Reviews: Finality, Finally
Blue Zero/Galaxie 500
Here it is, the final installment of 2024’s remarkable releases. Two diamonds that got lost in the dirt. They shoulda popped up earlier but somehow fell off the radar. But here they are, pulling up the ass end of the unranked list. No lore to attach to Blue Zero but me and G500 have some history. Hell, I’ll even link to a live review I did for a Luna show 8 years ago. Why not? Don’t crucify me over that first band if they’re “mid” or “ass.” I have no recollection of them even playing.
It took more than a minute for Galaxie 500 to sink in. They’d been misdiagnosed as a Shoegaze band and a Dream Pop band in the early 00’s. Neither really applies. If they’d been pitched as Velvet Underground for the K Records crowd then I think it woulda made more sense and not thrown me off their scent. By 2014 I’d fully gotten it.
My wife and I had been dating for five months, living together for two of them. She told me she had a Birthday surprise but I had to wear a blindfold. So I sat in the passenger seat and tried to track our movements but quickly gave up. When the car came to a stop, blindfold off, we’re in a Chuck E. Cheese parking lot. What?!? Then she handed me a present, the recently released Galaxie 500 book. Inside, she’d scribbled a personal note to me and there were two tickets to see Mikal Cronin in Schaumberg, IL that night. She’d slipped a bag with extra clothes into the car. The whole thing was an absolute mind trip and effort on a level I’ve never come close to reaching. Damn, I probably should be reminding myself of this around her Birthday time. Every time I listen to Galaxie 500 I think of that day.
My other major memory attached to the band is my sole experience seeing Damon and Naomi. They came to Milwaukee opening for Boris. Small-ish club. Boris was jaw rattlingly loud. So loud that the music brought a physicality that I’ve never experienced again. D&N opened, with Damon stating that they were going to play as quietly as possible so that they could enhance Boris’ amplitude (Boris definitely needed no help). Throughout the set, even when songs were being played, you could hear any conversations going on throughout the room. Damon berated the crowd for being disrespectful and, asshole that I am, I reveled in the glory of his meltdown. I get that it’s gotta be frustrating, but you can’t impress expectations on a crowd and lose your shit when they defy them. I do like the Damon and Naomi records I’ve heard, but any music they’re involved in reminds me of the Boris show and gives me a little chuckle. Sorry?
Blue Zero - Colder Shade Blue (Lower Grand Tapes)
Shoegaze is such a crapshoot of a descriptor. At this point it’s almost enough to make me walk on by altogether. It’s almost always bad 90’s Alt-Rock rip offs that sidle a little too closely to Nu Metal, or S/T era Weezer stabs with a little reverb slathered on the guitars. And then a band like Blue Zero comes along and fucks up the entire equation. “Broken By A Glance” opens it up with a Kevin Shields-worthy tremolo rocker. “Lemon Year” follows, sounding like Teenage Fanclub meets Ecstasy era MBV. Ya see, there’s gotta be songs, not just layers upon layers of guitars and still no riffs. And this is all songs, all riffs. A hazy dream of a record. Nine tracks, nothing duffin’. “Foot In The Grave” has a Monkees jangling riff to set it apart. I’ve always liked Public Interest and Marbled Eye, so it’s of no surprise that someone involved in both bands would make a record that I love.
Galaxie 500 - Uncollected Noise New York ‘88-’90 (Silver Current Records)
The complete uncollected recordings from the Noise New York studio. A lot of these tracks can be found on the Uncollected comp on Ryko, but eight of ‘em are nowhere to be found elsewhere in their catalog. Another handful are only previously available in a CD Box Set that probably isn’t frequenting the common shelf these days. Classy gatefold cover, lookin’ like a heavily partied old school bootleg. Inner gatefold give a detailed rundown of where these tracks are coming from. The tri-fold full-sized insert with an essay from each member backed with a single picture of each is a real looker. “Shout You Down” springs out of the gate in a C86 stride. There’s plenty of songs you don’t know — in the mode that you do know, as well as new corners reached. “Song In 3” has a 60’s jangle pop vibe. “Crazy” dips into Clean-like psychedelic melodicism. Joy Division’s “Ceremony” is an always welcome cover as it’s one of the best songs ever written. They coulda just slapped together all the ultra rare tracks and made a nice single LP, but the alt. versions of the songs y’all already know aren’t spoiling anything. Basically, this is perfect execution for this kind of archival excavation. I’m sure some nerd’s gonna “yeah, but” me on this and I’m not gonna care. Great band across the board for all the indie poppers, the Kiwi/Flying Nun fanatics, and the VU devotees.