Matthew Sweet...Girlfriend(1991)[FLAC]

Girlfriend [1991]Zoo Entertainment / 72445-11015-2


01. Divine Intervention (5:37)
02. I've Been Waiting (3:36)
03. Girlfriend (3:40)
04. Looking At The Sun (4:16)
05. Winona (4:59)
06. Evangeline (4:45)
07. Day For Night (2:55)
08. Thought I Knew You (2:57)
09. You Don't Love Me (5:21)
10. I Wanted To Tell You (4:30)
11. Don't Go (3:24)
12. Your Sweet Voice (3:54)
13. Does She Talk? (3:27)
14. Holy War (3:25)
15. Nothing Lasts (3:33)

I remember hearing ΓΓé¼┼ôGirlfriendΓΓé¼┬¥ for the first time, way back in 1991. It was an undeniably strong pop song, with a chugging rhythm and a vocal hook that sounded like it came straight from the gods. But throughout the song, above that solid power-pop bedrock, someone was absolutely losing their mind on lead guitar. At its gentlest, that guitar simply bobbed and weaved and darted around, but when it reached critical mass, it sounded like someone was stretching a length of electrified barbed wire to the breaking point, only to let it go so it could backlash and whip around.

That someone turned out to be Robert Quine (also known for work with Richard Hell & Voivoids, and Lou Reed, and who died in 2004), and as much as Girlfriend represents SweetΓΓé¼Γäós coming-out party, it also stands as one of QuineΓΓé¼Γäós shining moments. SweetΓΓé¼Γäós relationship with Quine and Richard Lloyd (Television) would define his sound for years; in top form, Quine and LloydΓΓé¼Γäós interplay was so sympathetic that it resembled nothing less than a needly, New Wave-informed version of the Rolling Stones.

To hear tales of GirlfriendΓΓé¼╦£s birth, though, itΓΓé¼Γäós a wonder the album ever saw the light of day. In 1991, Sweet was a largely unknown artist with poor record sales and an underdeveloped sound. Even after 1989ΓΓé¼Γäós Earth established SweetΓΓé¼Γäós fateful relationship with Quine and Lloyd, there was little indication that Sweet was brewing something like Girlfriend.

Besides, alternative radio was only a blip on the radar at the time, so even after GirlfriendΓΓé¼╦£s raucous mix of power-pop precision and frayed guitar emotion made it to tape, there werenΓΓé¼Γäót many buyers for what Sweet was offering. SweetΓΓé¼Γäós rules for creating the albumΓΓé¼ΓÇ¥no reverb, no effects, and no synthesizersΓΓé¼ΓÇ¥probably didnΓΓé¼Γäót help, since they further separated Girlfriend from the dominant sound of the time. Label after label rejected Girlfriend, and it was only after some in-house persistence and shenanigans on the part of some true believers at Zoo Records that the album got its chance.

Then, to top things off, Sweet had to change the albumΓΓé¼Γäós original title, Nothing Lasts, when Tuesday WeldΓΓé¼Γäós camp balked at allowing a vintage picture of Welds in her younger days to be used as cover art on an album with such a loaded name.

So after all that, Girlfriend hit the streets and took off, aided in no small part by a video that was many peoplesΓΓé¼Γäó first exposure to anime. Now, 15 years later, the album doesnΓΓé¼Γäót sound a bit dated, and itΓΓé¼Γäós hard to believe that Sweet was ever anything but a fully-realized power-pop master.

But as anyone whoΓΓé¼Γäós heard even a few aspiring power-pop bands can tell you, meticulous craftsmanship gets you only so far. Girlfriend, for all of SweetΓΓé¼Γäós growing talent, was also the product of major upheavals in SweetΓΓé¼Γäós life: a divorce and a subsequent new romance. You could argue that SweetΓΓé¼Γäós music, harrowing though the personal turmoil must have been for Sweet himself, needed just such a kick in the pants. Prior to Girlfriend, Sweet was appropriately named, as his songs could rot your teeth. By contrast, Girlfriend bristled with excitement, confusion, and anger.

In that environment, GirlfriendΓΓé¼╦£s guitar-heavy mix perfectly represented SweetΓΓé¼Γäós new direction. Songs like ΓΓé¼┼ôGirlfriendΓΓé¼┬¥, ΓΓé¼┼ôIΓΓé¼Γäóve Been WaitingΓΓé¼┬¥, and ΓΓé¼┼ôYour Sweet VoiceΓΓé¼┬¥ reflected SweetΓΓé¼Γäós newfound optimism, while songs like ΓΓé¼┼ôThought I Knew YouΓΓé¼┬¥ (in SweetΓΓé¼Γäós own words, ΓΓé¼┼ôa song of bitterness and betrayalΓΓé¼┬¥), ΓΓé¼┼ôYou DonΓΓé¼Γäót Love MeΓΓé¼┬¥, and ΓΓé¼┼ôDonΓΓé¼Γäót GoΓΓé¼┬¥ recalled the darkness of his heartbreak. Still others reflected the cloudy emotions in between. A few songs like ΓΓé¼┼ôDivine InterventionΓΓé¼┬¥ and ΓΓé¼┼ôHoly WarΓΓé¼┬¥ allowed Sweet to address bigger issues, but the albumΓΓé¼Γäós bread and butter are the shadowlands at either end of relationships.

The first disc of this expanded anniversary edition basically gives us the Japanese version of Girlfriend, which sports three bonus tracks: demos of ΓΓé¼┼ôGood FriendΓΓé¼┬¥, which would become ΓΓé¼┼ôGirlfriendΓΓé¼┬¥; ΓΓé¼┼ôSuperdeformedΓΓé¼┬¥, which would show up in live form on the Son of Altered Beast EP; and ΓΓé¼┼ôTeenage FemaleΓΓé¼┬¥, a portrait of a needy fan.

The real draw, though, is Disc 2, which contains the much bootlegged Goodfriend promo that went out to DJs and other industry insiders upon GirlfriendΓΓé¼╦£s release. A mixture of live tracks, acoustic demos, and BBC sessions, itΓΓé¼Γäós always stood pretty well on its own. Two live versions of ΓΓé¼┼ôGirlfriendΓΓé¼┬¥ might seem like a bit much, but their stylistic differencesΓΓé¼ΓÇ¥one flashing a burlesque shimmy while the other bristles with a ragged, punkish edgeΓΓé¼ΓÇ¥highlight SweetΓΓé¼Γäós fondness for pushing the edges of his own material. As a whole, the live tracks adopt a slight Crazy Horse vibe, a feeling thatΓΓé¼Γäós underscored even further by a version of ΓΓé¼┼ôCortez the KillerΓΓé¼┬¥ with Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls guesting. The mixture of sources has always kept the Goodfriend disc from feeling like a mere blueprint for Girlfriend; rather, it often feels like an alternate version.

ItΓΓé¼Γäós remarkable how strong Girlfriend remains to this day, sounding like it could have come out yesterday. Along with its follow-up, 1993ΓΓé¼Γäós even stronger and darker Altered Beast, Girlfriend marked SweetΓΓé¼Γäós emergence as one of mainstream alternative rockΓΓé¼Γäós more vibrant artists. ItΓΓé¼Γäós an album that struck a chord on its release, and one that should have the same effect on any unsuspecting new listeners. Well worthy of the deluxe treatment.

cd ripped by EAC

please seed

http://dickthespic.org/2012/02/27/matthew-sweet/