Music is good. The Mekons are good.
mottdeterre@webtv.com (David Scott) | 08/03/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Hi. I wrote about "Curse" awhile ago. I just read it and it is silly. I'm very sorry. Although Curse and Rock'n'Roll are great albums in their own right, any sort of style is much too much by the numbers for this band. Mekons is for those who want the essence of music. It's not "I want a country cliche wrapped in a sort-of post-punk attitude." Their aesthetics are all their own, and everything they do is punk rock music. Blah Blah Blah. You love music, right? Well, no one celebrates it better than the Mekons. Me is a brilliant example. The creativity and lyricism is there. I have wracked my brains trying to figure out how they came up with some of this stuff. "Mirror" is something that blows me away every time. The structure, the words, the feeling. I feel that way about 92% of this album. It's not what anyone expected from them, but it is fresh and it is brilliant. I just saw two of them last night and it reminded me of how diverse they really are. People constantly mention styles. They seem to want a sound. It's like no one wants to hear a good song anymore or even be surprised by anything. If the Mekons give us nothing else, they show us that music can be exciting, and full of surprises. Will life match that bet? It remains to be seen for some."
Sex and narcisscism meet fear and whiskey
mottdeterre@webtv.com (David Scott) | Indianapolis, Indiana | 06/10/1998
(4 out of 5 stars)
"No doubt goaded off their collective arse by the success of agitpopsters Chumbawamba and Stereolab (whom they even ape on the jaw-dropping "Thunder"), the Mekons surprise by proving they had at least one more good one in them. The album concerns itself with the dual boredoms of our day -- sex and narcisscism -- with lyrcis that range from ominous obliqueness to deadpan hilarity. (Hearing Sally Timms' blase recitation from a sex-toy catalogue in "Tourettes" is a highlight.) The music proves the Mekons have been keeping up on current trends in atmospheric, beat-heavy music. Here's a suggestion to the band: follow ME with KONS, a suite about the criminals of caapitalism!"
Constant Reinvention Of The Form
M. Rosen | 01/14/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"A major departure from the honky-tonk and rock 'n' roll years, the Mekons have reinvented themselves, to the extent it "doesn't sound like them" but still sounds damn fine. Sally Timms is out of sight on this record, with her ice princess recitations about...well, get the CD and be prepared to fall about laughing. And yes, it may be a case of ChumblyWumbly envy that spawned "Me", but it's a *better* record."