are celebrating the 30th anniversary of their second studio album with the release of 鈥淟ast Splash (30th Anniversary Original Analog Edition),鈥� out Friday on 4AD.
The re-release won鈥檛 rewrite the history of the '90s alt-rock band, but it surfaces new curiosities from the vault, and it delivers plenty of opportunities for discovery within the landmark album鈥檚 songs and lyrics.
In 1990, Pixies bassist Kim Deal launched The Breeders as a side project to explore an independent creative direction. Their first album, 鈥淧od,鈥� was famously a favorite of . Three years later, Deal essentially shuffled the lineup, keeping bassist/cellist Josephine Wiggs and adding twin sister and guitarist Kelly Deal and drummer Jim MacPherson, and recorded 鈥淟ast Splash.鈥�
The Breeder鈥檚 unique blend of angular, sledgehammer instrumental and dreamy harmonies had more in common with bands such as The Kinks and early, live Go-Go鈥檚 performances than it did with the Pixies or any of their '90s contemporaries. And the band has proven too quirky to become a classic-rock staple. Perhaps, as a result, they still sound fresh three decades later.
The two new songs on the analog edition are welcome additions to the catalog.
鈥淕o Man Go,鈥� co-written with Frank Black from the Pixies, fits in just fine on the album, delivering a classic Breeders blend of punchy guitars and sweet harmonies. Nobody is going to mind an extra 2:16 runtime on 鈥淟ast Splash.鈥�
The second new track, 鈥淒ivine Mascis,鈥� features Dinosaur Jr.鈥檚 J Mascis on vocals in an alternate take on the Breeders' 鈥淒ivine Hammer.鈥�
After the Pixies years, Kim Deal was no stranger to eccentric vocalists, and the Breeders play it loose and swingy as Mascis groans the lines like Eeyore. His presence brings a whole new chemistry, but it works, and it is not too hard to imagine a parallel universe with Mascis in the lineup.
The impact of the remaster on the original 鈥淟ast Splash鈥� songs merits a close listen. The Breeders were never really an audiophile鈥檚 band. But this analog edition doesn鈥檛 try to clean them up 鈥� it instead doubles-down on their gritty side. Wiggs and Macpherson emerge from the background with a rhythm section as gritty as early , and the Deal twins鈥� harmonies soar.
The mid-album stretch best highlights the band鈥檚 high-wire act between oddball experimentation and pop sensibility. The remaster isolates the slide guitar on 鈥淣o Aloha鈥� and the shaky cello on 鈥淩oi鈥� to make the songs more expansive. And the vocals on 鈥淒o You Love Me Now鈥� soar, starting sweet and sad and growing in implied menace as the song builds.
The lyrics booklet is a hidden gem within the box set. The lines are typeset in concrete-poetry style, using various typefaces and styles. The treatment pays proper tribute to Kim Deal鈥檚 vivid, cryptic writing, in lyrics like: 鈥淚鈥檒l be your whatever you want;鈥� 鈥淐ount the bubbles in your hand;鈥� 鈥淪aw it on the wall, motherhood means mental freeze;鈥� 鈥淗ag! Coastal cut throat! You dirty switch.鈥� The booklet is a terrific read, even with the volume turned down.
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AP music reviews:
Jim Pollock, The Associated Press
