Search - Pere Ubu :: St. Arkansas

One Of Pere Ubu's Weakest Albums

Eric R. Last | San Bruno, CA United States | 07/18/2002

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I'm a big fan of Pere Ubu and always look forward to a new release by them. But I've got to say, "St. Arkansas" left me cold. The earliest incarnation of Pere Ubu (late 70's/early 80's) produced some incredible albums ("The Modern Dance", "Dub Housing") but also a few so-so efforts, and this reminds me of the more lackluster albums from that period. In 1988 they reunited and produced 4 albums through 1993, all in a much more pop-ish vein, that I enjoyed immensely. In 1995 they turned away from pop with the brilliant "Ray Gun Suitcase", which called to mind the classic "Dub Housing" album from 1979. But I wasn't crazy about the follow-up, 1998's "Pennsylvania", and "St. Arkansas" continues the slide. The production sounds rushed, the instrumentation is surprisingly uninteresting, and after severals listens, only 4 songs ("The Fevered Dream Of Hernando SeDoto", "Slow Walking Daddy", "333", and "Steve") had begun to catch my ear. I would call these four songs OK, and the other 6 on the album all seem quite weak to me."

The Ornette Coleman of pop music

M. Auerbach | Los Angeles, CA | 01/22/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The creak and wobble in your speakers can only mean two things: 1. They're worn out - turn down those hits from the 80's!; or 2. The boys are back in town, but it's not OUR TOWN, and the neon above the bar will fry your brains. Pere Ubu, lead by the locomotive once christened Crocus Behemoth, reincarnated as David Thomas for the past 25 years, has again pulled into the station with this new album, and it's anyone's guess what happened to the caboose. This is the album to play when you want to annoy your neighbors at 4 a.m. This is the album to play when you need an excuse to check your door and window locks. This is the album to play whilst balancing on a unicycle with a Princess cake in one hand and a quart of rubbing alcohol in the other - it's sweet music, but you may sustain a flesh wound as you listen. With its Nathaniel West-esque title, "The Feverered Dream of Hernando DeSoto" is the sonic equivalent of passing time in a barrel full of monkeys. "Hell" is about as hushed and seductive as a David Lynch interlude - this should be the theme for that ubiquitous dwarf, whether he's in a red room or a blue storage closet. It makes you wonder how overrated heaven probably is. Pere Ubu's answer to "Desolation Row" (less a few hundred verses) and the last departure on this album, "Dark", in fact, may be that lost caboose, longer than the train that preceded it, with that clown David Thomas steering and waving (for this train is certainly running backwards). You wave back at him, knowing he could blow some righteous animal balloons, but remembering that John Wayne Gacey could, too.(Some will invariably compare this and other later Ubu releases to "Dub Housing"; beware that the music graveyard has now added security since The Pixies continue to be exhumed every time Frank Black puts out a new, great solo album. Please let the dead rest - what would their mothers say?)."

More dark travelogues from Ubu

M. L. Johnson | Auburn, AL USA | 07/29/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This third installment of Pere Ubu's latest incarnation finds the avant garage rockers soldiering on into the new century with confidence and purpose. The music is much less varied here than with the previous two efforts, and almost sounds like it could have been recorded in one live basement session. Although certainly less spectacular than "Ray Gun Suitcase" or "Pennsylvania", "St. Arkansas" definitely has a satisfying quality to it that makes it a recommended addition to your collection. Things start off with the jaunty and up-beat (but, don't worry, still plenty skewed) "The Fevered Dream of Hernando DeSoto" and "Slow Walking Daddy". Then, we get into my favorite part of the album, which is the middle section - the meat in the sandwich, if you will. "Michele" and "Steve" are just gloriously crazed and menacing - my votes for best songs on the album. "333" and "Lisbon" are also great, and emerge as bizarre little travel vignettes (travel, especially of the road-trip variety, has always been a favorite Ubu topic). "Phone Home Jonah" is a fun surprise in that it's pretty much a straight-forward rocker, and actually rocks harder than anything they've ever done - ever! Things wane a bit at the end as the album seems to run out of steam, and that's probably why I can't give it a higher rating. However, there's still enough good stuff here to make it worth checking out. As a side note, when I lived in the northeast section of the land, I used to frequently ride the motorcycle over the wilds of western Pennsylvania. I'm sure I've been down US-322 numerous times, but I can't specifically recall the Moose Lodge (#2505, that is) 6 miles south of Meadville. If I'm ever back that way, I'll have to check and see if it's still there. I hear that they have a good cod dinner on Fridays, and a good steak dinner on Saturdays, each for only $5.95. My understanding is that I would be welcome. In fact, I hear-tell that YOU are also welcome."