(106) Steve Wynn –
Dazzling Display
Steve Wynn has made a number of albums since the demise of
the band with which he originally made his name, The Dream Syndicate. (That is, The Dream Syndicate, one of
the leading lights of the 1980’s so called “Paisley Underground”, not 1960's The Dream
Syndicate, the avant-guard act containing underground legends
such as La Monte Young and John Cale.)
This is the second album released under his name and arguably his
best. There is more light and share in
these songs unlike the denser sounds of, especially the latter albums, his
former band with only the single Drag and
the track 405 sounding like outtakes from a Dream Syndicate record. Bonnie And Clyde continued the tradition
established on his first album, Kerosene Man, by talking the form of a duet
with Concrete Blonde’s Johnette Napolitano.
My version is a deluxe edition containing six live tracks recorded for
various radio stations, among them Sonic Youth’s Kool Thing, Paul Simon’s Boy
In The Bubble and Bob Dylan’s Watching the River Flow.
Late in the afternoon I was finally able to check my work
emails. After dealing with the ones that
required immediate attention, I saw one from a former colleague of mine who now
works elsewhere. He altered me that over
the weekend just passed, My Bloody Valentine had released their new album
(titled m b v) over the internet. As
soon as I read this, the sound “ahhhhh”
escaped from my lips as I realised one of life’s bizarre coincidences.
On 15 November 1991, I was in the audience at the Prince of
Wales Hotel, St Kilda for the third night of the band’s first Australian
tour. Their album Loveless was released
a week or two prior to that night. I
remember that show well as it was my introduction to the band after agreeing to
take a punt based on another colleague’s recommendation. The venue was absolutely packed and it was
difficult to see the band as the show took place during a time when the Prince
Of Wales had a very low stage. But
despite this, the band blew me away. I’m not completely certain how much of
Loveless was played that night, but I knew I was impressed by the immense power
(and loudness), particularly of “that really long number” which was later
identified for my benefit as You Made Me Realise. I was standing not far away
from the mixing desk; on top of a speaker there was a projector which ran super
8 footage over the stage making for a psychedelic effect that meshed
brilliantly with the music.
So what’s the coincidence? On next Saturday, 16 February, My Bloody
Valentine will be appearing in Melbourne for the first time since that 1991
show. And once again, it will be about 2
weeks since the release of their last album.
It’s also given me an idea for tomorrow……
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