1991, Music

Everclear (1991) by American Music Club

These guys are the Kings of Slowcore, so I’ve been told. Not being the biggest devotee of the genre, I have no idea if that’s true. And if I get obsessed about influence and such, I’ll ignore the music here and focus on the fact that slowcore already existed when this came out. (Because, of course it did. These guys supposedly invented it six years earlier.)
Ahem. Sorry about that.

This set of songs takes a while to ingratiate, which is shocking for a slowcore record. (Kidding, obviously.) But once you listen to it a few times, you realize this is a good set of songs. And, not only that, the band has achieved the sometimes difficult objective of seamlessly blending multiple American roots genres into their thing.

This album gets attacked for being overproduced. I’m not sure it is – I more think it’s oddly produced. There’s a echo-y quality to it. Maybe that’s a post-production trick, but it could also just be the space, right? It is an odd choice but I don’t think it hurts the record. And with nearly everything but his voice and one or two rhythm instruments buried in the mix, it gives the record a kind of ethereal quality.

Anyway, as first experiences of iconic bands go, I’d say this is a pretty good one. I prefer more energy in my music in general, but this is slowcore after all.

8/10

All tracks written by Mark Eitzel.

  1. “Why Won’t You Stay” 2:59
  2. “Rise” 3:11
  3. “Miracle on 8th Street” 4:07
  4. “Ex-Girlfriend” 2:49
  5. “Crabwalk” 3:33
  6. “The Confidential Agent” 4:10
  7. “Sick of Food” 4:02
  8. “The Dead Part of You” 2:42
  9. “Royal Café” 3:23
  10. “What the Pillar of Salt Held Up” 2:38
  11. “Jesus’ Hands” 3:02
  • Mark Eitzel – vocals, guitar, keyboards, songwriting
  • Bruce Kaphan – pedal steel, keyboards, bass, percussion, lap steel, dobro, guitar, dulcimer
  • Dan Pearson – bass, guitar, dulcimer, mandolin, banjo, vocals
  • Mike Simms – drums
  • Vudi – guitar, accordion, bass

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