Search - Bedhead :: Beheaded

Beheaded

05/30/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The songs on "Beheaded" are more reflective of a suicidal, chronic-type depression than the manaic tendencies displayed on the previous Bedheader. While "What Fun Life Was" offered more of a loud/soft dynamic, "Beheaded" leaves one unsettled in the contemplation of the bleakness of the worldview being perpetuated. Repeated listens may even leave the listener with minor paralysis, unable to move for days, in a catatonic state.
"Beheaded," the opener, is the complicated dilemma of whether life is worth living in lieu of indie-rock stardom, while "Rest of the Day" is the contemplation of whether to get out of bed in the morning. The suicidal tendencies intensify on "Left Behind," before foraying into the more ennui-filled drug-influenced tracks like "Smoke," "Burned Out" and "Withdraw."
"Felo de se" displays the Gnostic trap of inescapable suicide and torture, while "Lares and Penates" and "Losing Memories" focus on more of a Romantic sensory appeal and remembering, all of which puts the focus back to the present-tense.
No questions are definitively answered on this record, but if you were to surmise, the answers would almost certainly be in the negative. The record cover features the simple Bedhead design, with the name of the record, "Beheaded," chisled on what appears to be slate, and what acutely resembles a tombstone. All of which seems to signal what lies therein. Not everyone is going to be into this record, but it does seem to be the sterling example of what this band is capable of. And that, I think, is a powerful thing."

Unassuming, well-wrought interiors

Mr. R. A. Riggs | 07/07/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"At first I was deeply disappointed by this record. I had cherished the squalling wall of guitars that was What Fun Life Was, and so the approach Bedhead takes on this album came as an unwelcome surprise. For years, in fact, I disdained this album in favor of their debut. Recently, however, I've changed my tune (I'm getting old). There isn't anything unsavory about this album at all. Rather, Bedhead tries a more restrained approach, showcasing their ability to write compelling, intertwining guitar parts, all the while giving more prominence to the vocals/lyrics.In fact, on this album Bedhead put to rest (big laffs) the increasingly played-out loud/soft dynamics that began to calcify post-rock in the mid-90s. They figured out that a carefully-arranged three guitar attack can succeed on composition, not sheer volume. This a lesson that has been forgotten by current practioners of the form, i.e. Mogwai. Still, play this album LOUD, the better to appreciate that awesome clean guitar sound and overall exquisite production. "Rocking out" is kept to a minimum, but what you'll find in its place is a more mature approach to song construction. I would suggest that newcomers pick up What Fun Life Was first, and make this their second Bedhead experience."

Rare Band

June Martin Hose | Seattle, WA USA | 07/18/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It's difficult for me to overstate how rare it is for a band like this to

exist...Having listened for years to several other "slowcore" bands, none of them ultimately compare in my mind to the specific magnificence of this here band...detailed song construction, never cheap lyrically/instrumentally, quiet but never silent, loud but never noisy...absolutely meaning-filled music at the deepest register



This album was the first I'd encountered from the band...I was in college and a friend of mine had it playing when I entered the dormroom...I entered just as "Left Behind" was beginning...That and frankly most all Bedhead songs hit me with undying resonance even now...Timeless stuff...I'm not sure I'll ever experience a band with this kind of profound consistency/consistent profundity again in this lifetime...Am grateful I'd walked in on this...

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