Munki

by

The Jesus and Mary Chain

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I've had this CD for a couple of years now and it is

still one of my favorite JAMC disks. I think time will

tell whether the critics of this CD were listening

open-mindedly. To my ears, it is a maturing and progression

of the JAMC sound: the production, instrumentation, and

subject matter are all more sophisticated than previous,

yet the cathartic threat of losing control is still there.

While some of the tracks are a bit plodding (it's a long

album!), there are several that are pure sugar. Just to warn

you, my other favorite JAMC albums are Honey's Dead and

(dare I say it?) Automatic.

Yet another instance where Rock and Roll brothers just can't stay together. After only six studio albums (I'm not counting "B-Sides"), William and Jim Reid came to the conclusion that they couldn't stand being in the same room (or on the same stage) together. What a shame.

What's so interesting about "Munki" concerns the authorship of the songs. No longer could I be confident in identifying a song as Jim's or William's. William especially, can apparently write in his brother's style. For instance, my favorite song on the album, "Degenerate" sounds like Jim at his grungy best, but no! It's brother William's composition.

In my opinion, "Munki" is somewhat of a mess. By far, JMC's most adventurous and experimental album, the whole thing seems to heavily depend upon the three songs in the center of the album, namely "Virtually Unreal," the aforementioned "Degenerate," and "Cracking Up." Honestly, I could skip the others, a few of which are laced with pointless obscenities, almost as if the Reids wanted that parental advisory sticker.

Anyway, I still thoroughly enjoy listening to The Jesus and Mary Chain. After "Stoned and Dethroned," I saw them in concert at a small NYC venue, which was great (although my date didn't quite get it and wanted to leave after "Reverence" -- the one that starts off with "I want to die just like Jesus Christ"). Mazzy Star opened, and, you guessed it, the adorable Hope Sandoval came out to duet with Jim on "Sometimes Always."

Hey, if the original members of "Cream" can reunite, there must be hope for the Reid brothers too!