Ween
The Mollusk
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NATN Recommended
Ween
The Mollusk
Elektra, 1997
RiYL: David Bowie, They Might Be Giants, Frank Zappa |
Take a long, hard listen to the band's The Mollusk: a collection of 14 highly individualized compositions that are loosely tied together by a nautical theme. The album's songs often revolve around Nova-cover creatures like golden eels, mollusks and whales (with polka-dot tails). At the same time, the album is haunted by a drunk and angry rapist, a child without an eye, and a homesick truck driver who insists on waving his dick in the wind. Sure, The Mollusk is about the sea and its many inhabitants; human, nonhuman and imaginary. But it is also about a pre-adolescent with stage fright, a chevy with a mopar cam, and the timeless, oft-discussed pain of love lost. In short: This album's music traverses conceptual territory the way Dracula crosses oceans of time to suck Winona Ryder's neck in Francis Ford Coppola's horrid adapaptation of Bram Stoker's classic re-invention of Eastern European history.
You still with me?
Well, fret not, I am not with me either. I am with Ween. So just hang tight while I try to properly convey the meaning, the importance, the sheer fucking power of this band -- and how it all distills beautifully into this one album. I mean, it's hard to quantify the power of any great band and Ween's uniqueness makes it all the more difficult. These guys don't just xerox the sounds of other artists or mimic popular musical styles for a cheap laugh. They blend, bend, mine, mesh and gresh rarely explored source material, inventing new sounds and sonic emotions as they go. Of course, the band has major influences -- Pink Floyd and Zappa seem like obvious Ween forefathers -- but the duo draw on such disparate stimuli that their output is destined to be absolutely original.
The Mollusk is filled with shining examples of the group's originanilty: "The Blarney Stone" sounds like it was written by a 19th-century semi-Irish midshipman -- on shore, drunk and in a bar for the first time in six months -- and includes such lines as "Aye aye aye, Sharpen your boot, I'll bludgeon your eye." The sing-songy nature of "Polka Dot Tail" as well as the overexaggerated cutesy-ness of album opener "I'm Dancing In The Show Tonight" offer demented permutations of Saturday morning cartoon jingles. And the atmospheric instrumental "Pink Eye (On My Leg)" is the sonic sibling of the underwater theme music featured on the "Super Mario Bros. 2" Nintendo game, yet it inexplicably also features the barking dog from the "Paper Boy" arcade classic as well as an odd groaning noise.
Unique, indeed.
The album's best songs are some of Ween's most original concoctions ever. "The Golden Eel," "Ocean Man," and "Buckingham Green" are obvious highlights, tunes where it is close to impossible to determine the inspiration. And on each one, Dean illustrates why the God of Allmusic (the aforementioned and highly ubiquitous Mr. Erlewine) has named him as the best guitarist of our generation. Whether it's the happy, upbeat, soft-toned guitar segue of "Ocean Man," or the ass-ripping, distortion-drenched solo in the middle of "The Golden Eel," Dean chooses the perfect notes and the most suitable delivery every time.
His skills are further proven on "Buckingham Green," which could easily serve as the crown jewel of Ween's entire career. Once again, Dean's guitar takes center stage for a balls-out, orchestra-supported, extinction level event midway through the tune. And once again, his solo is bookended by the absurdly charmed vocals of Gene Ween, who delivers this song's carefully crafted lyrics with extra oomph. Equal parts medieval overlord and alien invader, Deen's voice pulls the listener into Ween's richly textured dream world, featuring a cycloptic, yet well-cleaned, child and his God-fearing peers.
Sound silly to you?
Well, that's okay. Many folks have a hard time reconciling this band's demented, often childlike, sense of humor. I think it's easy for some to write Ween off as the second coming of "Weird Al" Yankovic, or perhaps the darker, dumber kid brother of They Might Be Giants. But I don't find the band's humor to be "dumb" at all. Can it get low-brow? Sure, of course. But that doesn't mean it's not rich or enjoyable. The routines of Harpo Marx have a demented, often childlike, sense of humor, but that's what makes them fun.
Ween aren't one-trick ponies who run around yelling "fuck" to make themselves giggle and this album proves it. If you don't believe me, pick up The Mollusk and skip to track 7, "It's Gonna Be (Alright)." While your live-in girlfriend won't allow you to play the majority of dementia featured on this album, she might instantly melt at the playing of this song, a slow-paced ballad about breaking up that floats as gently through the air as a cork bobbing on the surface of a tranquil ocean. Listen to Dean's gentle fingerpicking, played over synthetic reproductions of crashing waves. Ease your mind as Gene's vocals carress your temples and the keyboards lift your mind into the stratosphere. In short, just relax and enjoy.
Now skip back a couple songs to "Mutilated Lips," and take special note of its final verse:
Laughing lady living lover
ooo you sassy frassy lassie
find me the skull of Haile Selassie, I...
give me shoes so I can tapsy
tap all over this big world
take my hand you ugly girl....
You still with me? Good, now you are with Ween!
Seriously, The Mollusk unfolds, song by song, with twists and turns, and you gotta stay open-minded as the band keeps changing it up on you. After only a couple listens, the duo's musical talent is obvious. But if you are going to fully understand the beauty of this album, as well as this band, you have to be able to embrace a little nonsense and enjoy. And once you are able to relax and enjoy then you will be able to fetch a bottle of rum, dear friend, and fill up a glass to the rim. For you're not the man you used to be.
Now you're one of them.
BEN FRENCH | Ben founded NATN in the winter of 1998-1999 with fellow IU alums Troy Carpenter and Jonathan Cohen. During the day time, he's working for Nielsen Business Media, publisher of Billboard. Ben's favorite acts include Bruce Springsteen, The Clash, Sonic Youth, Elvis Costello, Talking Heads, Rolling Stones, and the Beach Boys.