If Jellyfish's appropriation of their influences on "Bellybutton" was more visual over sonic, "Spilt Milk" was the answer to my nagging question back then--are these guys for real? "Completely wiping away any lingering whiff of psych hype, Spilt Milk is sharper and far more vibrant than its predecessor, with clever hooks galore. Masterfully recorded, arranged and sequenced (Jellyfish's Andy Sturmer and Roger Manning joined Jack Joseph Puig and Albhy Galuten for a four-man production committee), the disc is sophisticated enough to engender Queen comparisons. Cushioned by creamy harmonies, "New Mistake" brilliantly swirls and soars like aural tiramisu. "Joining a Fan Club" and "The Ghost at Number One" have as much spinning melodic punch as any Raspberries or Cheap Trick gem; the crisply edited "All Is Forgiven" is built around a thunderous rhythm track, while "Russian Hill" spins a more pensive, acoustic web," Trouser Press, my legitimate go-to, has noted.
"Aural tiramisu"...is that short-hand for "best release of the '90's"?
Jellyfish - New Mistake (Mp3)
Jellyfish - The Glutton Of Sympathy (Mp3)
Jellyfish - All Is Forgiven (Mp3)
Jellyfish - Russian Hill (Mp3)
Jellyfish - Too Much, Too Little, Too Late (Mp3)
4 comments:
I've been listening to the SHIT out of this album over the past couple weeks and it's hitting me in a way it didn't 14 or 15 years ago. Spilt Milk IS the best release of the 90s. While everyone was busy sucking the nuts of Kurt Cobain, this band was quietly creating an absolute sonic masterpiece that arrived in the wrong space, in the wrong time for a public completely unable or unaware enough to notice.
Spilt Milk holds up against the best cheap trick album. The best queen album. The best Beatles album. and boasts something NONE of those bands can say: There is not a single bad song on the album. There is NO filler. Spilt Milk is now in my all-time top five. I knew every lyric to this album years and years ago, but I've been listening to it several times a day lately and it gives me goosebumps. What they created here is beyond words.
It's criminal this band ended so prematurely. We lost something major when this band broke up. Sadly, the majority of the world has no idea and still doesn't.
How very gratifying to see Jellyfish receive deserved admiration. When I first listened to Spilt Milk, I was grinning like a fool throughout ...
Thank you for the reminder, anyhow, which prompted me to make my own modest Jellyfish tribute:
http://heavysoil.blogspot.com/2008/09/joining-fan-club-with-jellyfish.html
Jon, what are your thoughts on Jason Faulkner's solo work?
JF's solo stuff is OK...not as worthwhile as the Jellyfish stuff--but then again, how could it be?
The Grays release is worth seeking out however...
Amazing album that I was turned on to many years ago by a good friend. I can never thank him enough for the gift he gave me.
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