 Jandek On Lost Cause, Jandek comes as close as he probably ever will to making his Astral Weeks. The album starts out with a surprising focus on songs, with a rockabilly vibe and some identifiable chord progressions that nearly sound as though he's about to get serious about the whole thing. In the alternate universe where Jandek sells like the Eagles, "Babe I Love You" is his #1 single. It then settles into a bleak acoustic blues mood that nevertheless remains quite pleasant, like Thurston Moore trying to turn himself into Nick Drake. Toward the end, though, it settles back into the insolent noisemaking that is more typical of the Jandek sound, culminating in a nearly 20-minute guitar-drum-voice apocalypse that sounds like a very drunk John Lee Hooker trying to adapt "Revolution 9," with an equally drunk chimp on drums. It's a remarkable record in that it hints so closely at Jandek's ability to write actual music. Ultimately, though, it ends up another Jandek record. Reviewing them individually is as pointless as rating individual Taco Bell franchises. Oh, wait a minute.
Review by La Fée |