You can't handle the truth!
At the end of every year, as Novemeber gives way to December, I begin to draw up my list of favorite records from that year. It's a common task that any music critic with a big mouth (and lets face it, that's every one of them) gets excited about completing. For me, that means a mad scramble about this time of the year to round up records from the current year that I've procrastinated over purchasing. It's not just about wanting to ensure that my list passes my own test. In tune with the theme of the holidays, I also want to share my favorite songs with (force my shitty opinions on) my friends (anyone that's willing to accept a free mix).
This year is no exception. There's still a few releases—like the new Jonathan Richman album, for example—that I need to hear. But, I can scratch one record off my list thanks to a recent trip to Parasol Records: The Soft Pink Truth's Do You Want New Wave or Do You Want the Soft Pink Truth?
The Soft Pink Truth
Those keen music nerds out there will get the joke in the title; it's a play off the title of an old Minutemen song that appears on Double Nickels on the Dime. The wordy adaptation is appropriate for The Soft Pink Truth's second album, a collection of old punk covers. The Minutemen number doesn't actually appear on the album, but songs from The Angry Samoans, The Swell Maps, Minor Threat, Crass, Die Kreuzen and others do.
Now, a punk covers album certainly isn't a novel concept. But The Soft Pink Truth is a novel band, which is why the project comes off as a stunning success. The group is essentially one man: Drew Daniel, one-half of electronic cut-up artist Matmos. Daniel redesigns these guitar-based originals as booty-bass techno songs that have been beat up by Aphex Twin. The Soft Pink Truth has really gotta be heard to be appreciated. I don't think I can do his cover of Crass' "Do They Owe Us a Living?" justice, outside of suggesting that if you've never felt like shaking your skinny white ass on a dance floor while listening to Crass, then Daniel's revamp might just do the trick.
Daniel is a genius at re-envisioning these songs without stripping them entirely of their flesh. Yes, Minor Threat's "Out of Step" sounds a bit odd recast with a woman's voice and a bouncing ball bass line, but the song still retains a good deal of its aggression even with a playful overhaul and more than a hint of irony.
The Soft Pink Truth does serve a particular agenda on this album. Sexual politics play a big role in shaping the album's roster of songs. (Hence we get "Confession" by Nervous Gender which includes the lyric "Jesus was a cock-sucking Jew from Galilee. Jesus was just like me: a homosexual nymphomaniac.") Hearing all of these traditional punk-rock songs setting the dance floor ablaze with filthy, frenetic beats creates some sexual tension that's not dissimilar from potty-mouth Peaches.
For that reason alone, The Soft Pink Truth may not be everyone's cup of tea. But, I haven't heard another record this year as brilliantly ballsy as Do You Want New Wave or Do You Want the Soft Pink Truth? It's going on my Top 10 list for sure, even if it looks a little odd next to My Morning Jacket, Joanna Newsom and Dungen.
This year is no exception. There's still a few releases—like the new Jonathan Richman album, for example—that I need to hear. But, I can scratch one record off my list thanks to a recent trip to Parasol Records: The Soft Pink Truth's Do You Want New Wave or Do You Want the Soft Pink Truth?
The Soft Pink Truth
Those keen music nerds out there will get the joke in the title; it's a play off the title of an old Minutemen song that appears on Double Nickels on the Dime. The wordy adaptation is appropriate for The Soft Pink Truth's second album, a collection of old punk covers. The Minutemen number doesn't actually appear on the album, but songs from The Angry Samoans, The Swell Maps, Minor Threat, Crass, Die Kreuzen and others do.
Now, a punk covers album certainly isn't a novel concept. But The Soft Pink Truth is a novel band, which is why the project comes off as a stunning success. The group is essentially one man: Drew Daniel, one-half of electronic cut-up artist Matmos. Daniel redesigns these guitar-based originals as booty-bass techno songs that have been beat up by Aphex Twin. The Soft Pink Truth has really gotta be heard to be appreciated. I don't think I can do his cover of Crass' "Do They Owe Us a Living?" justice, outside of suggesting that if you've never felt like shaking your skinny white ass on a dance floor while listening to Crass, then Daniel's revamp might just do the trick.
Daniel is a genius at re-envisioning these songs without stripping them entirely of their flesh. Yes, Minor Threat's "Out of Step" sounds a bit odd recast with a woman's voice and a bouncing ball bass line, but the song still retains a good deal of its aggression even with a playful overhaul and more than a hint of irony.
The Soft Pink Truth does serve a particular agenda on this album. Sexual politics play a big role in shaping the album's roster of songs. (Hence we get "Confession" by Nervous Gender which includes the lyric "Jesus was a cock-sucking Jew from Galilee. Jesus was just like me: a homosexual nymphomaniac.") Hearing all of these traditional punk-rock songs setting the dance floor ablaze with filthy, frenetic beats creates some sexual tension that's not dissimilar from potty-mouth Peaches.
For that reason alone, The Soft Pink Truth may not be everyone's cup of tea. But, I haven't heard another record this year as brilliantly ballsy as Do You Want New Wave or Do You Want the Soft Pink Truth? It's going on my Top 10 list for sure, even if it looks a little odd next to My Morning Jacket, Joanna Newsom and Dungen.