Search - Talking Heads :: Talking Heads: Remain in Light

One Of The Greatest Musical Achievements Of The Last Quarter

Andre S. Grindle | Brewer Maine | 05/28/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In the history of recorded music there are a long series of recordings that simply forever stand the test of time for one reason or another.Sometimes they're referred to as a bands "Sgt.Pepper",in reference to the famous Beatles album but if it influences and inspires the entire creative scene in music for decades to come.......it goes beyond that clished "classic" status.This would be one of those albums that fits easily into the latter. Throughout the 70's the genres of funk and disco had embraced the concept of African inspired percussion was used in different ways in music. But with the exception of a handfull great funk bands such as Earth Wind & Fire and Mandrill not all of them completely realized the potential of this element in their music. During the late 70's Fear of Music sessions the Talking Heads and Eno began integrating the concepts of polymeter and the musical concept of "communalism" into their music. It had always been boiling over since the beginning of their work with Eno. On this one the door broke all the way open.The addition of new musicians actually helped out:especially Adrian Belew and Jon Hassell.Adrian's "zoo guitar" style,using his axe to crow,growl and snarl in a number of different ways created the impression of this great musical...safari.This is one of the first Talking Heads albums where the whole is more important then the parts:the cycle of songs (running in no particular order) from "Born Under Punches","The Great Curve" and "Houses In Motion" in particular are this glossy,echoey,almost beyond modern electronic mix of percussive funk,avante garde new wave sounds and.....some things you just have to hear to believe.The greatest thing about this album is it isn't some self indulgence that alienates the listener;it is based on musical communalism and it invites you to join right in.The fact that most of the lyrics have to do with body parts,movement,conformity or just the sounds of life in general you cannot help but feeling welcomed by this album."Crosseyed And Painless" is,flat out one of the funkiest thing the Heads' ever recorded,not to mention the fact it's funk/rock combination worked far better then I am sure even they expected."Once In A Lifetime" is one place where everything that makes this album great comes together all in one,as David's self proclaimed "preacher song" questioning without resolution the things in life we value.The pure liquid thump of the song itself is really appropriate when the lyrical focus shifts to water.The most captivating song here is "Seen And Not Seen"-it reminds the funk fan listening to this record that one of the elements that made the best and most genuine funk recordings were the sound of being more like a ritual then a mere R&B/pop song with rhythm outfront.To a thumping beat David chants a lyric that speaks of all the false values people often put into their surface features (hello Michael Jackson?)."Listening Wind" keeps up a similar concept but there is more of a "techno drone" to that one,which of course goes in perfectly with the closing "The Overload",somewhat dirge-like in a way compared to the heavy rhythms of the rest of the album.On to the bonus cuts well....it's nothing BUT rhythm,from the NASTAY electronics on "Fela's Riff" to the heavy Afro-Funk of "Double Groove" these keep kicking out the jams,where "Unison" and "Right Start" contain the embryo of some of the regular albums most important songs. The most important thing about this album is that everything from the sound to the approch is comepletely ageless;to the point where,if you were to put this album on for me today and I didn't know who made it and when it was I would actually think it was brand new.When I first heard this album...some eight years ago in fact I have to admit it felt very...familiar to me to hear this music.I am sure many others will have the same experience with thi. Everyone today from Franz Ferdinand and every polyrhythmic,funk based rock outing one can think of owes itself to this album in some way. But the intermixing of ancient communal musical polyrhythm and modern electro funk still finds it's true flower on this thoroughly excellent collection of music."

The culmination of the Brian Eno period: twitchy art-rock me

Jeffrey Blehar | Potomac, MD | 03/14/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I initially resisted Remain In Light, because of its intimidating reputation for genre-transcending weirdness. In fact, I'll be honest and say that I still think that general critical opinion overrates it (More Songs About Buildings And Food is a better album.)



But this is a no-brainer five-star album nevertheless, and I really want to emphasize that it's not just one of those albums that snooty hipsters try to convince themselves they like without actually enjoying. The appeal to me of Remain In Light is NOT its exoticism, which is indeed upfront (while also being a natural development out of songs like "I Zimbra" and "Cities" from Fear Of Music), but rather how it manages to slap crazy polyrhythms onto winkingly chintzy synthesizer loops and licks, and ties it all together with massive pop hooks to create music which is both avant-garde AND accessible at the same time.



It doesn't always succeed, but when it does, look out Cleveland. "Crosseyed And Painless," "Houses In Motion," and "Born Under Punches" are zany surrealistic delights (TAKE A LOOK AT THESE HANDS!), to be sure. "The Great Curve" is even more impressive, building from a brisk earth-mother fertility incantation ("world moves on a woman's hips") into a delightfully intricate three part tribal chant. (Let's just boil it down: you WILL start moving your body around if you play this song loud, even if you're sitting down.) But "Listening Wind" is irksomely flat in its pitching, and the entire premise of the album almost falls apart disastrously on "The Overload," just when it should be building to a final triumph.



Yet it all comes together for the single greatest moment the Talking Heads ever put to vinyl, "Once In A Lifetime." More than anything, it's this miraculous piece of genius which ultimately earns Remain In Light a space in rock Valhalla. The instantly recognizable lyrics ("MY GOD, WHAT HAVE I DONE?") are clever in their refusal to be parsed literally, but I've always imagined this song as the Talking Heads' elitist rewrite of Kafka's Metamorphosis: David Byrne awakes one morning to find, much to his horror and dismay, that he has been transformed into a perfectly ordinary guy. Lyrical concerns aside, the song has a brilliant rhythm track. Frantz is all over his kit, getting a beat that Jaki Liebzeit would tip his cap to, but notice how Tina Weymouth plays the same two bass notes the entire time, without once deviating? THAT, my friends, is fearlessly brilliant minimalism. That, along with Brian Eno's sturdy backing vocals on the chorus, help the song engage every part of your brain at once, which is why it's an instant classic. The album needs to be heard if no other reason than that.



As for this remastered version...well, the "dualdisc" is problematic without a doubt. Rest assured, the complaints you're reading from other reviewers about its proneness to scratching are not just mere nitpicking: the fragility of these double-sided discs is only exacerbated by the digipak format of these reissues. The 5.1 mixes are adequate, but I consider such things to be little more than gimmicks: what matters is the original CD/LP mix, and in this case it is unimpeachable.



The bonus tracks included with Remain In Light are all instrumental outtakes from the sessions, unused instrumental ideas that clearly began life as band jams rather than as pre-written pieces. That being said, they're all rather interesting, displaying the band grooving and working out the Remain In Light concepts as a much more stripped-down four-piece unit (five with Eno?) rather than the augmented final production masters. And the final bonus track, "Right Start," turns out to be a lovely early proto-version of none other than...well, I'll let you discover when you listen."