Evil Heat (with Bonus DVD)

Primal Scream | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 26, 2002)
• Original Release Date: 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00007E8SU
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #345,765 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

On their new album, Evil Heat, Primal Scream set out to streamline the massive sound of 2000's superb Xtrmntr and to combine raw, sexually charged electro with raw, sexually charged rock & roll. That they succeed has much to do with the band's collaborators. Andy Weatherall returns to the fold and transforms "Autobahn 66" into a beautiful meditation that recalls Primal Scream's earlier Screamadelica and the autobahn fantasies of Krautrockers Neu!. Meanwhile, My Bloody Valentine's genius leader, Kevin Shields, feeds most of the other tracks through his disorientation and distortion effects deck, so that even the most punk tracks ("Skull X," "City") sound original. In the midst of it all, there's Bobbie Gillespie, posing furiously. But Evil Heat, perhaps accidentally, captures the paradox at the heart of great rock & roll: that the old ideas can be reinvented, sometimes as comedy, sometimes as revolution, and sometimes as both. --John Mulvey

Product Description

Import pressing of their 2002 album long out-of-print in the US. Sexually charged electro rock 'n roll blasting from your speakers at a million miles an hour, the album features the singles 'Autobahn 66' and 'Miss Lucifier'. Sony. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's Good to be Evil., November 30, 2002

By 

Brent Figiel (Pittsburgh, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Evil Heat (with Bonus DVD) (Audio CD)

Manchester's Primal Scream are what hundreds of untalented L.A. bands aspire to be: A swaggering, smirking Molotov of fist pumping anthems and drug induced slow jams. It's the aural equivalent of a back alley knife fight between punk, glam, house, psychedelia, rock, and all out noise. And they make it sound so easy too. Well, in all honesty, if I could get Robert Plant (Led Something-Or-Other), Kevin Shields (My Bloody Valentine), Jim Reid (Jesus And Mary Chain), and supermodel Kate Moss (!?) to pop into the studio one day and muck about on MY newest album, I'd think I was pretty frickin' cool too.

In the two and a half minute first single, "Miss Lucifer," the band effectively grabs you by your nether regions, squeezes tightly and politely asks "Do I have your attention yet?" It's a hyper-kinetic burst of sleazy techno-punk that makes you want to run around the room and break things. (It also marks the first time I ever used the "repeat one song" button on my CD player. I listened to it about five or six times in a row on the way home from work tonight. I'm lucky I made it home in one piece.)

Ringleader Bobby Gillespie screeches and yowls and snarls and poses his way through the album, getting by more on charisma and a good punk sneer than real singing ability. The lyrics are, admittedly, jingoistic and inconsequential, but are nonetheless fun. "Skull X" and "City" are relatively straightforward garage punk tunes. "The Lord Is My Shotgun" sports the distinctive harmonica work of Mr. Robert Plant and a drum machine beat reminiscent of NIN's "Closer" for a song that sounds like the middle ground between both bands. "Deep Hit Of Morning Sun" and "Autobahn 66" offer some chemically-inspired psychedelia as a change of pace from all the breakneck rocking out. "Rise" is a call to action set to a steady, almost military drumming while the delicate, organ-laden "Space Blues #2" ends the hedonism with a nice denouement.

If there's a weak link here, it's in the limited edition bonus DVD. The video for "Miss Lucifer" is awesome (Devil chicks dancing at a rave? A guy shooting lightning out of his hands? How can you go wrong?) and the video for "Autobahn 66" is solid, but the live tracks fall well short of what they could be. Gillespie looks bored out of his mind, standing stock still through uninspired renditions of "Skull X," "Rocks," and "Swastika Eyes." How anyone could perform this music without getting hyped up is beyond me. (A chemical cocktail before the show, perhaps?) But if you want to display the band in the best light possible, why include footage where the lead singer looks half asleep? The band all acquit themselves well enough, but it isn't until "Kowalski" and "Movin' On Up" that Bobby shows any signs of life at all. It's worth watching for the "Miss Lucifer" video, but it could have been much more.

At a moment in time where jock rock is waning and cooler-than-thou garage rock is on the rise, it's a pleasure to hear vets like Primal Scream offer a nice alternative to the same ol' same ol'.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Sexy Rush of Dance, Decadence, and R&R, October 28, 2004

By 

Erik Rust (Lexington, KY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Evil Heat (with Bonus DVD) (Audio CD)

Every once in a while, a new album comes along that perfectly nails the spirit of rock n' roll without bowing to the age-old guitar, bass, drums formula. Well, this my friends, is one of those. "Evil Heat" is chalk full of electronics, but shakes and grooves along like a futuristic version of the Rolling Stones with contributors from all across the musical spectrum.

With glitter and sas, Primal Scream delivers a sonically blistering testament to living and partying hard, only to wake up, shake it off, and start all over again. "Miss Lucifer" is trancey and pulsing and sounds almost as dangerous as anything The Jesus and Mary Chain ever recorded. Speaking of the JAMC, Jim Reid moonlights as lead vocalist on the slamming and slivering "Detroit," delivering a bucket full of piss and vinegar irreverence. Without warning, Robert Plant (yes, THAT Robert Plant) handily lends his sensual blues harmonica gymnastics to the distorted, techno breakout "The Lord Is My Shotgun." Although the Scream rarely rely on guitars, "City," featuring Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine, proves that they can kick out the jams with the best of 'em. Featuring a rip roaring chorus, it's sure to blow some eardrums. Droning, sexy, and exuberant, Evil Heat is a truly underrated document as Primal Scream deftly embodies the dark side of Rock n' Roll.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lucifer, April 20, 2004

By 

alexander laurence (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Evil Heat (with Bonus DVD) (Audio CD)

The follow up to Exterminator, which it resembles more or less, I guess Primal Scream now can be seen as a leader in the movement of bands trying to be the MC5. I guess that they may have some more legitimacy since they played with Wayne Kramer on occasion. Things start off with "Miss Lucifer" which gets off to a good electro start. "Autobahn 66" tips a hat to their obsession with Kraftwerk. The two rockers are "City" and "Skull X" which are stand out tracks. The song "Rise" was called "Bomb The Pentagon" before pushing the envelope was becoming bad taste. There is more psychedelia on this recording that previous releases. People as diverse as Kate Moss and Robert Plant show up on various tracks. It doesn't matter in the end. It's a great record, but just another notch in the belt for a band who has rode every possible trend. People in America are still trying to figure out if Primal Scream is a jam band or the English Black Crowes. The American release includes a DVD so you can see the band for itself, which is a great live act, and bridges the gap between rock, soul and techno.

(www.freewilliamsburg.com)