Up On The Sun
SST
Produced by Spot
Like a million others, I was introduced to the Meat Puppets on December 14, 1993. When they joined Nirvana on their Unplugged special to perform a couple of their songs, I thought the songs were pretty good but wouldn't sound as good without Kurt Cobain singing them. While I was right about that, the Meat Puppets do have some merit as artists. Like SST alum (the late) D. Boon, Curt Kirkwood performs some very nimble guitarwork on this album. The album actually sounds like a more mellow Minutemen release.
The much mailgned (by me) production by SST house producer Spot is another fine example of just capturing the band as is, like the New Day Rising review from January. Up On The Sun just might be the slickest sounding SST release. The vocals fit in well with the music and are perfectly blended in the mix without being overpowering. Two of the tracks without vocals ("Maiden's Milk," and "Animal Kingdom,") are perhaps the most enjoyable musically on the album. I can't say that this album will ever be a part of any kind of regular rotation in my listening but I can say that is a very well-crafted album. It starts off great with "Up On The Sun," and does lose a little bit of steam toward the end but it is a great effort overall.
Overall Grade = 8.15
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