liked it, either. The songs are short and kind of pass by you, and the vocals are very garagey. Either way, this isn't blues music.
I actually kinda like this. My head was bobbin. Raw, punky and fun. An influence on Jack White perhaps? I don’t know but sounds like him a little bit and some Black Keys too. Not bad.
At different times this reminded me of Beck, The President of the USA, Cake, Viagra Boys, and the White Stripes. So yeah, it kicks ass.
Vibing with this heavy. Really unique sound.
I didn’t know quite what to expect here, but this was cool. It’s gritty, but has a groove to it. Great album.
This was a lot more punk in terms of attitude than I expected given the name of the band. So, it's kind of funny, on a second listen, without thinking I was going to get a blues record, I liked it!
Got jumpscared by this intro.
I went in skeptically, but this spoke to me quite a lot. Frenetic nonsense, mixed with absolute rockabilly silliness and pure unserious magnificence. It's pompous without being pompous.
Now I Got Worry spams the noisy blues-jam formula Jon Spencer has spent his career mining. With 32 songs clocking in just under 80 minutes, it starts as a sprint but reminds you midway that there's still a lot more gritty, lo-fi swagger to go. The stretch around "Sticky" and "Cool Vee" that goes on for a few more tracks is either a breather from the gritty break neck pace or it lays back too much, risking a loss of listener attention. While I'd have trimmed the album down, ultimately, I stayed charmed enough for it to land at 4 stars.
Successfully exploded the blues.
boom!
4.2
Up until last week, I’d never heard of the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion outside of the context of this list. I was listening to an episode of a podcast that talked about Yeah Yeah Yeahs’s “Maps,” and the podcast mentioned that Yeah Yeah Yeahs had toured with JSBE in their early days. In reading some background information on this album, I see that it’s described as blues punk, which I didn’t even know was a thing. I have no clue what this album is going to sound like, but here goes nothing! Now I Got Worry started off incredibly rough. The first four songs were an absolute mess in my opinion. The sound felt cacophonous in way that made me feel like JSBE were trying to imitate Trout Mask Replica, and the fourth song, “Fuck Shit Up,” felt like the band was trying to be edgy in a way that a 12-year-old would appreciate. After that though, I really got into this album in a way that I was not expecting. I’m usually more drawn to hooks and melodies, but the rhythms on this album were really catchy, and for a trio (minus some sparse guest musicians), I thought these guys created a really deep and interesting sound. I didn’t care for Jon’s vocals that much, but the guitar playing was really great. After those first four tracks, I found the album a lot more accessible, and I really enjoyed grooving along to the rest of the album. The last two tracks were not my speed, but everything else in the middle was really solid. A few notes on some songs that stood out to me: “2Kindsa Love”- the guitar playing was great. The distortion was melodic, and the hard-driving rhythm that gave the song a great groove. The vocals were bluesy and also punky in a way that hit just right for me. “Chicken Dog” – the guitar playing was great, and there was a good groove to the rhythm. The guest vocals from Rufus Thomas were awesome, and a welcome reprieve from Jon’s singing. “Rocketship” and “Dynamite Love”- both of these songs had some good guitar playing that I enjoyed. These two songs were when I noticed that it was the rhythm of the album that was really drawing me in. I thought the distortion on the guitar was great too. “Hot Shit”- this was the only song where I liked Jon’s vocals. “Can’t Stop”- this was my favorite song on the album. I loved the piano playing, and I wish there had been more piano melodies like this on the other songs. “Firefly Child”- this had some of the best guitar playing on the album. “Eyeballin”- I loved the guitar breakdown halfway through. One of the best ‘small moments’ on the album. “R. L. Got Soul”- the main guitar riff was excellent, and I loved the distortion that kicked in about halfway through the song. All in all, this was a surprisingly solid album. This isn’t the sort of thing I’m usually drawn to, but I thought this album was really unique, and despite the rocky start, it managed to hook me in.
This was really cool, not something I’ve listened to much in the past.
This album was a revelation. I had never heard of it and I was judging it based on the title and my less than high enthusiasm for blues. That said this album was totally unexpected and different. Although I expect it would have become a top tier album for me 15 years ago I still appreciated it and liked many of the songs.
open yr mind….
very good.
Antecedente claro de los White Stripes, con su primitivo sonido sostuvieron en rock en los 90, con un puente entre el garaje-punk y el revival de principios del siglo 21. Imprescindible? Puede serlo, tanto este como el anterior y más accesible Orange o el posterior Acme. Wail sobresale como una canción estupenda, con la mirada puesta en el psicobilly de los Cramps. Rocketship ha influido segramente en los citados White Stripes o en otros ilustres como The Black Keys. Hot Ship es tan inclasificable como salvaje y bailable!! Get over here sale directamente de las catacumbas y el cirrre con Sticky te deja con cara de panoli. Toda una experiencia.
Garage rock meets the blues. Reminiscent of the White Stripes but less wit or lyrical depth. The edgy, energetic sound makes me rank this 3.5 and hesitantly round up to 4…
Sounds like if Mick jagger Fronted the velvet underground if they were a new band these days.
This was great, jarring, noisy, diverse. Not quite enough for 5 stars, but a fine 4 star album.
so fun
The opening primal scream immediately set me on edge that I was going to hate this, but luckily I persisted - this developed into a spiky, eccentric, slightly shocking blues-rock romp that was actually pretty enjoyable. Good stuff!
Blues!
This album gets cooking at the halfway mark, but the first six songs are a slog. I prefer Acme or Orange when they mostly shout "BLUES EXPLOSION" over slam-on-the-brakes rock. It's a limited technique but it works when they do it.
I count myself as a fan of The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion's brand of grimy garage punk and gutter blues music. My copy of Orange was on heavy rotation in the mid-90s, yet I never got around to the rest of the band's catalog. Now I Got Worry plays differently than its predecessor, which presented like a variety hour of musical sketches and sleazy, funky charm emceed by Spencer. It's more varied in style, raunchier but equally combustible. I love the 1-minute hardcore throwback "Identify," while "Love All of Me" sounds like Elvis on a bender in the pre-gentrification Lower East Side. Is this the best JSBE album? I cannot say, but I'm fine with it being on this list as an example of how the blues established a foundation for so many diverse rock subgenres.
Enjoyed this album, I don't know why I'm thinking about James Brown right now but I believe his spirit is somewhere listening to this music and smiling.
Took a couple of listens on this one to really get into it. Pretty great rock album. I won't say every song hit, but overall a great album!
## In-Depth Review: *Now I Got Worry* by The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion *Now I Got Worry*, released in 1996, is the fifth studio album by The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion (JSBX). It stands as a raw, electrifying testament to the band's unique blend of punk blues, alternative rock, and unfiltered energy[3]. This review examines the album’s lyrics, music, production, themes, and influence, concluding with a balanced assessment of its strengths and weaknesses. --- ## Lyrics **Raw, Scatological, and Incantatory** The lyrics on *Now I Got Worry* are a wild ride-part primal scream, part surreal incantation. Jon Spencer delivers lines that oscillate between classic blues tropes (“You-you-you got to help me”) and modern, almost dadaist fragments (“You know why?/It sounds real good/Quit my cause baby/Quit our fallin'/Who the hell works?”)[2]. The words often feel secondary to the delivery, serving more as rhythmic and emotional punctuation than narrative storytelling. Spencer’s vocal approach is unrestrained: he shrieks, bellows, croons, and howls, sometimes within the same song. This unpredictability keeps listeners on edge, unsure whether they’ll be “mauled or soothed” from one moment to the next[2]. The lyrics, while not traditionally poetic, are packed with attitude and urgency, channeling the spirit of blues through a punk lens. --- ## Music **A Scuzzy, Blazing Sonic Assault** Musically, *Now I Got Worry* is a relentless barrage of distorted guitars, pounding drums, and frenetic energy. The album opens with “Skunk,” a track that “doesn’t just kick the doors open...it rends them clean off the hinges”[2]. The trio-Spencer, guitarist Judah Bauer, and drummer Russell Simins-sound as if they’ve steeped their instruments in the “most fetid gutter in Memphis,” delivering performances that are both tight and chaotic. The sound is a fusion of punk, blues, garage rock, and funk. While previous albums like *Orange* leaned into quirky soul influences, *Now I Got Worry* returns to a dirtier, more visceral aesthetic. The arrangements are incendiary, with Simins’ drums “tenderizing guts” and Bauer’s guitar lines slashing through the mix. The album’s cover of Dub Narcotic’s “Fuck Shit Up” epitomizes its reckless abandon, while tracks like “Wail” (with a video directed by “Weird Al” Yankovic) showcase the band’s willingness to embrace both humor and chaos[3]. --- ## Production **Eccentric, Live, and Purposefully Unpolished** Produced by Jon Spencer and Jim Waters, the album captures the “taut, blazing, live sound” of the band while maintaining an “eccentric studio approach”[1][3]. The production is intentionally scuzzy and raw, emphasizing immediacy over polish. Each instrument is given its own space, but the overall mix is dense and aggressive, immersing the listener in a sonic swamp. The remixed and remastered editions of the album have subtly improved clarity, allowing listeners to “pick out every edge and corner” without losing the essential grime that defines the record[2]. The studio work is less about technical perfection and more about channeling the energy of a live performance, making the album feel urgent and unpredictable. --- ## Themes **Rebellion, Catharsis, and Postmodern Blues** Thematically, *Now I Got Worry* is a postmodern take on blues and rock traditions. The album is steeped in rebellion-against genre conventions, against musical refinement, and even against the band’s own previous trajectory. There’s a sense of catharsis in the unfiltered performances, as if the band is exorcising demons through volume and distortion. The lyrics and music together evoke themes of struggle, release, and defiance. The album’s title itself suggests anxiety and unrest, which is mirrored in the frenetic pacing and volatile dynamics of the songs. Yet, beneath the chaos, there’s a deep reverence for the roots of American music, filtered through a lens of irony and self-awareness. --- ## Influence **A Cult Classic and a Touchstone for Punk Blues** *Now I Got Worry* has been recognized as an essential listen, included in the book *1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die*[3]. While it may not have achieved mainstream commercial success, its impact on the punk blues and garage rock scenes is significant. The album’s willingness to embrace noise, imperfection, and genre-blurring experimentation paved the way for later acts to explore similar territory. The band’s approach-melding blues structures with punk aggression and avant-garde sensibilities-has influenced a generation of musicians seeking to break free from traditional genre boundaries. The album’s inclusion of bonus tracks in later editions also reveals the depth of the band’s creative process, highlighting their commitment to crafting a cohesive aesthetic even as they experimented with different sounds[2]. --- ## Pros and Cons | Pros | Cons | |------|------| | Captures the band’s live energy and raw power[1][3] | May be too abrasive or chaotic for some listeners[4] | | Inventive fusion of punk, blues, and garage rock | Lyrics can be opaque or feel secondary to delivery | | Eccentric, unpolished production enhances authenticity | Lack of traditional song structure may alienate some | | Unpredictable, cathartic vocal performances | Not as quirky or playful as earlier album *Orange*[4] | | Influential within punk blues and alternative rock scenes | Occasional self-indulgence in noise and chaos | | Included in *1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die*[3] | Divisive critical reception (ranging from 5/5 to 5/10)[3] | --- ## Conclusion *Now I Got Worry* is a bold, uncompromising record that distills the essence of The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion: wild, inventive, and defiantly unrefined. Its lyrics are more about attitude and delivery than narrative; its music is a scuzzy, kinetic blend of punk and blues; its production is raw and immediate; and its themes revolve around rebellion and catharsis. The album’s influence is felt in the way it pushed genre boundaries and inspired others to embrace imperfection as a virtue. For fans of noisy, energetic, and unconventional rock, *Now I Got Worry* is a vital listen. For others, its abrasive sound and chaotic structure may prove challenging. Either way, it remains a landmark in 1990s alternative music, capturing a band at the height of its creative powers and willingness to take risks.
I would have picked "Orange" as the JSBX album for this list. Still, this is a solid album packed with fun Garage-Boogie-Blues. For further enjoyment, check out R.L. Burnside's "Ass Pocket of Whiskey", a collab with JSBX that takes the genre-bending even further. Or JSBX's "Experimental Remises" (available on streaming as the second disc of "Orange (Deluxe)", featuring fresh takes by members of Beastie Boys, Wu-Tang Clan, and Moby.
This is the greatest, most irritating album I've heard. It definitely belongs on this list, for the sole fact I can hear Jack White in it a few years earlier. The screeching is worth it on the first listen, but I worry about the next ones. Plus, the album's pretty long for what it represents.
Never heard of this one, no clue what to expect - especially given there's a song called Fuck Shit Up on a "blues" (will it really be blues?) album and they did a video with Weird Al. This should be fun. --- Yeah, it is fun. Dirty, fuzzy, nasty, rough, raw, loud and weird. Very garagey. Until the electronic bits come in. And then the rockabilly. And the stompy southern stuff. And the psychedelic rock. This album feels like a twisted carnival ride through the underside of the USA. Very Captain Spaulding with a bit of Captain Beefheart. Me gusta. Favourite tracks: Wail, 2Kindsa Love, Love All Of Me, Get Over Here
I like these guys - another album I might give like a 3.5 if I could. Good raw sounds.
Ah, the raw, rebellious 90's. This one's pretty fun. It'll get your ass on the move. I imagine this would be a fun act to see live.
Wow I actually love this album. I was about to rate it like 1 -2 stars based on the review and the first song but it turns out to be quite a blast!
Album is half an hour longer than it should be so the good stuff gets lost in itself. Cool music though, can hear some Zappa/Beefheart mixed in with more standard blues rock. One of the few albums I haven't heard before that led me to seek out more of their stuff.
Fav: Firefly Child Least Fav: Identity That scream at the beginning is a litmus test to see who can handle the pure punk emitting from the tracks, the blues explosion if you will
All the negative reviews for this album are somewhat surprising. There's a bit of filler on here, but it's still pretty fantastic. JSBE laid the groundwork for a lot of the stripped down white boy punk/blues that followed, most notably The White Stripes. JSBE put on one of the most incredible live performances I ever witnessed at The Ogden in Denver in 1996. This isn't my favorite JSBE album (that would be Extra Width), but this is a damn good one. 4/5 Album 20/1001
starts with a scream, punk meets blues, it was interesting.
It’s like a band got up onstage at someone’s leaving party, and instead of playing song played the musical equivalent of a roast while everyone got really really high
I was surprisingly super into this. I can't really place my finger on why, but I was really vibing with the chaos.
"Не суди книгу по обложке" - говорили они. Но тут смотришь на обложку и понимаешь содержимое. Включаешь это самое содержимое и с первых секунд первого трека в уши течет "искусство". Я прекрасно понимаю низкие оценки этого альбома, я бы и сам такую поставил, но концепция книги "1001 альбомов которые вы должны послушать перед смертью" и соответственно концепция сайта не подразумевает того что тут будут исключительно хорошие или влиятельные альбомы и это замечательно, замечательно расширять свой кругозор вот такими экспресиями, да и к тому же со второй половины альбом становится еще более удобоваримый. Но людям с проблемами с сердцем не советую такое слушать, особенно трек - Fuck shit up
Gets a little rickety at times, but that's part of the charm
Not bad!
Cool mashup of style on this record. Rocketship is a good song. So is Dynamite Lover. So is Hot Shot. Swampy, bluesy, punk, definitely the blues. Fuzzed out vibes on R.I. Got Soul.
This was a lot better than I thought it would be. I have seen JSBX (and other Jon Spencer projects) live a decent number of times, and they have an appeal as a live act with a blazing force. However, I've never been interested in their recorded material because I'm not sure how it would translate. Turns out pretty well! And that is to say that I don't think many people will appreciate listening to this. It's as jarring as a recorded piece just as it is as a live performance which is awesome.
This album is super fun! Reminds me a bit of the White Stripes, even though i dont think they were necessarily influenced by this, but rather that the two are both influenced by the same things. Luckily for mister Jon over here i love the White Stripes, and i like this a lot as well!
Grimy and stanky
What a varied and unique album! This feels like a wild mashup of Memphis blues + Tom Waits + The Ramones + Daft Punk + Jimi Hendrix. I don't even really know how to explain it. Its really eccentric and totally out there and all over the place. This is truly a "more is more" kind of album. Some songs blow your mind where other songs kind of annoy me, but that's not really a dig on the over all album. It just kind of feels like he's throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks. I had a lot of fun with this one!
'I'm always a few minutes wrong.' This is indeed a blues explosion, mainly b/c it's an explosion of the uncool. It's not weird, it's not downcast, it's not edgy, it's not at all cool, but it's also not up for debate. The blues can't be itself when it's knowingly chic - it has to have some uncool about it, some awkwardness, some untidiness, some real deal marring and scarring. But, as Albert Murray advocates, the blues is also dance music, party music, a genre for the clubs and late night believing. Every song on this album doesn't stun, but the whole thing fosters a cool uncool - a mixture of the festive and gawkish - that I admire thoroughly.
3.5
I’m not sure what exactly I expected going into this record, but from the very first agonizing wail, my curiosity was piqued. This whole album has a loose, almost sloppy live feel to it, and it works really well. This is by far the most punk rock record we’ve reviewed so far. I’m honestly a little shocked I’d never heard of it before. It sort of vacillates between this greasy blues-rock and fast punk rock. It’s like some rockabilly dude with a pompadour and a 55 Chevy Belair’s perfect cruising album. There’s points in this album where it gets a little off base for me, “Rocketship” is a song I particularly didn’t enjoy. Actually you know what, this sounds like an album Elvis would have recorded if he was born about 20 or 30 years later and read The Outsiders a few too many times. Not a bad record at all, pretty enjoyable listen. 3.5*.
Strange, experimental, and fun
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUGH! This is some good shit, never would’ve found this without the list, this is how you mix the blues with alt rock, the black keys could learn a thing or two
+++ skunk, get over here --- fuck shit up, love all of me never judge a book by its fucking cover! wasn’t particularly excited for this, assumed based off the album art it was something more akin to the decemberists for some reason, was SO pleasantly surprised when the album opened with shrieking. one of those albums im glad i didnt get my hands on earlier because i wouldve been SO annoying.
There is a fine balance between hot tunes with frantic driving energy and a big hot mess with an idiot shouting all over the place. This album gets the balance right for the majority of the tracks and when it does it fucking rocks. Unfortunately it does miss the mark a few times with a couple of clangers.
Punk surf blues. This was pretty fun. Gotta say Jon Spencer and whoever else really lay it down.
Loved it in places
AAAAAAAAAAA
Really enjoyed this genre mashup. Great for a lunchtime walk in the winter sun B-)
4.0
Very wild, kind of all over the place, in a good way.
Hard shit! 32 songs in one album. Ok, half of them are bonus tracks... :D Gotta love it!
Another band I'm familiar in name only. I'm sure I've heard some tracks, but I couldn't tell which they are. I don't know what I was expecting to hear, but it for sure wasn't punk laden garage with bluesy rockabilly tones. I feel there's psychedelic elements and repetitiveness from krautrock in there too, some experimental atonal noise elements sprinkled here and there. This is pretty wild stuff!
Pretty rad music. Feel like this guy would be a pretentious prick to grab a beer with though.
Excellent and exactly what I need right now.
Punk blues. Me ha gustado. Un 4.
Doesn't really let up and ultimately becomes a draining, but still unique for his time.
This is some rocking rolling banging shit. Like if Elvis played with link Wray and had Dead Kennedys energy. I can see the influences on major garage acts of today like thee oh sees, geese, coachwhips and the like.
"Wail" slaps HARD. And it sounds tempting to include at least *one* punk blues album such as this one in a list of essential albums of all time (although JSBE's *Acme* could be a good candidate as well). Taken on their own, you have some pretty impressive rockers in this album. Seeing this project play live at the time was probably insane. On the other hand, all the tracks sound a little samey after a while, at least when it comes to experiencing the studio version of what Spencer and co. can pull of as band firing up on all cylinders. It goes with the territory the man has explored throughout his career, sure, and there's nothing wrong with the record's lo-fi production, which aged like fine wine. Yet the one-note intent here is still something that can be detrimental to my overall benevolent feelings. Didn't prevent me from buying the album at the time of its release. But beyond a bunch of songs, I'm not really inclined to listen to it from start to finish these days (or even explore the many bonus tracks on this Spotify link). So I can't really decide if I'm gonna include this one in my list. Now I got worry of my own anyway, between some work shenanigans and an interview with DITZ I got to prepare. If only I had the time to write proper reviews for everything... 3.5 for the purposes of this list, rounded up to 4. 8.5 for more general purposes (5+3.5) Number of albums left to review: 29 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 419 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 245 (including this one) Albums from the list I won't include in mine: 311
Analog mayhem.
Won me over completely. Raucous. Fave tracks Wail and R.L. Got Soul.
This was new to me and a real treat. High energy max of rock and roll and blues with some other elements.
I had this band mentally filed besides G Love & Special Sauce. Major filing error - way more aggression than chill on this record, and I am in to it. I will refile closer to Black Lips and King Khan.
I liked this more than most. It reminded a lot of a slightly more aggressive white stripes. A lot of fun guitar riffs Rating: 3.8
Interesting but too damn long
After 20 seconds of mostly screaming, it seems like this is going to be a tough listen. But wait. 40 minutes later and I've tapped my toe, nodded my head and smiled far more than I expected. It's dirty, dirty blues guitar with the lots of the good kind of experimental edge and a raw, raucous coolness that I can get on board with. A really pleasant surprise.
Took a few tracks to adjust my mindset to match the music, but once I got into it I liked it. I wasn't expecting the punk rock edgy thing. Thank you 1001 for knocking me off my center once again.
Schrummel schrummel
Garage rock meets blues. Reminiscent of the White Stripes but less lyrical depth. But, strong sound.
Was not feeling it at all to start, but I ended up really really digging it. Go figure.
Songs on the edge of exploding or in the process of exploding. Elemental. Required listening especially if such a demand starts a fight.
The raw production on this album is just on the verge of chaos, but it mostly works great! The first song was okay, and after that I thought the rest of the album was really good. So many good dirty guitar tones. I would need to be in a certain mood to play this, but it will for sure get spun again. 4/5
I was ready to hate this but warmed to it quickly. A bit like Beck or The Beastie Boys but even more messy.
L'album commence en criant, ça surprend. Mais quand même bon, un peu rock, punk, blues aussi.
At first I thought it was just noise but later I found it to be hard hitting and funky
Fun
I'm not sure what I was expecting with this album, but it certainly wasn't what I got. I really enjoyed this album. It's so noisy and irreverent, which fits really well with the blues. It's fun the whole way through, but also well-constructed enough that you can take it seriously 4/5
Kicks ass!!
Dehä va sick! Grimy gitarr sound, jätte nice bas o trummor
Write a review? Fuck you!
You will never be as cool as Jon Spencer circa 1996. No one ever will be - that is just a fact
This album is bizarre. Crunchy. Punk. Nonsense lyrics. Jams and grooves. Seems pretty far from normal blues. Maybe that's what blues sounds like exploding? It's a cool little jam.
One day in August 1994 I received a breathless phone call from my friend Jodie in Canberra. She had just been to see Beck play at the ANU Bar, and insisted that I had to go see the show when it swung through Sydney a few days later. "Beck" she said "is surprisingly good, but you _have_ to see the support band." And that support band was the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. So, I followed her advice and trotted down to the Metro Theatre that Saturday night to catch the show. And Beck _was_ surprisingly good. he had a much more muscular band than I was expecting based on my listening to the Mellow Gold album, and they rocked pretty hard. But the Blues Explosion were a revelation. They tore the place up! It was rock and roll in a way that I had rarely seen; part blues shouter, part gospel preacher, part Elvis, part James Brown, but with a garage rock sound that blasted the place down. The songs were barely songs; they were loose improvisational grooves that provided a platform for Spencer to preach. I knew the name of his previous band, Pussy Galore, but was unfamiliar with their music. According to wikipedia, Jon Spencer had a breakthrough when touring with the Jesus Lizard in late 92, and his performance was raised to whole new level, and woo-hoo was that apparent! You can see his approach well in this clip (https://youtu.be/zeW-mOXdkvU?si=8FvexCqU-uM11w-1), which was a live to air Australian Saturday morning TV show with an audience of mostly kids. Who else watches yoof television at 10am on a Saturday? God knows what the audience made of it all. The studio audience seems stunned. All JSBX albums are essentially the same. They don't really have songs, just great performances. The playing is loose and the recording is shittily lofi (although not to the degree of bands like the Gories, who were ploughing a similar field), and full of spit and vinegar and proper rock n' roll grit. It is a terrific performance that makes you feel alive. It's a groovy mix of cheap whiskey and the Holy Ghost, in a slim cut suit and greased back hair. They were really at their best live, and you don't really need more than one record. Personally, I prefer Orange (which came out just after that live show I saw), but there's not much in it. Truth be told, the record I play most is the Experimental Remixes EP, which I sometimes drop into my DJ sets. This is great reminder of what rock and roll should be; loud and obnoxious and groovy and sexy and kinda out of control.
My brother liked these guys when I was younger and I never got into them. I enjoyed this listen.
Each time that I would pause to reflect on how I was enjoying the album, my thought would be that I wasn't. I didn't think it was all that pleasant to listen to. But then, I would find myself a bit intrigued by the music. So, I don't really know where I land...definitely not a "love it" and also not "this sucks", but did I like it...I guess, maybe...
great when it isn't just noisy edgy crap wail 2kindsa love rocketship dynamite lover can't stop r.l. got soul
hell yeah! this is some raw music and im all bere for it. Loved most of the songs but im giving 4 because some songs sounds like elvis prestley from hell
Very noisy but still decent
You can't fool me, I know punk rock when I hear it. Maybe it's psychobilly. Whatever it is, it's rad. Album of the week.
Boom!!
I would have liked some of the tracks more if the blues hadn’t exploded. But overall a fun, rockabilly sound that I may not like every day, but I enjoyed today.
Un album qui semble vous mettre au défi de l’écouter. J’aime le côté sombre et impertinent.
great
Psychobilly punk rock
в отзывах много хейта, но мне очень понравилось. «Chicken Dog!» wtf?!
I'm not sure what I was expecting out of a "blues explosion" but upon reflection I'd say this fits the description. I thought this album was fun. Some groovy guitar and goofy vocals. Definitely doesn't take itself too seriously. The run time is a little long.
Elvis if he was awesome:
Before going into this album, I was only familiar with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion through the song of theirs that was in BABY DRIVER, "Bellbottoms". I've always loved it, largely for its association with the film, but in general I think it's great. And it did not prepare me for this album. I can hear some elements here and there, but this is some raw, loud, live show-ass punk blues. On some Jack White shit here. And I love it so much. It's so damn fun. I can understand that its energy might be too much, 'cuz it never tones down the whole album, even on the slower songs; and even if it isn't as long as some other 90's albums I've heard it could **maybe** stand to be a little shorter... Aw, but heck. I don't even care. It's fabulous. It's groovy. It dun' make me wanna dance.
I dig this album HARD. Nice chunky guitar riffs and the vocals give this album a great mix of blues and garage rock influence.
I may be more punky than I thought :)
Rip-roaring rock and roll. Having followed Pussy Galore around the UK in the early 90s, this album comes as no surprise - following on from the later PG albums. Some great riffs and lots of noise thrown in there too. Jon Spencer being Jon Spencer, and much fun it is too.
Hard 70s rock but with the 90s heaviness and smear of grunge. Pretty good stuff!
This is a crazy album. The first track startled me at the beginning, but it turned out to be pretty good.
I really liked this album, which surprised me. I hadn't thought of myself as a blues person. Very good.
This album seems to have a lot of negativity on this site. So I didn’t have high hopes, but went in with an open mind. The opening scream was immediately off putting. But after that the album really picks up and to be honest a mix between punk/psychedelic/blues is right up my street. Really enjoyed this album. So raw but so many hooks to keep you going but yeah some of the lyrics are a bit immature. Overall I think this is a Great album which is now added to my frequent rotation. Reminds me a lot of black pistol fire, who must of been influenced by this. 4 stars out of 5.
this felt to me like the white stripes' wacky older brother. some pretty good garage rock that takes some kind of insane turns. not my favorite, but a fun time.
That was really surprising and great-fun album. I love/hate the opening scream, and the whole album was dank and dirty with great guitar sounds all over it. Sounds like Lou Reed with punk and slide. This whole album is surprisingly progressive and definitely stands the test of time. I'm giving this 4 stars - which I'm really surprised about. This goes in my 'surprising finds' category of my 1001 albums experience.
I'll admit it. This was a little rough going in, and it feels a little vulgar in places for the sake of it, but I ended up digging this. It's possibly a situational listen, but I think this is some solid anarcho rockabilly (for lack of better name), which shares some similarities with Beck, Captain Beefheart, and Jack White. Overall, I picked up on some very weird vibes like they would have thrown up a projector and played Herschell Gordan Lewis films while they performed live. This is further exemplified by the radio ads on the expanded version which I found amusing. The original album ends after 'Sticky'.
What a fun album! I am always in for distortion and that garagey sound. And it mixes the angst of the blues with such sweet distortion! A genuine surprise. The ending track is genuinely some experimental noise shit and I loved every second of it. The first 6 tracks are fantastic - great riffs, impeccable energy and love the ad libs thrown in as well. Chicken dog falls a bit flat as the riff isn’t that interesting. Eyeballing and get over here also are decent - the riffs repeat a lot without a lot happening around them and it can get a bit monotonous. Overall the album is really fun and the sound is great. I’d give it a strong 3 to a light 4.
Lil bluesy, lil punk. Real peanut butter in my chocolate deal. Love.
A rip roaring set of punk blues that presaged bands like the white stripes
4.5 - Loved it
I have always enjoyed these guys and their style. Fuzzy and grimy rock. Nice beats and solid riffs. Will revisit.
pookie
abrasive (compliment)
Surprised by this one after reading reviews. I’m a big fan of the genres this album blends but even then the chaos of this album fits the sound. This is an album where the opening five seconds describe what you’re going to hear, as the screams give way to a more punk instrumentation. My last review, Horses by Patti Smith, began hopefully but quickly fell off (in my opinion). As mentioned, this one tells you right from the start it will be chaotic and sticks to its punk themes. I don’t think the album is worth a 5, as nothing necessarily blew me away, but a 4 fits as this is one I will definitely come back to. All said, Jon Spencer is not an artist I’ve ever heard of, but this leaves me wanting to explore more of his discography. Songs of note: rocket ship, can’t stop, wail, love all of me (all saved in Spotify)
Dette var jo dødsfett!
interesting experimental album, very edgy, but crude lyrics.
Sounds like the White Stripes before they existed. I really enjoyed it. Should check out more from then.
Un álbum sumamente interesante, que mezcla el blues y el punk para crear panoramas sonoros engreídos y cómicos, sin dejar de lado el espíritu del caos intrínseco de ambos géneros. Se nota una fuerte afinidad e influencia de la legendaria banda Minutemen en muchas de las pistas del LP. A pesar de no ser un indispensable, si es un trabajo sumamente divertido que recomendaría revisar.
Rommelig en ruig. Wel vernieuwend toen, en nu niet gedateerd.
Pretty fun one once it got rolling. Was wary at the beginning. Little but too long and a few too many tracks but solid bluesy garage rock
Not sure what everybody else thinks, but this is my idea of a good punk.
What the hell with all the negative global reviews. I got this served up the day after Derek and the Dominos and it was such a palate cleanser. What if white boy blues had some form of passion and urgency behind it instead of an hour of Clapton's passionless wanking?
Why did it take halfway through the album for me to be able to hear the vocals? Spencer distorted the vocals so much it made the vocals REALLY off-putting. I liked how the songs ran into each other, they're very improvisational. I dug it, but I am still trying to see the blues to them, though. I get that it's more "punk blues," but that's what they are. Very raw stuff, indeed. The vocals still bother me a bit, though. I mean you can distort them for a few songs, but half the album? Come on.
Muscled and angsty
Well that's a heck of a start. Can't say I knew that Punk-Blues was a thing but I'm kinda into it. I stopped after Sticky since that was the real album stopping point and the rest are extras. I think anymore and I'd drop it a point, but pretty good stuff.
I can safely say I did not expect that opening. No sarcasm, I love where this is headed though I hope we get something other than incoherent screams for vocals. The crustiness remind me of early Modest Mouse in the best of ways. Chicken Dog is a silly one, but I'll be lying if I didn't enjoy the groove. Listened to this twice straight, but didn't really have any focus to put on it. That said, I really enjoyed both trips through the record. A bit eclectic in its composition, but super crusty with some elements of punk sprinkled in. The closer reminded me of Gonjasufi with the vocal effects. Thought this was pretty solid and will be back again. 4 / 5
Something definitely exploded. At first I wasn’t sure it was the blues, but it started to click on the third track, “Wail.” And appropriately named, because this blowing up of the blues does feature plentiful wailing, of both voices and instruments. If I judged “Now I Got Worry” solely off of that first detonation of noise, I would have missed out. The rest of the album settles into an eruption of punked-out rockabilly, carefully controlled chaos ignited by wails, howls, and bursts of frantic guitar.
Wait a second, this actually sort of slaps. Completely distorted guitars? Screaming vocals? Random "glitches" where the audio goes 500% louder for a millisecond and blows your eardrums? Rooster sounds effects?! Sign me the fuck up. A global rating of 2.55/5? Come on now, y'all just hate fun. Never heard of Jon Spencer before, so this was a very cool find.
hyvvää huutelua.. kähinää kuuluu tässä! mahtava kohina ja läiske... kelpaa kuunnellakkin. kiinnostava ja erikoinen hyvä lisäys tänne. mutta liian lyhyet biisit kokoajan tartte vaihtaa pistäppä viiden minuutin pörötykset tulille ja anna nauttimaan lähtemään, abbey road fanit antaa ykköstä heh.... decay of society, degradation of länsi maailma.......... dilapidation of man.......... rl got soul
Gotta love Jon Spencer - totally off the wall chaotic rock and roll. I hadn't heard this one but really liked it.
um som bem ousado, energia e pa, curti
Want
The blues is number 1. I SAID THE BLUES IS NUMBER ONE!
This album is a strange fusion of blues, punk, and a bit of 50s rock. It is distinctly anti-establishment and is deliberately messy giving it a diy garage sound. The vocal delivery oscillates between a more straightforward punk delivery and almost a parody of Elvis like delivery. Overall, it is a strange and effective album.
If only all blues could be like this. Danceable....boogi and a Woogie. Sort of a bluesy Cramps. There are songs here that I LOVE. Rocketship....WOW, but also 2Kindsa Love, Chicken Dog, Dynamite Lover (hmmmm almost straigt ahead blues), Hot Shit, turns up the garage quotient a la Cramps. The album starts off kinda weird and annoying with Skunk but quickly turns to weird and uniquely interesting; Identity is a punk/blues (if that's a thing) rave-up at it's finest. Wait turns on the heavy blues AND I LIKE IT! Then comes Fuck Shit Up. kind of a mash-up of non sequiters and weird looping guitars and burbling bass, weird but cool. Then the pace quickens on 2kindsa Love, to that blues/punk thing that just works for me. So I won't go through each song but suffice to say I find something to like in most every song. Previously, JSBX was only Acme for me...and I like that album but Now I Got Worry is just way more everything....more mess, more blues, more noise, more chaos, more musical goodness. 4.5 stars
Primus but if they liked elvis more.
11th October 2022 Listened on the drive home from London. Chilled evening with bake off. Rough, raw and jagged, Jon Spencer punks up the blues. Loved it.
Punk blues. Me ha gustado. Un 4.
Rocked my sox off!
The band smacks you over the head in the first minute with what one would could call a tuning or Spencer not quite getting there. That choice, however, like so many others which read as bombastic when introduced, is in facto considered enough to be consistent. That consideration might bear other fruit, or I might be blinded by the right kind of stupid that rockabilly entails. But the other voices aren't stupid, and neither is the way the Explosion gradually expands its palette, coming to a stop in Xiu Xiu territory. Not for everyone, but I'm a particularly grateful listener.
I was not expecting to like this, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. It's blues rock (which I typically find boring) with a punk rock edge, which really helped me with this. There's a much better sound with that added gritty aggression.
Very nice mix of blues and alternative.
The album lives almost exclusively from the fact that something is there and not there for the listener to hear. Like, for example, the tempo changes (or "out-of-time") are spectacular. (7/10) FT: Wail, Dynamite Lover
Punk Blues cool madness. I love it.
A lotta buzz about this band in the 90's. Overall I thought they were very good, but seem to fall just short of amazing. Well not my fav album by them this does highlight all the different directions they go in.
Punk edged noise rock with blues backbone. You gotta be in the mood for this, but if you are, it’s pretty killer.
The aural equivalent of the accumulation of dust and scratches on old film prints that have seen better days. One of those albums where obnoxious demo quality is exactly what the music needs.
Alleen qua naam bekend bij mij, geweldige plaat. Korte, toffe nummers!
Noise rock and noise punk I'm familiar with, but noise blues... that's a new one. It was always an interesting record, if not always "good", necessarily. But man, when it slapped, it SLAPPED.
Very experimental, but sounds nice
Feels like the soundtrack to a movie where the protagonist sort of has a handle on things but soon falls in love and rethinks his dangerous lifestyle.
Raw & innovative & exciting.stuff
4 stars for having the balls to be The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion: A band that needs to exist. I love the band and the attitude, but I found it hard to get through the whole album in one sitting.
A review for this album described it as being smacked in the head with sound. I'd have to agree. However, as bad as that sounds, I really enjoyed the album! Cool fusion of genres
wow really cool and unique
Lekkere deuntjes wel nogal gehaast.