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The
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - x-tra acme usa, (Matador Records)
x-tra acme usa is not a throwaway record. As a matter of fact, nothing could be further from the truth! The record serves as a perfect compliment to Acme while being something equally digestible to fans and new listeners alike. The Blues Explosion run the gamut of the different swipes they take at the blues. Spencer and company offer the “play-the-blues-punk!” attitude (“Confused”, “Not Yet”, “Electricity”, “Chowder”), the funkier, mid-60s soul jam (“Wait A Minute”, “Get Down Lover”, “Bacon”), and the reverent/irreverent paradox (“Lap Dance” and “Leave Me Alone So I Can Rock Again”). Alternate takes/remixes appear for “Magical Colors”, “Blue Green Olga”, “Do You Wanna Get Heavy”, “Lovin’ Machine” and “Talkin' About the Blues.” Not only does the JSBX deliver a variety of sounds; they have brought on a number of people to record the band. The songs were recorded at nine different studios with most of the songs captured by indie studio wiz Steve Albini. Suz Dyer, Calvin Johnson, and Greg Talenfield also record songs for the band; still others work the mixing board (Moby, Jim Dickinson, Dan the Automator to name three). Spencer and his Blues Explosion open the record with the funky rocker “Wait A Minute”. Spencer doesn’t disappoint with his trademark idiotic yet utterly sexy lyrics. For example, when he seductively states, “I like apple pie, I like eskimo pie” you can bet that any woman within an earshot would stop, listen, wondering who said such a thing. Further, he appeals to the rejected men with “I just feel like I’m out of luck, turned down on the night of the prom.” Now that he has everyone’s attention, he swaggers to the mic, gives a look and says, “Everybody wanna jump up, not me… I got to get down,” as the riff drives through the tension. “Get Down Lover” begins with a Stax horn blast Wall of Sound and is driven by Russell Simmins hyper-kinetic drumming and Judah Bauer’s start/stutter guitar riffs. Spencer moans, groans, yelps, shouting expletives and “Yeahs!” with a reckless abandon. The Calvin Johnson tracks (“Get Old” and “Calvin (Zebra Ranch)”) have the JSBX reaching back into the early days with Pussy Galore trashy riffs, chaos, and art-meets-rock experimentation (if I may be that pretentious!). Undeniably,
these are the moments that make The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion one
of the most important bands of the day. Many have speculated on the
motive(s) behind Spencer’s “blues exploding”, but a listen
to these songs leads to only one conclusion: x-tra acme usa
is a diabolical blend of swank, sophistication, and sweat. |
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© 2000 Tidal Wave Magazine |
Jon
Spencer didn’t think we got enough from 1998’s magnificent
soul-blues “exploding,” Acme, so he is giving us
more. Acme is definitely the most “normal” of the
JSBX catalog; it is more polished, more soulful, and more cut and paste
sampled (for that indie hip hop feel). x-tra acme usa is the
down and dirty rock that one has come to expect from the Blues Explosion
(see 1996’s masterpiece Orange); a nineteen-song collection
of remixes, alternate takes, and material that didn’t fit on Acme.