Most Helpful Customer Reviews
128 of 137 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
the mother of them all, February 27, 2000
This review is from: Freak Out (Audio CD)
Frank Zappa's extraordinary 60+album output is, in essence, one single thematically related piece of music. True Zappaphiles (of which I am one) appreciate all aspects of this remarkable lifetime achievement, but the point of reviews like this are to point out the salient characteristics of individual albums. Released in 1966, Freak Out! presented itself as the annunciation of a cultural revolution. Much like the Sex Pistols' Never Mind the Bollocks (1977), this was pop music as threat. But its scope goes far beyond this. The album begins with the proto-punk anthem, "Hungry Freaks, Daddy," a raw, blistering electric rave-up that works as well as "Anarchy in the U.K.," and stands up just as well. If this was all that remained of Freak Out!, it would still be a classic, but the album goes much deeper. Zappa works dilligently on perfectly realized pop songs built on cliche's, contrasting them with "reality songs" like "Motherly Love" (a brutal rocker that appeals for groupies to have sex with the band members), "You're Probably Wondering Why I'm Here" (a savage attack on the shallowness of the youth culture likely to consume the album), and most importantly, the strange, enigmatic "Who Are the Brain Police?" (in which people and objects are unreal, manufactured, interchangeable and subject to melting). The overly arranged love songs sit side by side with material that deconstructs them as false representations (particularly the '50s doo-wop parody "Go Cry on Somebody Else's Shoulder." I'll never complain about 2 LPs on one CD, but the breakup of the two sections does hurt the psychological impact of the album somewhat. Keep in mind that Side 3 of the LP was where Freak Out! began moving the listener into deeper territory, throwing more light upon what had already occured. The sprawling, grungy blues of "More Trouble Every Day" kicks this off, with a savage, biting report of the Watts riots and the media coverage in a racially and economically divided America that has not changed much. Here, we're a million miles from the pop gleen of "Wowie Zowie" and "How Could I Be Such a Fool?" The next step takes us where no "popular" artist had dared step before. "Help, I'm a Rock" is musical event in stasis, relieved by shock. Everything the album has been so far has mutated into a new form, an "abstract" pop where representations become more difficult to pin down. The "freak" threat now arises full-blown: but what is it? (These are not hippies, friends--but they are the dissafected, the "left behinds" who are rising up to claim a stake in the American dream--and they will transform it in a new image.) An atonal barbershop quartet taunts, "You're safe, mama. You're safe, baby." (Meaning of course, quite the opposite.) Did Zappa believe this was actually going to happen? Possibly in 1966 he did, but not much longer. The message of Freak Out! is much larger than that--it amounts to nothing less than a demand for complete social/sexual/aesthetic emancipation. His conclusion lies in the side-long epic, "The Return of the Son of the Monster Magnet" Often castigated/dismissed as chaotic noise, close listening will reveal a very controlled hand at work. This is the soundtrack of the awakening of a new individual sensibility. Section 1 ("Ritual Dance of the Child-Killer") is a destruction of the innocence that allows people to accept a prefabricated reality (the "Brain Police"), while the avant-garde Section 2 ("Nullis Prettii") translates "No Commercial Potential," a slogan Zappa wore as his badge of honor. Now or in 1966, this album is an audacious, vital masterpiece by one of the greatest artists of the century. (And did I forget to mention it's melodic, catchy and funny, too?)For the uninitiated, or the underinitiated, this is the perfect place to start what could be a lifelong dialectic with the most challenging, exciting and rewarding musicians/composers you will ever encounter. The present-day composer refuses to die! Long live Frank Zappa.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
What "Freaks" Were Up To Back Then, May 21, 2006
This review is from: Freak Out (Audio CD)
In 1966, a double LP by a rock band was unheard of. And yes, it was a band. Frank Zappa gets the lion's share of the credit, being the cheif songwriter. But as the title on the cover says, it's "The Mothers Of Invention." The first incarnation of an ever-revolving cast of musicians, all of whom had lots and lots of talent.
As a CD, Freak Out loses some of its impact. Even though the artwork is all intact, and it's the same music, tweaked a little here and there, it's the same recordings, nonetheless. But the tactile sensation of opening a 12x12 cover into a 12x24 gate-fold onslaught is lost here. And you can tell the division of the format a little better on the LP, as the first half is based more on traditional song structure and the second half is more experimental.
Song titles and content vary, from social criticism ("Hungry Freaks") to songs about boy-girl relationships ("You Didn't Try To Call Me") to flat-out weirdness ("Who Are The Brain Police?"). But despite the gritty, even greasy sound, there is an innocence to it; although the band and its image are anything but. This was the most scandalous, possibly the most hated rock band in history, and they used this to their advantage. Radio stations wouldn't touch them, and every television appearance was riddled with controversy. Phone lines would flood with people who loved them, or hated them. It seems that "Freak Out" was more of a social/cultural phenomenon than a piece of music. The sleeve notes describe this in pretty vivid detail, and it would be counter-productive and a little tedious to quote it all here.
Creative highlight: The last segment of the format, from "Help I'm A Rock," right on through "The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet." This is a suite of "songs," for lack of a better word, more like rhythms accompanied by layer upon layer of sounds. "Monster Magnet" is the peak. It has such an elaborate spectrum of sounds and textures, it boggles the mind at first. Warning! NOT FOR PEOPLE WITH CONSERVATIVE TASTES IN MUSIC! Frank Zappa's strict anti-drug stance is cleverly hidden here, because a lot of people think you have to be stoned or tripping to come up with this. But the truth is, absolutely not; You just need some imagination to come up with it, the intellect to pull it out, and the intelligence to pull it off.
Subsequent works showed more sophistication, but this is the true ground-breaker.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
38 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
So here it is, Zappa's first album., May 27, 2003
This review is from: Freak Out (Audio CD)
What a freshman release! Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention created one heck of a first album. It was one of the first double albums in rock history, and certainly one of the wierdest. My approach to this review is to look at (a) the attractiveness of this release for the Zappa novice, (b) the attractiveness of this album for the Zappa devotee, and (c) the quality of the release. (a) If you are just getting interested in Zappa, this is not really the best place to start. While there are some interesting tracks here, there's also a lot of what at first appears to be just wierd noise and people freaking out tracks too. Those tracks are not available as samples on www.Amazon.com, so proceed carefully. (b) Of course you need this! It's great! The mix is a bit different from the original vinyl, with a lot more reverb than before. I'd say that the original vinyl is probably the way to go, but the cd is very good too. (Besides, the cd saves you flipping records over.) (c) The sound quality is superb, although, as noted before, the mix differs from the original vinyl. The packaging includes all of the original elements, which helps you relate to what the heck the mood was in 1966. Enjoy!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
