WE HATE YOU
SOUTH AFRICAN BASTARDS (LP)
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WE HATE YOU
SOUTH AFRICAN BASTARDS (LP) |
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This review was written by Jeff Whiteaker. Many other reviews of his (composed while whiling away his time in a 'dead-end job') can be found on the Amazon website under the name of 'Thoutah'. The first 8 songs on "Love Your Enemies" were originally released in '84 as "We Hate You South African Bastards," a compilation of singles, b-sides, and out-takes that preceded their classic debut "Everybody Is Fantastic." Despite being a compilation, the songs fit together remarkably well, forming a cohesive album's worth of material that could easily have been their debut. For this cd release, the contents of the "In the World" 12" ep (released after "Everybody's Fantastic") were tacked on to the end, finally getting all of these virtually lost, hopelessly rare tracks to digital format. Apart from displaying uncommonly well-crafted, melodically sophisticated pop songs, this collection demonstrates clearly the paradoxical power that set this Irish duo apart from their contemporaries. Next to the duo's smooth, soulful, mature pop tunes (characterized by guitarist Sean O'Hagans ultra-melodic, country-ish finger-picking style played over singer Cathal Coughlan's rich, Brian Wilson inspired organ) lays Cathal's bilous rage and caustic wit, sung gut-wrenchingly in his thick, rogue-ish, Irish accent. The listener is thus forced to reconcile these two seemingly opposing extremes, which Microdisney effectively used to create their own unique, poetic vision. Songs like "Helicopter of the Holy Ghost" and "Pink Skinned Man" are sadly beautiful, richly complex, and scathing in their commentary (the former is about the yuppie traveling lifestyle) of life in the 80s. "Michael Murphy" and "Patrick Moore Says you Can't Sleep Here" are smooth instrumentals, showing a strong West Coast/Brian Wilson/late 60s Beach Boys influence. The moods alternate between dark and light throughout, juxtaposing their two extremes at every turn. The three "In the World" songs at the end benefit from having a human drummer and feature a much fuller sounding production. The songs are first rate, as usual, continuing their unique blend of beauty and outrage. "464" pushes these extremes to the max, starting off with one minute of loud, buzzing distorto guitars, pounding drums and Cathal literally shouting his head off, with lines like "Come home with me and see my etchings/come home with me and nothing will happen/I'll lie on my bed with sweat on my brow and dream of someone else..." Then it drops abruptly into a sweet, clean, lilting mid-tempo pop tune that would make Johnny Marr jealous. The other two songs maintain the pop path, but are consistently engaging, hook-filled, and deeply emotional. This collection is absolutely mind-blowing, but may not be the best place to start; wait 'til you've bought "Everybody's Fantastic" before shelling out the dough for this. If you've got high pop standards, you won't be disapointed. |