Customer Reviews

The Best: Make the Music Go Bang! (Dig)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the perfect way to introduce one of the most important bands come from the L.A. punk scene to influence the rest of the world. Critics have acknowledged X's influence on the rest of the music scene during their heyday and this is a great way to honor X!

This 2-CD set serves as a general overview for people who want to dabble in the punk rockabilly rock of X. Exene's off-key voice harmonizes with John Doe to make a truly unique sound. Billy Zoom and DJ Bonebrake create a backbeat to further cement X as truly a sonically unique band that broke new ground.

The first compilation from X was called "Beyond & Back: The X Anthology" serves a lot of B-Sides, rarities, and alternate takes from the X catalog. Beyond & Back is a great companion piece to "Make The Music Go Bang". Casual listeners and newcomers would do well to get "Make the Music Go Bang" first and then "Beyond & Back".

"Make the Music Go Bang" serves up some of the best slices of X that you'll hear. Heck, you might even want to finish off and get the rest of the X discography after this introduction.

Actually, it's five stars for the first disc, three stars for the second.

For the uninitiated, or for nostalgists such as myself, this compilation serves as either a great introduction or a great recap of one of the finest careers ever in the punk/pop genre. In case you don't already know, X were a Los Angeles band that combined fast guitar riffs, country and rockabilly attitude, lovely harmonies and sensitive lyrics to create a totally original rock and roll package. They were a band in the truest sense of the word, with each member making a strong contribution, and are as vital now as they were then.

The first disc captures the most illustrious part of their career, which encompasses their first four albums, the striking debut Los Angeles followed by three undeniable classics, Wild Gift, Under the Big Black Sun(their best album) and More Fun in the New World. The song selection is uncannily savvy, almost invariably picking the very best cuts from these albums. My only argument is with the quality of some of the demos(the album version of Adult Books is much better) and with some of the selections from More Fun in the New World. For instance, why call the album Make the Music Go Bang, and then fail to include that song, one of the band's best? I also would have preferred Painting the Town Blue, Drunk in My Past and I See Red over some of the other cuts, but this is a minor grumbling. The chance to hear Your Phone's Off the Hook(But You're Not), In This House That I Call Home, I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts, Blue Spark, Riding With Mary, White Girl, Breathless, Motel Room in My Bed, We're Having Much More Fun, The Unheard Music, Some Other Time, Hungry Wolf and Universal Corner all on the same disc is an indescribably euphoric listening experience.

The second disc shows a serious drop in quality. I've never heard the album Ain't Love Grand in its entirety, but based on the selections here I'm not missing much. See How We Are is a vast improvement, but its watered down roots rock sound doesn't hold up as well today as it did when the album was released, perhaps because, in this format, it is presented side by side with their far superior earlier music. The best part of the second disc is the live tracks(I saw X in concert once and still have fond memories of that evening, one of the best shows I've seen), and some of the later studio tracks that close the album. Good stuff overall, but not up to the quality of the first disc.

My first recommendation would be to get X's first four albums, especially 2-4, in order to get a clear sense of just how great a band they were, to really experience the songwriting talents of Exene Cervenka and John Doe. But as compilations go, it's hard to ask for much more than what this set delivers.

But there are 5 songs missing (mostly from their first four seminal albums) They are(in chronological order:)1.Sex and Dying In High Society 2.Year 1 3.Come Back To Me 4. Dancing With Tears In my Eyes (Both from "Big Black Sun" and nice change of pace tunes) and (probably the most egregious omission) 5. True Love Part 2. You could make a case for including the first two albums in toto (if not the next two). The Go-Go's and Los Lobos will get more RnR Hall consideration, but I feel X is just as deserving...

Make the music go BANG! The best of X is a fantastic addition to any ones collection who likes smart fast fun rock music. You can really see the characters in their music. This 2 disc set gives a perfect overview to their career. I found X when I had to take a bus trip. With only $30 in my pocket and 4 hours to kill, I bought a cheap Walkman and found "Ain't Love Grand" in the bargain bin at the mall. "Burning House of Love" is a story of a jilted lover that is a sonic powerhouse. Also featured here from Grand is "What's Wrong with Me...", where you know it's none of your goddamn business. The rest of this 2 disc set provides a full overview of the rest of the albums in the X collection. "Make the Music Go Bang" is a wonderful place to start exploring X.

One of those great bands that never got a lot of radio play, at least not where I live. I actually bought this CD as a gift for my 16 year old son, making an educated guess that he would appreciate it, and he did. Some groups just never stop sounding good. X is one of those bands.

X, in a way, are dinosaurs. Not that they're staid or irrelevant, but that, timing-wise, they're really from before the Internet/itunes/youtube age. They're Generation Zero, pre-digital. As such, their amazing punk pop songs, little gems aimed at the inequities of the world from the 70s and the 80s, are in danger of being forgotten. Fortunately, they still tour, and anyone who's seen any concert stop knows just how tight this group remains. They've got one of the all-time classic rock rhythm sections in John Doe and DJ Bonebreak, amazing lead guitar from the tireless Billy Zoom, and uncategorizable co-lead vocals from Exene, the band's muse and on-stage spirit channeler.

The first disc of this set gives you the equivalent of that concert-set experience, song after song that is a perfect punk gem of focused chaos. There isn't one weak track, or one second of rest to allow boredom to kick in. The lyrics are simple, direct, cynical, angry and impassioned, perfectly matched by the intense music.

Of course the original albums are worthwhile listens, too (each of the 1st four was a complete world of its own, but some are unfortunately OOP), but the advantage of this culled selection is the joy of singles and single-worthy tunes, capturing that high energy of the live show but with studio clarity.

The 2nd disc is worthy as well, though it takes from the latter-day albums of the 80s and 90s and is an evolving exploration of more mature styles and themes, including Americana, country, and even the occasional ballad. It's required for completing the full picture of X's lasting value to rock and roll, but it's the 1st disc that is truly indespinsable.

I had heard a few X songs through the years-LOS ANGELES, WE'RE DESPERATE, JOUNNY HIT AND RUN PAULINE, WILD THING, 4TH OF JULY, but never saw a collection that contained all the above. So when this 2-cd set came out a few weeks ago-I couldn't wait to get it! It was like discovering an all new band! love it. Like the other reviewer said, I'm gonna pick up BEYOND AND BACK next!

Ugh. Granted, this compilation has every X song you might've heard if you *weren't* already a big fan of the band. But this disc is just tiring to listen to-- two CDs worth of X at their in-yer-face-punk-rawk-est is simply draining, and not even what the band is really about.

I'd recommend, then that X newbies looking to spend $23.00 buy "Los Angeles" and "Under The Big Black Sun-" both of which display more of X's subtlety and dark humor.

By the way, *avoid* "Beyond and Back" at all costs- the sequencing is even worse than this, and the B-sides and rarities are mostly forgettable.