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| (Photo: Doug Seymour) |
See, part of being considered for the Rock Hall is the level of influence a band has upon the hundreds, if not thousands, of other bands that form in their wake and, well, if Velvet Underground can be inducted for sales of 12 copies of their first album (not as much of an exaggeration as you might think), then the Feelies should be a shoe-in for selling at least twice that amount.
In a way, the Feelies are the perfect band.
For starters, they got signed to four of the coolest labels around - Stiff Records, Rough Trade, Twin/Tone and A&M Records. They were also longtime favorites of the Village Voice, which was, for many, the leading gatekeeper for "alternative rock" before there was such a term.
Back in those pre-internet days of yore, if a band's album made the Voice's year-end Pazz & Jop poll, then you knew you had to have it, but that doing so might be a bit of a challenge because, let's face it, Woolworth's and Kmart could not be depended upon to carry the latest Rough Trade or Stiff releases.
Because of that, like many a legendary band underground rock act, they were the sort of musical combo you wound up reading about for months, or even years, before you finally got your hot little hands on a copy of Crazy Rhythms.
This, of course, only added to the band's street cred.
Even so, no amount of hype could have prepared you for what you heard when you finally tossed that platter on your stereo. For this writer, hearing the Feelies for the first time was like listening to a band who had read as many articles about Velvet Underground as I had, and, after finally hearing VU for the first time, had replied, "Fuck, we can do better than that."
Of course, the Feelies' jittery, caffeinated propulsion leads one to believe that they had been playing their VU albums at 45 rpm instead of 33 rpm, which, in hindsight, is actually not a bad idea.
Unlike the Ramones, who didn't know when to quit and, thus, wound up hating each other, the Feelies seemed to quit after every album, which is totally rock & roll.
By doing so, there was always a sense of excitement surrounding each new Feelies record because you never knew if there would be another, even during the '80s, when a new Feelies album seemed to appear out of thin air every two or three years.
Of course, once the band settled into what is now their classic line-up, the band hit their most prolific period at full power.
The addition of Brenda Sauter, who replaced Keith DeNunzio on 1986's The Good Earth, gave the band a visual counter point to the hyperactive vocal/guitar combo of Bill Million and Glenn Mercer.
Additionally, her rock solid bass lines intertwined with new drummer Stan Demeski's intricate tom-heavy drumming to provide a sticky low-end rumble that played well against the band's surgical guitar jangle and glued the whole performance together.
On 1988's Only Life, arguably their best and most varied album, this line-up (which also included percussionist Dave Weckerman) had had two years to perfect this formula and it shows. Oddly enough, while R.E.M's Peter Buck had co-produced The Good Earth, it is Only Life that answers the musical question "What would R.E.M. have sounded like in 1988 if they hadn't decided they wanted be a pop band?"
The album boasts easily their best songs to date and shows their command of textures and colors as they approach the recording studio like a blank canvas. Also, the band's decision to dial back the angst is much welcome after two albums of nervous urgency.
Strangely enough, the band's fourth effort, 1991's Time For A Witness has the rawness and energy of alive album - almost as if the band was in a hurry to wrap it up before Nirvana would change the musical landscape forever. There is a sense of urgency here that hasn't been heard since Crazy Rhythms, but the guitar work is dirtier and more aggressive. For better and worse, this is the sound of the Feelies on auto-pilot, but it is far from being a phoned-in performance, as proven by the band's masterful reworking of the Stooges' (!) "Real Cool Time".
Recent releases Here Before and last year's In Between come after a 20-year hiatus that did little to dampen the band's trademark sound, although we now see the band in a moodier, introspective light that comes with age and the complete collapse of the music industry.
One would not have guessed that the Feelies would outlive Nirvana, Jonathan Demme (who produced their video for "Away" and cast them in his movie "Something Wild"), Maxwell's (the legendary Hoboken club that was integral to their development and the east coast underground rock scene in general) or A&M Records, but doing so adds a certain weight to the music they're making now.
For, against all odds, the Feelies are the last band standing.
This, of course, only added to the band's street cred.
Even so, no amount of hype could have prepared you for what you heard when you finally tossed that platter on your stereo. For this writer, hearing the Feelies for the first time was like listening to a band who had read as many articles about Velvet Underground as I had, and, after finally hearing VU for the first time, had replied, "Fuck, we can do better than that."
Of course, the Feelies' jittery, caffeinated propulsion leads one to believe that they had been playing their VU albums at 45 rpm instead of 33 rpm, which, in hindsight, is actually not a bad idea.
Unlike the Ramones, who didn't know when to quit and, thus, wound up hating each other, the Feelies seemed to quit after every album, which is totally rock & roll.
By doing so, there was always a sense of excitement surrounding each new Feelies record because you never knew if there would be another, even during the '80s, when a new Feelies album seemed to appear out of thin air every two or three years.
Of course, once the band settled into what is now their classic line-up, the band hit their most prolific period at full power.
The addition of Brenda Sauter, who replaced Keith DeNunzio on 1986's The Good Earth, gave the band a visual counter point to the hyperactive vocal/guitar combo of Bill Million and Glenn Mercer.
Additionally, her rock solid bass lines intertwined with new drummer Stan Demeski's intricate tom-heavy drumming to provide a sticky low-end rumble that played well against the band's surgical guitar jangle and glued the whole performance together.
On 1988's Only Life, arguably their best and most varied album, this line-up (which also included percussionist Dave Weckerman) had had two years to perfect this formula and it shows. Oddly enough, while R.E.M's Peter Buck had co-produced The Good Earth, it is Only Life that answers the musical question "What would R.E.M. have sounded like in 1988 if they hadn't decided they wanted be a pop band?"
The album boasts easily their best songs to date and shows their command of textures and colors as they approach the recording studio like a blank canvas. Also, the band's decision to dial back the angst is much welcome after two albums of nervous urgency.
Strangely enough, the band's fourth effort, 1991's Time For A Witness has the rawness and energy of alive album - almost as if the band was in a hurry to wrap it up before Nirvana would change the musical landscape forever. There is a sense of urgency here that hasn't been heard since Crazy Rhythms, but the guitar work is dirtier and more aggressive. For better and worse, this is the sound of the Feelies on auto-pilot, but it is far from being a phoned-in performance, as proven by the band's masterful reworking of the Stooges' (!) "Real Cool Time".
Recent releases Here Before and last year's In Between come after a 20-year hiatus that did little to dampen the band's trademark sound, although we now see the band in a moodier, introspective light that comes with age and the complete collapse of the music industry.
One would not have guessed that the Feelies would outlive Nirvana, Jonathan Demme (who produced their video for "Away" and cast them in his movie "Something Wild"), Maxwell's (the legendary Hoboken club that was integral to their development and the east coast underground rock scene in general) or A&M Records, but doing so adds a certain weight to the music they're making now.
For, against all odds, the Feelies are the last band standing.
Tags:
it's only life