BRAIN: Beach Party

[John A. Swartz]

I haven't chimed in much about *Beach Party*, so since there is some
discussion here now, I'll throw in my $0.27 (or, "my 2 cents", adjusted
for inflation):

While there's good stuff here, I prefer the old tBS, circa *Trepanation*
and *Box of Hammers*.  I realize that times change, and Pete and Billy
(RIP) are no longer with the band.  The remaining original 3 members
(hey, we've got "3OC", should we call you guys "3BS"?) form a tight
sound, and there is no question that they've grown musically - but I'm a
big fan of that "wall of guitars" sound from the earlier albums.

> Seeing the live versions of the new-fangled
> Medusa and Siege alone would be worth the price of the ticket. Luckily,
> they're on Beach Party so if you can't see the Surgeons live at least you
> can still hear these great takes--as well as the mandolin-fired Red & the
> Black, Niagara Falls and Date With a Guitar.

"Siege..." alone is worth the price of this disc - the song crunches
almost as hard as the Imaginos version, and Albert does a fantastic job
with the vocals.  "Medusa" sounds good - the intro really threw me.
"tR&tB" - amazing how much mileage this song has gotten - from SFG doing
"I'm on the Lamb...", BOC's versions of "IotL", "tR&tB", and "Mes Dames
Serat" on the remaster, all the way to tBS on *Beach Party* and BOC on
the *A Long Days Night* DVD.  The *Beach Party* version stacks up well
with all of 'em.  "Niagara Falls" is fine, but with it on both the Helen
Wheels *Archetype* and the *To Helen With Love* tribute album, I'm not
sure this was needed.  "Date With a Guitar", unfortunately, to my ears,
doesn't work - again, maybe I just long for the crunchy guitars of the
original.

>
> The new songs on the CD are my favorites though:
>
> Naked if I Want To kicks off the album a cappella, just like Biloxi did for
> Piece of Work (except I like this song better).

Interesting song - the harmonization is sweet.

>
> State of Emergency would have fit right in on Box of Hammers, with its
> distorted guitars, catchy chorus and undulating bass line. It's also one of
> only two new songs written by Al and Deb. The other is Stealin' Thing, which
> includes Helen Wheels.

State of Emergency - yes, now this is sweet.  A throwback to "classic"
tBS.  I like Deb's vocals on this - not quite enough "nastiness" overall
on this album from Deb (previous examples include "Last Angry Woman" on
PoW, "Gun" on BoH, "Gimme Nothin'" on Trepanation, or "Time Will Take
Care of You" on Eponymous).

>
> Krakatoa is sludgier, but still singable. Although it's always a little
> strange to hear yourself singing Meltzer's lyrics. In a good way, of course!

Indeed - I like this song.  Love that swampy bass part!

>
> Stealin' Thing has some cool percussion frothing underneath the strong
> vocals and lead guitar.

Got to listen to this one some more.  I don't have any particular
impressions of it (yet).

>
> Whatever Works is the Surgeons getting full-on funky, with Joe on vocals and
> horns. You can tell everyone had fun recording it. I hope it's on the set
> list for the Upstate NY gigs! (I know, we're spoiled.)

My favorite track on the album!  Not that it comes anywhere close to
"wall of guitars" tBS, but I like a little funkiness, and this one is
sweet.  A feelin' good tune that would sound good at any "Beach Party".

>
> Gas Hog is straight-up surf rock, complete with cowabunga! drumming and
> muscle-car sound effects. By the way, if you like that kind of thing, and
> '50s rock in general, check out The Hi-Risers http://www.hirisers.com/

Yep - I could see this as a sort of extended jamming tune.

>
> Pissin' Away the Summer closes out the album with a laid-back vibe. "Pissin'
> away the summer, tryin' to forget you." This and Gas Hog tuck the album back
> into the Beach Party theme.

I heard a Joe B. demo of this a few years back (the demo was circa
1980?).  tBS version is a bit more laid back, and has some nice vocals.

Overall, a solid effort - a bit mellower than previous releases, but
sometimes it's nice to kick back a bit - beach party indeed!

John