At ForTheDishwasher, we take great care that posts will have a proper fit with their companion posts. When looking for a musical "post buddie" that would fit with medieval misogyny and genital self-mutilation, well, it makes for a daunting task. Soooooooo...here's some Tripping Daisy.
From Robin Smith at Sputnik Music:
Within reality, a balance of emotions is part of life. Without unhappiness, there would be no happiness, as there would be nothing to measure against. Some of the most convincing television is that with serious issues but humorous tones. So, what of music? Could one say that means that any album with too much happiness is, well, unrealistic?
Dallas’s Tripping Daisy were certainly positive, going very much unnoticed throughout their active eight years - however the more observant would come to realise how much impact they subtley made, and an interesting amount that occurred within the band. Tim DeLaughter, the band’s vocalist and significant contributor would go on from the sad events that affected the bands presence and energy to form the twenty-four-man ‘Polyphonic Spree’. Despite often being compared to The Beatles with a hint of grunge, the band generally retains their own sound, which has been interpreted into the new, modern projects of band members.
So within Jesus Hits Like The Atom Bomb, the band’s third effort, we can see where the consistent buzz of goodness originated. The band are full of interesting concepts, and it shows from the start to the finish. The opener Field Day Jitters is a loud, messy and hopeful arrangement, which shows the band’s interest in their ‘grunge-pop’, ‘punk’ considered sub-genres. This side of the album contributes more than just an eye-catching first track, with other louder, but still equally cheery songs New Plains Medicine and Bandaids For Hire, and the vaguely distorted Mechanical Breakdown doing a similar task.
Appealingly, this album reflects a less concentrated style DeLaughter and bass guitarist Pirro polished, developed, and eventually took into The Polyphonic Spree. In actual fact, many of these songs appear as if they could have worked with aplomb with more effects, instruments, and voices. Sonic Bloom was later covered by the Spree, not straying too far from its original but showing to us the opportunities the masses offered. The original, still brilliant albeit less layered and concentrated, stands out on this album with rolling sounds, the vocals working exceedingly well. Pillar is also an optimistic array that bursts into sound like a future DeLaughter song could; many instruments, including trumpets, playing roles in this piece. Even About The Movies shares similarities between songs such as the iconic Light & Day. Some things, however, are truly a fresh sound brought by a collaboration of different ideas from different members of this group. The soft, acoustic-esque Human Contact contains extensively tentative ideas that do not attempt to break boundaries or foundations, merely create a song with a simplistic message. It isn’t as paced as tracks such as New Plains Medicine, however it tackles areas the more ‘grungy’ songs fail to do so, and it does so with coherence.
Yet the most serious, less joyous and possibly least expected song on the album, Waited a Light Year covers aspects of the album how others, surprisingly, do not. The songs opening riff almost a signature of the bands style constructs the song into tempos gradually louder, and once again descending into a quieter section. This song switches between ambient and low-key often, and show-cases the band’s talent in switching sounds and feelings in songs; doing this without altering the song entirely, and thus not ruining creative impressions on the way. This song, though with disputes of not being the most catchiest on the album, is certainly the most cleverest and the best example of how this band can work.
Though sometimes it appears there is not enough of this to work upon. Your Socks Have No Name, for instance, strays far too differently and possibly dares to be a little too over the top in what the band attempted to do with this album. The changes within the song are minor, and yet feel unneeded, and in places pointless.
Unfortunately, the sad death of lead guitarist Wes Beggren to follow from this album would result in the disbanding of Tripping Daisy after a self-titled albums release. Though a previous drummer of the band, Bryan Wakeland would go on to collaborate with DeLaughter and Pirro, would go on to produce the large-scale ‘Polyphonic Spree’, drummer of the moment Curtis would form progressive trio ‘The Secret Machines’, going his separate way.
So despite the sad story of the aftermath of this album, happiness certainly shows its direction with this album. It is the most experimental, inspired album of the band’s career, a statement agreed by DeLaughter, who claims it as ‘the band at their best’. Perhaps by best we can also understand they are at their healthiest – not as non-concentrated as previous albums, but before suffering a depressing tragedy. This is certainly the band at their most realistic.
Technical Information:
Artist: Tripping Daisy
Album: Jesus Hits like the Atom Bomb
Year: 1998
Audio Codec(s): FLAC
Encoding: Lossless
Rip: EAC split tracks
Avg. bitrate: 985 kb/s
Sample rate: 44100 Hz
Bits per sample: 16
Channels: 2
File size: 402 MB
Length: 0:57:10
Tracklisting:
01. Field Day Jitters (4:09)
02. Waited a Light Year (6:00)
03. Sonic Boom (3:39)
04. Bandaids for Hire (2:39)
05. Mechanical Breakdown (3:19)
06. Your Socks Have No Name (2:31)
07. Geeareohdoubleyou (3:47)
08. New Plains Medicine (2:01)
09. Our Drive to the Sun, Can a Man Mark It (5:28)
10. Human Contact (5:37)
11. Pillar (3:00)
12. 8 Ladies (3:19)
13. About the Movies (5:09)
14. Tiny Men (3:25)
15. Indian Poker Parts 2 & 3 (3:07)
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