Customer Reviews

Hungry for Stink

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It is amazing how much music can change in ten years. Ten years ago 'grunge' music was huge. I was heavily into the counter culture of the time which was basically part of the grunge movement. One of my favorite bands then was L7. "Bricks Are Heavy" was my introduction to them and really blew me away with the thick, heavy distorted guitars. L7 was no cutesy pop/rock band like Lilix is today. They didn't try to pretend to be something they aren't like Avril Lavigne. The women of L7 may not have been the first group of women to start their own band but they certainly one of many who didn't hold back and proved to everyone that rock music has no boundaries to either gender. After the seminal masterpiece "Bricks Are Heavy", I was excited to hear their follow up. The day after I saw the band at the '94 Lollapalooza concert, I bought their album "Hungry For Stink". I have to admit, I was disappointed slightly in "Hungry For Stink" after my standards were set up so high with "Bricks Are Heavy". Still "Hungry For Stink" in general is a really solid rock album. L7 proved that they still have the ability to churn out a really heavy rock song yet with a pop sensibility melody-wise. I love the heavy, grinding sounds of "Andre" which was the first single off the cd. My personal favorite songs has to be "Can I Run" with its highly addictive melody. "The Bomb" which reminded me quite a bit like "Everglade" with its fast-paced guitars and vocals. Donita Sparks really rips vocally on this song. If I can remember correctly, the band played this live at Lollapalooza and I actually got into the mosh pit for the song. Another great song from this vastly underrated album is "Stuck Here Again", my personal anthem. Although it is no "Bricks Are Heavy", "Hungry For Stink" was certainly no failure by all means. I wish more female artists were as daring as the women in L7 were, especially like Donita Sparks (i.e the infamous tampon incident at England's Reading festival).

The agressive onslaught of his album takes some getting used to, but once you let the menacing guitars grab hold of your soul, you're hooked. The slithering, snaking guitar on Riding With A Movie Star is brilliant, as is the heavy industrial grind of Talk Box. Can I Run is a rant about the fear of assault in Los Angeles and Andres is a perfect slab of punk pop. Shirley, the tribute to drag racer Shirley Muldowny has interesting samples built into the mix. Other great tracks include Stuck In Here and Question My Sanity. Hungry For Stink is rude, rowdy and aggressive, a prime example of early 9os post-punk hard rock.

Though the previous album "Bricks Are Heavy" is their most popular, this is the one I like the most. All their albums are actually pretty similar, but this one is the "Bomb". It immediately starts off with the rockin' and aggressive "Andres", then cools off a bit with the next few tracks. "Riding With A Movie Star" is the next great song, then "Fuel My Fire" and "She Has Eyes" are excellent as well. The last track "Talk Box" is a slower grinding tune, and a great way to end the disc. It doesn't matter that this album was done by all women, it's still one of the best grunge/punk albums I've ever heard. Where are they now?

I hear people say that L7 are on their top five of girl bands. I have to disagree with them, they are the best girl band not to mention one of the best grunge bands of all time. Its rare to see such sincerity and fury in any kind of music from the last twelve years but L7 has found it. songs like "bomb", and "riding with a moive star" never fail to make me estatic, or maybe put my hand through a wall. Either way One must realize just how different this band is. It's so refreshing to see one female artist, let alone a group, not cater to the mainstream. To not show cleavage, to not look pretty. And as we all very well know L7 are not very pretty ladies. "Plastic peopeple, in their plastic lives, plastic t*ts telling plastic lies" Yes!!!!!!!!!!! buy the album

Time has not been kind to this oversimplified power chord femme rock, churning along with a dumbed-down menace that does little to highlight decently personal vocals.

Although it did not equal the commercial success of "Bricks Are Heavy", "Hungry For Stink" is many fan's favorite, including mine, both of L7 and for the Grunge era. The music, lyrics, production and feel are dark and heavy, but a bright, manic, defiant, optimism shines through the whole record, not unlike that in the Ramones' classics, "Road To Ruin" and "Rocket To Russia".*

Although recorded very nicely in a studio, the sound is that of a working band that's tight, in practice and has some great, new, songs they've worked out on stage and want to capture. No studio experiments, and nothing self concious or half-serious about it.

"Hungry..." erupts with the anthemic "Andres", a song about "a guy with long hair" who can fix the air conditioning... the heavy groove proves in every sweet, thundering, bar, that ovaries don't get in the way of playing rock and roll. And never did. This is such a great song, I've been at parties and trying to explain this record to people and tried singing this... it cracks my wife up!

The 11 songs that follow range from the punk dirges "Baggage" and "Talk Box" to the sharp, alienated rock of "Can I Run" and "Freak Magnet"; The hard, power-pop sensability of "Riding With A Movie Star", "Stuck Here Again", and "She Has Eyes" and more mosh-pit screamers like "The Bomb", "Shirley", and "Fuel My Fire".

A little bit of rock-star introspecton, grunge-style, slips in with "Questioning My Sanity"

"Shirley" is about drag-racer Shirley Muldowney, including hilarious, seamlessly integrated, samples from her bio-pic "Heart Like A Wheel". Its the one touch I wonder if they could do on stage- but maybe they did. By comparison, when whoever on "Questioning My Sanity" mutters, "Everybody have a break now" and the four players go off into personal, chaotic, spaces, without losing the beat, it wasn't a new concept that had to be explained.

Song writing and lead-vocals are shared by all four band members, which only adds to the grace and polish of the performance. Rough, abrasive, aggressive, pissed off sometimes, and like it is, straight from the shoulder, for sure. But its not just attitude and genius; in the day, L7 had the chops AND the brains to take every opportunity, and apparently had a great time doing it. And you can still share that grinding, roaring, joy.

I love it!

*About the bright optimism, except, perhaps, "Talkbox", which is a very effective slice of a bad dream. Great, but strong, down, stuff.

From the intro of Andres to the end of Talkbox this is a very dark and heavy album, even on lighter songs like She has Eyes. The energy and great melodies makes this album worthy of five stars. The lyrics are in general very good, especially on songs like Can I Run, the Bomb, Questioning my Sanity, Freak Magnet and Shirley. On other songs they're just silly (Andres and Riding with a Movie Star). She has Eyes is a good song, though a bit boring, and so is Talkbox. Fuel my Fire is a very powerful song, reminds me a bit of the Bomb.

My favorites are: Andres, Baggage, Can I Run, the Bomb, Questioning my Sanity, Riding With a Movie Star, Fuel my Fire, Freak Magnet and Shirley.

This isn't anything new, and it's exactly what you'd expect from L7 (ie amazing grunge-punk-metal with heavy riffs and funky bass) The fact that it's not revolutionary doesn't make it any less great.

While you can see why people find it hard to distinguish the albums from one another, any fan of the band will be able to tell the difference. L7 are always slightly angry, but this album seems much fuller of rage than any to date, with songs like Fuel My Fire, Freak Magnet and The Bomb fast, furious slices of raw emotion, and Stuck Here Again" and Questioning My Sanity slower, sludgey tracks, frustrated at the monotony of existence.

Pay attention to what Amazon say, as there surely is "sonic invention" in this album. Shirley is an inspired riff-heavy monster riddled with snippets of (sexist) racing commentary and sneering feminist vocals - the song is based on Shirley Muldowney, the race car driver who shattered stereotypes and surpassed expectation. The ultimate driving song, and another of those great grrrl anthems that L7 are always churning out.
Andres is a catchy little number, and is that (god forbid) a xylophone on Riding with a Movie Star??? If only all metal bands were as open-minded...
I strongly advise you to pick this up, along with the rest of their back catalogue.

If you like Bricks are heavy, your love this cd! The same metal beat but with cooler lyrics. Fast and in your face! My favorite song would be Shirley, its about a drag race that has its frist woman driver. Really awesome. A cd for the metalheads.

When I put this CD in, I hit the play and repeat buttons and listen to it over and over. Andres is the most popular tune from it, but there are gems throughout. Questioning My Sanity gets a Riff Of The Decade nomination. When at work, I'm Stuck Here Again. While I can't relate to Can I Run, I can better understand from it what stalking victims go through. Too many people Fuel My Fire, and why do I have to be such a Freak Magnet? If Riding With A Movie Star is any indication, they ride fast. Shirley reminds me of those old radio commercials, "SUNDAY! SUNDAY! AT DETROIT DRAGWAY! HERE COME THE FUNNY CARS! BE THERE!" Their very best CD, in my opinion.

Since I often put this CD on while writing, L7 gets partial credit (or blame) for most of my letters and essays in the last 5 years.

They're great live, too. While I realize they have to promote their current release, they'd do well to add more tunes from this CD to their show.