As leader of the Pixies, the prolific Black fashioned pop music for dirty, mutant, psychedelic space travellers rooted in murderous Area 51 shrieks, desert punk rock incest and Buddy Holly melodic hooks, until they broke up in 1992 before Black and bassist Kim Deal killed one another.
Coming off the back of half a dozen moderately successful albums with the Catholics and prior to the Pixies’ cathartic reunion tour in 2004, LA native Black travelled down to Nashville, acquainted himself with a whole bunch of legendary session musicians and knocked out his first solo album since 1996’s Cult of Ray, the laid back Honeycomb, which was released in July 2005 to the delight of fans and music critics.
And he’s back again on Nashville soil with the ambitious double album Fastman/ Raiderman, much of which was recorded during a single 24 hour marathon session with musicians including Levon Helm of the Band, honky tonk man Marty Brown and the legendary Cowboy Jack Clement coming and going in shifts.
They say:
Hot Press: “Credit to Black for producing an engaging and sprightly record which skips between alt-country and acoustic pop and reminds us of his capricious talents.”
Marquee: “Light one moment and devastatingly introspective the next, Fastman/ Raiderman picks up where his last album Honeycomb left off, but goes miles beyond.”
Rake Mag: “His voice, though surely seared by screams, is often more warm, relaxed, and inviting than expected.”
We say:
This is Black’s most accessible album so far, forsaking his trademark complex chord structures and time signatures for a more conventional formula. But while it lacks any real surprises, it’s also his most beautiful.
‘Johnny Barleycorn’ is an awesome hybrid of alternative country and soul, with visceral southern sax work lifting it up towards the sky. Oddly enough, the underpinning ‘50s style guitar melody is very similar to XTC’s ‘The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead’.
‘My Terrible Ways’, which features a pensive Neil Young-esque vocal over a gentle Tennessee rhythm, is the true story of redemptive heroism set against the tragic backdrop of the destruction in Mississippi from Hurricane Katrina.
‘Raider Man’, meanwhile, is the tale of a Polish coal miner who is made redundant after losing his legs and becomes a security guard.
“And now I wish I never left that darkened hole,” Black concludes as he does his best Van Morrison impression.
Black could easily have turned to his old bag of songwriting tricks, but he is yearning for something more this time round. He wants to write the perfect song, something pure and timeless, and he’s surrounded himself with the best musicians Nashville has to offer to help him unearth it.
‘The End of the Summer’ is the closest he comes, a song of ineffable splendour which brings to mind ‘House of the Rising Sun’.
Fastman/ Raiderman could easily have been the sound of the proverbial fish out of water, but it’s done with such warmth and melodic affection that it stands as one of the year’s best. Even if that year is 1956.
Like this? Try these:
Emmylou Harris – Profile
Van Morrison – Super Hits
Neil Young – Prairie Wind
RELEASED
19th June
LABEL
Cooking Vinyl
POSTED...
Thu 15 Jun 2006 at 3:42pm
