Customer Reviews

Edge of the World

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

 

 

A fearsome cowpunk inferno that combines the ambling, drunken ambiance of country with punk's thundering energy. "Hello Cruel World" is a bitter but inspiring opener, "King Arthur" funny and sad, and "Oblivion" features the birth of that inimitable creature, Sally Timms; but it's the "Garage D'Or"/"Big Zombie" combo that puts this album over the top, compressing the album's themes of alienation and quiet anguish into "Garage"'s claustrophibic ball before blowing everything sky-high with "Zombie"'s opening chords, a thud of blazing self-destructive hatred that gives way to a manic and inspired John Langford vocal. Rarely is pop music this scary, funny or cathartic, and rarer still is a punk record so idealistic, even if the idealism is covered by a brittle humor that itself becomes part of the pathos. You need this album.

I read about the Mekons recently in the New Yorker, and was intrigued by the idea of a country punk band. I've since learned that country-punk is but one of the Mekons many faces...but perhaps the best. This album sounds something like the Pogues Go to Nashville-just a fabulous, loopy, punky 1980s album that might make a Mekons fan of anyone. Oblivion, Hello Cruel World and other songs are simply classic. I'm still in the process of exploring this wacky group, but I have yet to find a disc I love as much as this one.

The second of two consecutive masterpieces. Criminal that more people don't know this band. Fortunate for those who do. A treasure trove of riches - eloquent lyrics, barn burning music, all-around brilliance from the great Jon Langford and his partners in crime.

simply one of the greatest musical entities in existence