There's not a lot of outside spraying going on these days, but low and behold, here I am this morning doing just that and listening to this eponymous album by the Brian Jonestown Massacre.
This is the eighteenth studio album by American band, released in March of 2019 under A Recordings--only seven months after their last one.
Eighteen albums in and they decide to make it self-titled. That feels significant. Previously, BJM have unapologetically channelled their inner Bowie and Stones (not to mention their inner Dandy's…) while this album sounds like pure BJM.
Take the track My Mind is Filled with Stuff. It's their core sound and the basic BJM recipe. The lyric-less song chugs along yet when you listen closely you can hear the nuanced shifts. They make the simplest chord progression sound amazing. BJM have this sound, that when they come on in a club you instantly know it's them, but it takes a good few moments to figure out which song it is.
Another stand-out track on the album is A Word. The guitars give as much attitude as Anton. I love it when he wavers, 'my love goes up, my love goes down'. I can't seem to get that line out of my head.
The rest of the album is a little bit bluesy, and a little bit perky, with some monotone vocals thrown in. With the exception of We Never Had a Chance, which is a step down in pace and has more maturity.
At 38 minutes, it's another short listen, but it packs a punch. As a BJM fan (albeit I've been out of the loop for a while) I was excited about the new album.
Overall, it's fantastic, but it's not their best; although their mammoth back catalogue means it's inevitable there are going to be some let downs in there. There isn't a terrible track on the album and every song is listenable. I'll definitely be revisiting it, but I'll probably focus my ears on the first two incredible songs.
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