My original plan for this, my inaugural post here, was to begin a series of entries detailing the best of the indie pop scene–bands that have seemingly mastered the concept of a pop song and condensed it into a two-minute amalgam of singalong vocals, harmonies, and jangly guitars. But a funny thing happened on my way to that: I got sidetracked. You’ll come to learn that this sort of thing happens a lot. Thankfully, there’ll be plenty of time for that; however, this post is going to be instead dedicated to one of the most criminally underrated albums of all time: “High Land, Hard Rain”, by Aztec Camera.
Go ahead, kids, ask your parents about Aztec Camera. Odds are, they’ll either a) have no idea who the hell you’re talking about or b) say something to the effect of, “Oh, they had that one song in the early 80′s”. In either case, this is a tragedy. While I’ll be the first to admit Roddy Frame’s subsequent releases, both under the Aztec Camera moniker and his solo efforts, pale in comparison to “High Land, Hard Rain”, that’s certainly nothing for him to be ashamed of–it’s exceedingly difficult to live up to a masterpiece. And that’s precisely what this is.
Each of the thirteen tracks, taken on its own, is a guitar pop gem. Jangling acoustic guitars blend beautifully over various percussion instruments and, at times, orchestral accompaniment. As a cohesive album, the tracks blend together seamlessly at times, but even when there are distinct lines drawn, it just seems as though it all makes sense. But the real kicker here is Frame; not only his slightly nasal croon (reminiscient of Morrissey mixed with Elvis Costello, though perhaps most analogous to Edwyn Collins), but also his superb songwriting and arrangement skills.
If this was where the story ended, it would still be praise-worthy. But there’s more: when the album was released, in June of 1983, Frame was a mere five months past his nineteenth birthday. Take a moment to ponder that. Unfortunately, like many prodigious youth, he would never quite return to the top of the mountain. But in no way should that detract from the sheer brilliance of that peak.
February 14th, 2007 at 10:46 pm
Great pick! I may have to call this later with a gem from Paul Weller’s Style Council.