Thursday, June 10, 2010

Galaxie 500 - On Fire (1989)


I don't know if Galaxie 500 can be credited with starting the slowcore movement, but they did more for its early development than anyone else. I think it was their intention to be an eighties version of The Velvet Underground; at least in the Velvet's quieter moments (think their 1969 self-titled album, the one with Pale Blue Eyes and I'm Set Free). Hey, if you're gonna copy someone, copy the best, right?

Shimmering and wave-like guitars set over slinky and growling bass lines locked into a steady drum beat; that's the Galaxie 500 sound that everyone after tried to copy as well; some got it right (Low, et al) and some didn't. But the fact remains that Galaxie was an awesome band, never trying to confuse the listener with tempo changes and stops and starts; just pop music slowed down enough to be covered in a sweet molasses glaze.

This is the 1997 Rykodisc re-issued remaster with three bonus tracks...

1 comments:

nomadologist said...

Thanks for this! I saw this in the sidebar of another blog and had to come over and grab it...my copy is scratched to hell. This is my favorite Galaxie 500 album and one of my all-time favorites.

Post a Comment