After
Pioughd
's semi-misfire and
Rough Trade
's subsequent collapse,
the Surfers
were in a surprising position. Not only were they courted and signed to
Capitol
thanks to the
Nirvana
-led alternative explosion, they also got high-profile arranger and
Led Zeppelin
legend
John Paul Jones
to produce the new album. When
Saloon
surfaced in early 1993, some accused the band of basically cloning
Haynes
' memorable collaboration with
Ministry
,
"Jesus Built My Hot Rod,"
for the entire album. It's true that
"Some Dispute Over T-Shirt Sales,"
simply takes the lyrics from that number and grafts it onto a quick rip from the band, but
is far from a clone of
or anything else. More energetic than the straggling
and benefiting from
Jones
' brilliant ear and tight, crisp arrangements,
starts with the fierce
"Who Was In My Room Last Night?"
; from there,
tear through hilarious and strong numbers. Creating radio-friendly unit shifters was clearly the last thing on the band's mind, as numbers like
"The Annoying Song,"
with
sounding like what a radar dish would do if it could sing, and the wittily solemn acoustic ditty
"The Ballad of Naked Man"
demonstrate.
The Surfers
' taste for rude grostequerie surfaces throughout -- the foul
"Chewin' George Lucas' Chocolate,"
the series of vomit sounds that conclude the record after
"Clean It Up"
's heavy trudge and the extremely disturbing artwork are just a few examples. Combined with numerous examples of
Surfer
-mania at its finest -- the dipsomaniacal rager
"Alcohol,"
the electric country hoedown
"You Don't Know Me"
and more -- and
is that rarest of records, a major-label debut that surpasses the indie release preceding it. ~ Ned Raggett