Search - Mudhoney :: Since We've Become Translucent

It takes time, but once it grows on you you'll love it.

Iko | Hanover, PA USA | 08/26/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is not my fave Mudhoney record. I love Mudhoney, but I prefer their older stuff. Some songs have a more progressive feel to them (Sonic Infusion and Baby Can You Dig the Light) I think it lacks the energy of my favorite Mudhoney record, Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge. The beats are slower and more bluesy, not as much punk rock influences. But it's good to see that they've evolved. Every good band should evolve and try new things. I'd recomend their self titled album or EGBDF first before you buy this."

Inside Job Kills

Christopher Bushman | Portland, OR USA | 03/04/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This is not my favorite Mudhoney release but to be fair, I need to give it another chance.



That said, Inside Job is one of the all time great garage rock songs. The fact that it was totally ignored upon its release while the media was tripping over itself to praise the Hives and the Vines is just one more twist of the irony knife in the heart of this great band."

New Millenium Mud

Justin S. Lukenbill | 01/29/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Despite the fear that Y2K threatened to singlehandedly whipe out Mark Arm's computer of a brain, Mudhoney has returned after rumors of breakup and member lossage to make their career account for providing music during three calendar decades.



With the release of "Since We've Become Translucent", Mudhoney has returned to their hometown Sub Pop Records which at the time was steering away from the once favored 'Seattle Sound' and digging it's fingers into the now-associative and weaker sounding indie-pop genre. As with 2006's "Under A Billion Suns", these grunge daddies bring back the slew 'n' roll of the label's historic yesterdays and makes Sub Pop's wallpaper artist Iron And Wine sound even more... flower patterned.



The intro to the opening cut finds Mudhoney dabbling in an eight minute free-jazz freak-out rather than their previous tricks of off-kilter Sonic Youth noise experimentism, using horns (a Mudhoney first which is undoubtedly influenced by The Stooges "Fun House") and clean guitar effects. In a quest to find meaning, the song's ending lyrics "This is the end of the tunnel and there is no light/Where is the light/I always thought I'de see some kind of light" may very well tell the abbreviated tale of Mudhoney's beginnings at Sub Pop, then venturing out to Reprise Records in hopes of greater exposure, but ultimately returning to their humble starting point.



So what's a band to do? Re-invent itself. Kind of. Assuming you know the band, in the years that have passed since 1998's highly underrated "Tomarrow Hit Today", Mudhoney's bassist Matt Lukin left the band to persue his carpentery talents, Mark Arm and Steve Turner made a second (brilliant) blues-punk Monkeywrench album, and Dan Peters probably just drank pools of beer which left the band to question itself on their viability as a functioning group of 40 year old rockers. Instead of becomming another trended Seattle casualty, the band recruited Mark Arm's Austrailian friend and music colleague Guy Maddison (see Bloodloss and Lubricated Goat) to hold down the low end.



With the band in full tow, songs such as "The Straight Life", "Inside Job", "Dyin' For It", and the anti-Bush/anti-Gore anthem "Our Time Is Now", Mudhoney has regrouped their unmistakable audio assualt unit which has succeeded in overpowering most songs from their previous three albums in smarter and renewing energy. Although Mudhoney has fallen victim to album cohesiveness of the years, "Since We've Become Translucent" still counts as a sequel to their trademark sound and will not end up sounding dated when we all ring in the next decade to skirt in the Great Grunge Revivial of the 2010's. Until then, welcome to and enjoy the New Millenium Mudhoney.

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