Jane’s Addiction “Ritual de lo Habitual”

sfilzen — Fri, 21 Aug 2020 18:20:35 +0000

Jane’s Addiction “Ritual de lo Habitual” released 30 years ago today, August 21st. 1990. Definitely my most listened-to release during the fall of ‘90, played at 11 at all times at every college party that semester. The album hit #19 in the US despite the controversial cover art (a “clean” cover exists as well: white with the text to the First Amendment on the front and this still relevant text on the back “Hitler’s syphilis-ridden dreams almost came true. How could it happen? By taking control of the media. An entire country was led by a lunatic… We must protect our First Amendment, before sick dreams become law. Nobody made fun of Hitler??!”). This whole album is so damn good! The singles, of course: “Stop!” which opens the LP (#1 US Modern Rock Tracks chart), the epic-length drug-hazed “Three Days” (Dave Navarro’s guitar solo ranked in the 100 best guitar solos ever by Guitar World), the insanely addictive ass-shaking “Been Caught Stealing” (#1 US Modern Rock Tracks and its hilarious video won Best Alternative Video at the ‘91 MTV VMA’s) and the surprisingly lovely “Classic Girl” (#15 US Modern Rock Tracks). But I also love the funked-up “No One’s Leaving” and “Obvious” as well as the liltingly funhouse-weird string-heavy “Of Course.”

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Jane’s Addiction “Nothing’s Shocking”

sfilzen — Thu, 23 Aug 2018 13:00:34 +0000

Jane’s Addiction “Nothing’s Shocking” released 30 years ago on this date, August 23rd, 1988. Mind-blowing, earth-shattering, an album I distinctly remember hearing for the first time – in the passenger seat in my friend Erika’s car after school, the fall of our senior year ‘88, her shitty stereo cranked to 11. Erika was a metal-head and I was punk leaning toward hippie but about Jane’s Addiction’s first major label release we could agree, this was amazing. Nothing’s Shocking reached #103 on the Billboard charts and the single “Jane Says” made a breakthrough charting at #6 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. “Jane Says” is great but I absolutely love “Ocean Size,” “Had a Dad,” “Standing in the Shower…Thinking” (which I still sing occasionally while standing in the shower, thinking, when the water is so fucking hot) and the epic “Mountain Song.”

To my mind, Jane’s Addiction made grunge (which of course was already developing in the Northwest by ‘88) possible on a large-scale, commercially viable level. On a personal level it was the first “alt-metal” band that I would proudly listen to (cranked to 11!) because at least in our town, genre crossovers: punk/goth/new wave vs. metal was just not cool. (Until grunge, and then it was) On a critical level there is this from Allmusic: “Although Jane’s Addiction’s 1987 self-titled debut was an intriguing release (few alternative bands at the time had the courage to mix modern rock, prog rock, and heavy metal together), it paled in comparison to their now classic major-label release one year later, Nothing’s Shocking. Produced by Dave Jerden and Jane’s Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell, the album was more focused and packed more of a sonic wallop than its predecessor; the fiery performances often create an amazing sense that it could all fall apart at any second, creating a fantastic musical tension. Such tracks as “Up the Beach,” “Ocean Size,” and one of alt-rock’s greatest anthems, “Mountain Song,” contain the spaciousness created by the band’s two biggest influences, Led Zeppelin and the Cure. Elsewhere, “Ted, Just Admit It…” (about serial killer Ted Bundy) and the haunting yet gorgeous “Summertime Rolls” stretched to epic proportions, making great use of changing moods and dynamics (something most alt-rock bands of the time were oblivious to). An incredibly consistent and challenging album, other highlights included the rockers “Had a Dad” and “Pigs in Zen,” the horn-driven “Idiots Rule,” the jazz instrumental “Thank You Boys,” and the up-tempo “Standing in the Shower…Thinking.” Like most great bands, it was not a single member whose contribution was greater: Perry Farrell’s unique voice and lyrics, Dave Navarro’s guitar riffs and wailing leads, Eric Avery’s sturdy basslines, and one of rock’s greatest and most powerful drummers, Stephen Perkins. Nothing’s Shocking is a must-have for lovers of cutting-edge, influential, and timeless hard rock.”

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Jane’s Addiction “Ritual de lo Habitual”

Jane’s Addiction “Nothing’s Shocking”