Blind Melon's debut album, with the most innocent looking cover and 3 great hits, doesn't have a single melody in it I don't like. I could listen to this album for days.
Despite the attention to vocals, Blind Melon strays away from the grunge basic style and structure with more complex rhythms and the nice and slow acoustic guitar feel. And the lyrics are actually pretty damn good!
Despite the attention to vocals, Blind Melon strays away from the grunge basic style and structure with more complex rhythms and the nice and slow acoustic guitar feel. And the lyrics are actually pretty damn good!
Soak The Sin
The album starts off pretty fast and with a nice riff and showing off a neat little trick they come to repeat several times throughout the album:
"And if I ever go back home, I'm gonna set
And tell my momma, I love her so"
They quickly change from high to low, creating a nice sharp change that really grabs you into the song.
The rhythm remains similar to the end, and it's great! In a way this song gets pretty funky - which I like.
"And if I ever go back home, I'm gonna set
And tell my momma, I love her so"
They quickly change from high to low, creating a nice sharp change that really grabs you into the song.
The rhythm remains similar to the end, and it's great! In a way this song gets pretty funky - which I like.
Tones Of Home
This is one of the songs that I think capture some of that "teenage feel" you'd expect from anything released in the 90s. The guitar and vocals complement each other and the tone is a perfect background for what it has to say.
It keeps the album alive and though it's short, it doesn't leave anything out.
It keeps the album alive and though it's short, it doesn't leave anything out.
I Wonder
Keeping the teenage theme, this one goes a bit closer into the weed territory but doesn't enter it - I have nothing but respect for songs that evades specific drugs in their lyrics.
It starts slow and slowly catches up to the speed of the last couple of songs.
It sums itself up in the line:
"And I only wanted to be 16 and free"
and ends beautifully with overlapping guitars.
It starts slow and slowly catches up to the speed of the last couple of songs.
It sums itself up in the line:
"And I only wanted to be 16 and free"
and ends beautifully with overlapping guitars.
Paper Scratcher
The album starts going a bit towards the (anti-)religion lyrics.
The vocal melody really starts to shine:
"Screamin' at the sun, don't really
Know what he has done
He don't believe in God and a world as one
So he rambles through the weeds
And he will sleep beneath the trees"
And what great melodies, nothing you could guess from simply reading through the lyrics.
The vocal melody really starts to shine:
"Screamin' at the sun, don't really
Know what he has done
He don't believe in God and a world as one
So he rambles through the weeds
And he will sleep beneath the trees"
And what great melodies, nothing you could guess from simply reading through the lyrics.
Dear Ol' Dad
A bit less funky, a bit more grungy. Some of it feels empty compared to the rest of the album, like if rushed or just not as polished.
Still, this is one of the best lines in the album:
"This life's took a toll on my soul"
The harmony just feels right.
Still, this is one of the best lines in the album:
"This life's took a toll on my soul"
The harmony just feels right.
Change
Probably my favorite lyrics, even if it doesn't have as much of the melodies as the other tracks. I've come to like motivational tracks like this over the years, in a deep contrast with the usual negative music it's like a breath of fresh air.
"And oh as I fade away,
they'll all look at me and they'll say,
Hey look at him and where he is these days.
When life is hard, you have to change."
"And oh as I fade away,
they'll all look at me and they'll say,
Hey look at him and where he is these days.
When life is hard, you have to change."
No Rain
Finally the long awaited hit song. The oh-oh's and ye-eah's fell a bit forced, it's actually surprising that this song out of all the great ones in this album would be the most famous one. I do like how it feels though, feels innocent like the album cover and video, everything wraps up nicely.
And I guess everyone's life is pretty plain, so I guess relating to the songs could be a thing.
And I guess everyone's life is pretty plain, so I guess relating to the songs could be a thing.
Deserted
The main riff is great and the great melodies are back, it's a great show off of this band's potential.
This part feels forced both on the poetic and melodic side though:
"It's not as gentle as it sounds
As though it sounded yesterday
When I heard a leaf of my life hit the ground
And as a bottle cap flew from my fingers"
On the other hand, the chorus is perfect, but to match the "desert" theme, the next song would have a better instrumental background.
This part feels forced both on the poetic and melodic side though:
"It's not as gentle as it sounds
As though it sounded yesterday
When I heard a leaf of my life hit the ground
And as a bottle cap flew from my fingers"
On the other hand, the chorus is perfect, but to match the "desert" theme, the next song would have a better instrumental background.
Sleepyhouse
What's with the houses in everything?
This track is supposed to feel like you're dazing, and I think it does it quite well (after all, I can tell it's trying to do that).
I wish white rappers would learn from this and not talk about weed every 5 seconds in their songs. This track still loses to Shabutie's "Sun Blue" though.
This track is supposed to feel like you're dazing, and I think it does it quite well (after all, I can tell it's trying to do that).
I wish white rappers would learn from this and not talk about weed every 5 seconds in their songs. This track still loses to Shabutie's "Sun Blue" though.
Holyman
It starts a bit slow and boring but ah how I love this:
"Holyman, ya don't understand
The cuts on me they run much deeper
Holyman, you righteous man
I've been shown the way a thousand times
Not one a keeper"
It's back to the religion talk and it's a well written chorus, they know that and repeat it so you don't get sick of the verses.
"Holyman, ya don't understand
The cuts on me they run much deeper
Holyman, you righteous man
I've been shown the way a thousand times
Not one a keeper"
It's back to the religion talk and it's a well written chorus, they know that and repeat it so you don't get sick of the verses.
Seed To A Tree
"As I shit, I sit and wonder why
My floor is so cold and my back broken tired
But life is good, even though it won't be long
With a candle comes emotions that
Dance with the shadows on my wall"
I like how he just describes how he comes to a thought every once in a while.
There's not as much work through the verses, not that it's needed, we end up in a pretty great chorus:
"Never had a problem till I stood face to face with me
And I wish there was a way for me to go inside so I could see
All the faces of the people who have torn a piece of me
As I grew from a seed to a tree"
It's well written and drives the rest of the song nicely.
My floor is so cold and my back broken tired
But life is good, even though it won't be long
With a candle comes emotions that
Dance with the shadows on my wall"
I like how he just describes how he comes to a thought every once in a while.
There's not as much work through the verses, not that it's needed, we end up in a pretty great chorus:
"Never had a problem till I stood face to face with me
And I wish there was a way for me to go inside so I could see
All the faces of the people who have torn a piece of me
As I grew from a seed to a tree"
It's well written and drives the rest of the song nicely.
Drive
The narrative style of the lyrics continues, but it slows down a bit too much and I start to get tired of listening to this album. This could be the last song, it doesn't even tell that much of a story.
Time
Or rather we could skip Drive and jump straight to Time, what a great song! It keeps slowing down and building up and actually tells a better story.
It's a bit funny in it's choice of words like Seed To A Tree:
"Five fed up faces with the itch to kill a king
Blood red sunrise, and a breath to air that's clean
I drink from the faucet
From the porch I take a pee
I look at you through the bushes
Where you can't see me"
It's a pretty good ending to the album and leaves you wanting more with the last melody it gives you so all you can do is listen to it again and hope they keep it up on their next album.
It's a bit funny in it's choice of words like Seed To A Tree:
"Five fed up faces with the itch to kill a king
Blood red sunrise, and a breath to air that's clean
I drink from the faucet
From the porch I take a pee
I look at you through the bushes
Where you can't see me"
It's a pretty good ending to the album and leaves you wanting more with the last melody it gives you so all you can do is listen to it again and hope they keep it up on their next album.
Conclusion: This is a great album, it's a shame the 90's are remembered for Nirvana and not bands like this one. The work both on the instrumental and vocals are amazing, and the attention to detail in songs like I Wonder make this album a classic in my opinion. It has something to say in each song and even though it doesn't have the best writing I've ever seen it's still pretty damn good and the instrumental may not be passing a whole lot of information but they are doing a flawless background work and not failing in harmony or completion.
10/10 despite it's flaws, it goes in the classic section.