What does it sound like?:
1.These are two more reissues in Cherry Red series of Residents albums
2.They are released on 25th January 2019.
3.The Commerical Album consists of 40 tracks of one minute each
4.And in a way they are commericals, and were used as such on US radio.
5.Paid for by The Residents
6.According to the Residents you should play each one three times to make a ‘proper’ pop song.
7.But they are still disturbing and brilliant enough if you only play them once.
8.Lots of great guests on this.
9.Definitely Fred Frith, Chris Cutler, Lene Lovich and Andy (Sandy Sandwich) Partridge.
10.And perhaps Eno?
11.They call it Pop Satire.
12.It’s Barbra Streisand and John Travolta on the cover.
13.My favourite tracks are The Simple Song and Margaret Freeman (the Andy P one)
14.Some interesting extras but really only for Residents fans (like these things often are)
15.Should this be your first Residents album?
16.Probably
17.Or perhaps Meet the Residents? That was my first
18.Eskimo shouldn’t be your first Residents album.
19.You’ve been warned.
20.Perhaps the Residents masterpiece?
21.But their most non-musical.
22.It tells the story of the Eskimo perhaps more correctly the Inuit.
23.But actually it only tells a fictional story
24.Because the Residents only did some cursory research
25.But that might be fictional too.
26.It’s filled with chanting, rudimentary instruments and omnipresent wind.
27.It tells a story without words divided in six parts.
28.Though they may be chanting “Coco Cola adds life” on Festival of Death
29.From a Walrus Hunt to a Birth finishing with the terrifying Festival of Death.
30.Andy Gill of the NME wrote it’s one of the most important albums ever made, if not the most important.
31.He’s wrong or he’s taking the piss.
32.But it’s still stunning.
33.It should be listened to in one sitting.
34.You really get enveloped in the atmosphere.
35.It does feel like you are in the Artic landscape.
36.Admittedly a scary and psychedelic one.
37.And it is probably The Residents best album.
38.And this is another great package from Cherry Red
39.Every home should have one. Perhaps.
40.Oh, and those Eyeball masks are still the best and scariest costume in ‘Rock’ aren’t they?
What does it all *mean*?
Probably loads or possibly nothing?
Goes well with…
No other group has sounded like this so anything and nothing.
Release Date:
Might suit people who like…
Feeling vaguely uncomfortable and unsettled whilst listening to music. In a good way.
Four Interior Decorators Of The Apocalypse
I have the Commercial Album, Duck Stab and Third Reich & Roll, plus The Mole Show (Live in Holland June 6th 1983).
I used to have the Commercial Album on vinyl (bought on UK release) but it got lost fairly soon after when I had 5 different addresses in a short space of time. Now I have a copy as mp3s, with the 10 additional tracks known as Bonus Babies that were added for the CD reissue in 1988.
An ambition will be fulfilled in about a month’s time.
I’m going to see The Residents (whoever they are these days) at Union Chapel on February 4th. Hopefully there’ll be some good merch available at non-exorbitant prices. I want an eyeball picture t-shirt at the very least.
I like your style, ip. Nice reviewing.
Thank you very much T you’re very kind.
And thank you to @Bargepole for the opportunity.
Yes, great review. I have both of these on vinyl and prefer Commercial Album, with its rather macarbre mood, but I will give Eskimo (or Inuit ?) another listen when these reissues turn up.
Sorry to bump this thread, but I just downloaded Commercial Album and listening on the headphones, the remaster is clearly a needle drop: you can even discern the faint rumble between the tracks. I assumed The Residents owned all their own mastertapes, so what is this about?
It is possible the tapes have rotted over time and are unplayable.
The glue used to stick the ferrite powder to the plastic backing goes gooey, and you end up with a sticky mess.
It can sometimes be saved to allow one play, if the tape is baked carefully to dry out the goo before playing. But not always.
Par for the course from Cherry Red, in my opinion!
Sorry to be naysayer but it seems okay to me. Both the download that I reviewed and the CDs that arrived on Friday are both okay to my non-expert ears.
Ripped the CD to 24bit Flac and listening with noise cancelling headphones, they sound great. But I’m not an expert.
Don’t know what kind of dodgy download he’s referring to, but the CDs definitely are new masters from the original tapes – no vinyl rumble between the tracks. And the booklets in both sets are great, with fine reproductions of original sleeves and ads.
Coming next: the Mole Trilogy on 5 discs.