Wowee Zowee

Eclectic, ambitious, strange, disjointed, abstract, wonderful, ahead of its time...Just some of the words used to describe Pavement's 3rd album. A great influence on later artists, Ben Kweller, Weezer, and The Apples In Stereo, to name a few, it would be no surprise to find Thom Yorke was influenced by Pavement. After producing, on their previous two albums, more mainstream rock to achieve sales, they went back to the sounds of their early work (3 EPs), the first one which they released on guitarist Scott Kannberg's self-owned label, Treble Kicker. Daringly experimental sonically and not what was expected then, after the rock centered aforementioned two albums, it confused many people and the polarisation still exists. It is an album that is either loved or hated or never been heard of, depending on who you ask. To show how confusing it was, upon it's release in 1995, Rolling Stone's review of the album variously described it as: "disappointing", "a handful of half-baked performances", "the album jerks mindlessly back and forth", and "lost in the clutter of empty experimentation". In 2002 Rolling Stone then voted it Number 12 in The 50 Coolest Albums of All Time. Yet, in 2003, it didn't make it into the same magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time edition but the previous two releases, "Slanted And Enchanted" (#134) & "Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain" (#210), both featured. It would have been interesting to see how this album was received if it had been released two years later...after Radiohead's "OK Computer".

Personally I find the album's strength lays in it's diversity, it's experimentation and never settling in to a tedious pattern of similar sounding tracks. It's like a playlist, on shuffle, on vinyl. True some tracks leave you wanting more, like they were unfinished business, but that also has a way of making us think more about the content. Was that all there was to that track? Should there have been more? I like to think Stephen Malkmus knew exactly what he was doing. Even the release of the record as a double album, but with only 3 sides used, was another show of experimentation and was conceived to make people think and wonder...why?

Side One

1. We Dance – 3:01

2. Rattled by the Rush – 4:16

3. Black Out – 2:10

4. Brinx Job – 1:31

5. Grounded – 4:14

6. Serpentine Pad – 1:16

Side Two

7. Motion Suggests – 3:15

8. Father to a Sister of Thought – 3:30

9. Extradition – 2:12

10. Best Friend's Arm – 2:19

11. Grave Architecture – 4:16

12. AT&T – 3:32

Side Three

13. Flux = Rad – 1:45

14. Fight This Generation – 4:22

15. Kennel District – 2:59 

16. Pueblo – 3:25

17. Half a Canyon – 6:10

18. Western Homes – 1:49 

Side Four

As with any album there are stand out tracks. In no particular order of preference these include: "Fight This Generation" from it's gentle opening, but with lyrics that put the lie to that cosy feeling, then it develops a menacing guitar riff with Malkmus repeating, until it becomes scarily meaningless(?), the track's title phrase. The modern blues rock feel of "Half A Canyon", whilst scaring off many fans, pulled me even further in to the web being weaved. The beautifully melodic "Blackout". The superbly crafted "Grounded" with its wide open structure that allows the distorted guitar acres of space to work in, over the stealthy bass line and steady, repetitive drumming. "Grave Architecture" another monument (see what I did there?) to Malkmus's songwriting skills & "At & T" is just one of those songs with a perfect pop/rock sensibility, that always makes me smile and want to sing-a-long with it. The 2nd single, "Rattled By The Rush", released from the album is another excellent track, with a tight guitar solo, layered in fuzz and weird noises. Is Wowee Zowee a lost gem or a forgotten mess? For me, each time I play the album, it's like unearthing a buried treasure.

Black Out

Grounded (Live @ Brixton Academy)

Rattled By The Rush