Forum Album Club #2 - Now Here Is Nowhere by the Secret Machines

[wolof7]

Hey, it's great to hear everyone's input, and to get new perspectives, even if you might not dig it. That may change for some, there are plenty of records and bands that didn't appeal to me in the past, but now I'm crazy about.

Speaking of which, time to put on Unknown Pleasures, I think.

YES!!!!!  Now we're talking.   

Unknown Pleasures was almost the album I picked for Album Club #1

[Ruckus]

Thank you for the introduction to this album Crispy.  I listened to it three times this week in the car I tend to agree with the general consensus that I culled from this thread.  It is a solid album top to bottom that melds a number of styles.  If I read correctly, there is only one vocalist?  If that is the case, he is quite impressive in his versatility.

Right of the bat, it sounded like Space Oddity Bowie then going into some grungy guitar.  At times it reminded me of Summerteeth Wilco with the keyboard effects and then track 4 or 5 was it where the repetitive chord structure also called to mind Spiders (Kidsmoke) though I guess Secret Machines predated that?  Not sure.

Good stuff.  Already recommended it to a friend I think would fall for something like this.

[Crispy]

Great to hear several of you guys that got turned onto this record and TSM that might not have otherwise. Ruckus, do you have it on vinyl? You SERIOUSLY should if you don't.

This whole whole idea of listening to a particular record together and getting lots of opinions and perspectives is a great one, and yet another avenue for me to find new things through this forum, so for that I thank wolof! 

[capt. scotty]

So almost a year ago I go to this new and used music store. They have a lot of bargains, but this was the first time Id ever seen $1 CDs there. It was mostly full of 90's 1 hit wonder albums (Tracy Bonham, Eagle Eye Cherry, Chumbawumba, etc) but I was able to find some good albums Id never owned as well (Moby-Play, Silverchair-Frogstomp, Superdrag-Regretfully Yours, and more) and then in one of the last boxes I find this Secret Machines album. I was pretty shocked as Id say 80-90% of the albums in these boxes were as described above. However, I recalled Crispy's pimping of this album, so I figured what the hell and got it. It was actually the album I first put in on for the ride home. First Wave Impact hits me like a baker's dozen of concrete blocks. I got to say I was pretty much sold from there. 

After just listening to it again, as Crispy said in the 1st post, this really is an album that needs to be heard front to back to fully enjoy and realize it. The song to song segues are great pretty much every time. I like the categorization of space rock. I personally hear a lot more Floyd than Zep with them (theyre more like astronaut-Zeppelin, much more towards the No Quarter side than most songs), and they likely have more apt contemporary comparisons as well. I do think the album has grown on me with each listen, probably about 5-6 listens now, although it still sags for me during You Are Chains>Light's On for whatever reason. Maybe Im starting to get bored with the sound? I dont know. This is far from my musical wheelhouse though and I like it quite a bit so it gets credit for that. Overall I think its a damn good album and quite the debut by them.

Favorite Tracks:
1) First Wave Intact
2) Pharoah's Daughter
3) Sad and Lonely
4) The Road Leads Where Its Led

Least Favorites:
1) Light's On
2) Nowhere Again
3) You Are Chains

Overall: 7.9/10