"The Cult" ...Bad Album or Bad Timing?

Prior to this album's release in 1994, the last invitation into The Cult was 1991's "Ceremony" and the tumultuous tour and break-up that followed. The drama that surrounded "Ceremony" developed a culture about The Cult that precedes them to this day. Difficult recording session followed by difficult tour followed by blow-up and break-up and date cancellations. It's simply the nature of Billy Duffy and Ian Astbury - a love/hate relationship that is extremely talented and creative and explosive. By the time "Ceremony" hit, hard rock and it's breathren heavy metal were hemorrhaging from all veins and response to the album was flat. So, would a reinvented Cult in 1994 find anymore success? When I purchased "The Cult" and it's preemptive single "Coming Down", it seemed pretty clear to me that the band was paying attention to trends and took pages straight from the Seattle post punk/late 70's metal/grunge play book. It took a few years before I realized how dismissive that was and wholly inaccurate. The tip off that The Cult were treading a different path was evidenced by the 1992 single, "The Witch". Many of the elements that comprise that track are mixed with the lo-fi/garage elements of Ian's Holy Barbarians to flesh out "The Cult". What lacks on this album is any sense of cohesion despite that it's been described by Ian Astbury as a deeply personal and emotional journey. It's a difficult question as to whether or not this album was simply bad or released at the wrong time. We all know the culmination of events that resulted in the band breaking up amid their performance in Buenos Aires. As I mentioned - a pattern they established on the previous efforts and subsequent efforts to hold it all together. "The Cult is by far not a bad album, though tracks such as "Universal You", "Real Grrrl", and "Emperor's New Horse" are a mess. The band sounds scattered and uninspired. The contrast to these tracks are, "Be Free", "Star", "Black Sun", & "Joy" are strong, cohesive and flat-out rocking. The songs collectively are full of swagger and dirty grooves... oozing with plenty of sleaze and sex appeal. Musically it's a rollercoaster, the electronic undulation of "Gone" is an companion to tracks like "Be Free" which is inspiring, upbeat and rocking. "Sacred Life" is a droning anooying memoriam to fallen musicians, writers and artists - and is like putting a speed bump in the middle of a freeway. Bob Rock brought this album to fruition, made it happen, and for the most part - succeeded in allowing The Cult to do what they do best- rock! The apparent trapping of following the trend is only superficial and the proof lies in tracks like "Gone" and "Coming Down" - The Cult slither beneath the veneer of expectations and provide strong tracks. Sadly, their efforts, are clouded by the perceptions that the public has of them;the drama that follows them on every tour; and the ideas that once a hard rock band, always a hard rock band. "The Cult" is anything but another hard rock album and deserves a listen, hell, I think everyone should own it - it's rife with undiscovered gems for the average Cult fan. ore over, it stands alone in the collective that is the Cult's discography. It's closest comparison is, "Electric" in it's sleazy, lecherous appeal.

"Munki" - Bad Album or Bad Timing

When "Munki" emerged in 1998, it was after a long absence from The Jesus And Mary Chain. The world of music had changed dramatically between 1994's "Stoned And Dethroned", and the new album. Recording for "Munki" began in 1995, but Warner Bros. was immediately skeptical of the band's new tracks. Reality is, following the lukewarm reception and complete detraction from JAMC fare, Warner was likely already looking for a reason to throw the switch. The "I Hate Rock 'N' Roll E.P." emerged, and it served the same purpose as Prince writing "SLAVE" on his cheek. As JAMC began to shop themselves around, the internal turmoil grew and no one was really sure what to do with a band that was moving in a negative direction and made no secret about the tumultuous relationship between the Reid brothers - not to mention the fact that they publically threw Warner's reputation to the wolves and became public enemy #1 to the majors. It wouldn't take much effort for the world to forget about The Jesus And Mary Chain.

Suddenly in 1998, another entity the world had stopped thinking about, Sub Pop Records, announced that they would be releasing the new Jesus And Mary Chain album. A 7-inch and tour cd were sent out as teasers, and there was quite a buzz for the triumphant return of Scotland's bitter brothers. The new songs suggested that Jesus And Mary Chain hadn't become soft and turned off their amps and sold their electric guitars - but instead refined the sound they were already known for. Albeit, a lot less feedback and a lot more Weezer influence - but still very much JAMC that the world once loved. However, the cards were stacked against the success of this album. MTV had abandoned it's programming; Sub Pop was considered a non-entity and no longer making waves across the music scene; America was burning it's flannel in favor of rapcore and neo-goth; and the droves of bands early JAMC influenced had long since combusted. However, I think people were curious enough and hopeful enough to give "Munki" their love... at least until the interviews began to emerge. The picture that was painted and needed zero interpretation was that the recording sessions had been heated, difficult, and nearly abandoned on an almost weekly basis. The Reid Brothers were not talking, and refused to record together, so separate sessions were required to piece "Munki" together; and if that wasn't concerning enough, a few months following the album's release, a sold-out show at "The House Of Blues" in Los Angeles was preceded by a blowout on the tour bus; Jim Reid nearly incapable of standing during the show; and William Reid walking off the stage 15 minutes in and not returning for the rest of the tour.

All of that said, "Munki", a bad album? Hardly. The Reid Brothers have been notoriously murderous towards one another since their births, so it's clearly a muse from which they create. Perhaps that was less publicly known than at the time "Munki" was being met with such skepticism, but nevertheless, it was of no concern to me - I figured that was a news story that was the equivalent to someone reporting that ingesting pesticides is bad for the human body. "Munki" stands uniquely, and if pressed for a comparison, I'd explain it's a melding of "Automatic" and "Stoned And Dethroned". They may give you the idea that we're dealing with acoustic drum machines - but that is not the right image. Tone down the feedback in favor of late 90's post-punk bands like Weezer or Jawbreaker while maintaining the breathy decadence a la "Her Way Of Praying", and the general structure of "Munki" begins to take shape. The arguments that the album is poorly balanced as a result of the inbalanced recording sessions is crap in my opinion - I don't hear it. People are interpreting the inclusion of tracks sung by Hope Sandoval and Sister Vanilla as a dividing line between "Moe Tucker" and "Degenerate", and point to this as evidence of a fractured recording. More likely, William Reid's bond with Hope Sandoval and the hope to help Sister Vanilla launch her musical career lead to inclusion of these tracks, and point to nothing more than evidence that JAMC were not resting on their laurels, and that perhaps these songs were a bit older than most people knew. The band broadened their songs to include horns and sampling, resulting in an album that gives a dirty boogie feel. If I was a stripper - "Cracking Up" would be one of the songs I'd work my pole to. Moreover - I think "Munki" is a strong representation to the influences the Reid Brothers had amassed over the years and though these songs weren't recorded to pay homage, I do feel they were recorded to show that despite the perception that as a Reid your shit don't stink; they were paying attention and the Velvet Underground isn't the only band in the world they should be compared to. "Stoned And Dethroned" proved that they could play without a wall of feedback; "Munki" proved that JAMC could adapt and still be viable; they could change with the direction of indie music trends and remain fiercly JAMC, unfortunately, no one was paying attention; more importantly - taking a back seat to trends means you are the first one out of the car.

With the exception of some convoluted, Sonic Youth-esque tracks; "Commercial", or tracks that seem to lack emphasis; "Supertramp" - "Munki" is still a solid album. A victim of musical trends clamoring away from late 80's/early 90's indie bands; a victim of sleeping giant MTV; a victim of Warner Bros. who despite a reputation to support creativity took a blind eye to this band; and a victim of their own animosity towards an industry confused by emerging digital trends and changing tastes. "Munki" is no less a good album, just a good album at the worst possible time.