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Jesus and Mary Chain

JAMC

I’m guessing most folks’ familiarity with Jesus and Mary Chain boils down to one of three places. “Just Like Honey” at the ending of Lost in Translation, “Snakedriver” in the 1994 film The Crow, or “Sometimes Always”, a duet with Mazzy Star’s Hope Sandoval off of 1994’s Stoned & Dethroned.

Well for me, the Jesus and Mary Chain was a band that I gradually drifted toward in high school as I began to venture outside the boundaries of jean jackets, camaros, and classic rock. Looking back, it seems a logical progression as I was listening to my parents’ Beach Boys records at the same time as I was checking out David Bowie and the Velvet Underground.

The Scottish brothers, William and Jim Reid seemed absolutely mesmerized by the transformation that sunny 60’s pop underwent as that decade ended – drugs got harder and things got weirder. Their sound, which was almost equal parts Brian Wilson and Lou Reed, influenced nearly a decade’s worth of bands like My Bloody Valentine, the Brian Jonestown Massacre, Ultra Vivid Scene, and Yo La Tengo. Jesus and Mary Chain broke up in 1999 but the Reid Brothers reunited last year and released Jim’s tune “Song For A Secret” as a single split with their sister Linda’s track “Cannot Stop The Rock” (as Sister Vanilla).

Rhino recently re-issued remastered dual discs of the first five of JAMC’s albums (neglecting only 1998’s Sub Pop released Munki), and I had the opportunity to listen to their first two albums: Psychocandy, which is hailed by many rock critics as the band’s seminal work, and the follow-up, Darklands. These discs are “dual” in the fact that one side has the remastered tracks on a CD and the other side has them in a surround-sound DVD version with some videos thrown in for the hell of it.

After just a few listens, it’s easy to see a huge progression from Psychocandy to Darklands. Psychocandy was all about noise, and while it’s still a great album, I’m not sure there was any point in remastering it. The sound quality doesn’t seem to have improved a whole lot – at least I wasn’t able to discern any improved clarity in the feedback. Darklands, on the other hand, strips out a good portion of the noise and focuses more on fleshing out the band’s sound. After listening to it the two in order, I kinda wish I had the other three remastered discs so I can reminisce about just how much their sound evolved over 10 years.

Here’s a start for you:

You can buy Pscyhocandy or Darklands directly from Rhino here.

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  1. […] I attended my first Lollapalooza in 1992, back when it was still a was a touring show, at Riverport Amphitheatre (now UMB Bank Pavilion) in St. Louis. In only it’s second year, Lollapalooza was already a force to be reckoned with. The main stage acts included the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ministry, Ice Cube, Soundgarden, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Pearl Jam, Lush, Temple of the Dog, and the Rollins Band, and the second stage had the likes of Porno for Pyros, Cypress Hill, Seam, Stone Temple Pilots, and Rage Against the Machine. While the lineup was stellar, Lollapalooza wasn’t just about the music, it was about the culture at the time. You could could completely ignore the music and explore a variety of art installations, visit with people who wanted to save the environment, or just sit back and watch the freaks, in both the festival crowd and in the Jim Rose Circus. […]

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  4. […]  PostsMP3s  Found 62 mp3s matching jesus and mary chain. Showing 1 – 30: Artist:Jesus and Mary Chain Title:Degenerate Album:Munki Link Text:The Jesus und Mary Chain – Degenerate File Name:Jesus-and-Mary-Chain_Degenerate.mp3 Blog:Bhlogiston Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:Richard Hawley Title:Some Candy Talking Album:Q: Best Of 86/06 Link Text:Richard Hawley – Some Candy Talking (Jesus and Mary Chain) (mp3) File Name:06_Richard_Hawley_-_Some_Candy_Talking.mp3 Blog:The Smudge of Ashen Fluff Status:active Checked:114 days ago   Artist:Sugarcubes Title:Birthday (Jim & William Reid Christmas Eve Mix) Album:It’s My Birthday and I’ll Blogg If I Want To! Link Text:The Sugarcubes with The Jesus and Mary Chain – Birthday (Christmas Eve mix) File Name:Sugarcubes_w_JAMC-Birthday.mp3 Blog:MP3 REVIEW Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:Sugarcubes Title:Birthday (Jim & William Reid Christmas Eve Mix) Album:It’s My Birthday and I’ll Blogg If I Want To! Link Text:The Sugarcubes with The Jesus and Mary Chain – Birthday (Christmas Eve mix) File Name:Sugarcubes_w_JAMC-Birthday.mp3 Blog:Something Old, Something New Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:About You Album:Darklands Link Text:About You File Name:jesusandmarychain_aboutyou.mp3 Blog:silence is a rhythm two Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:About You Album:Darklands Link Text:About You File Name:aboutyou.mp3 Blog:soul sides Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:April Skies Album:Darklands Link Text:April Skies File Name:06 April Skies.mp3 Blog:(((withoutsound))) Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:April Skies Album:Darklands Link Text:April Skies File Name:jesusandmarychain_aprilskies.mp3 Blog:silence is a rhythm two Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:Darklands Album:Darklands Link Text:The Jesus & Mary Chain :: Darklands File Name:01 Darklands.mp3 Blog:An Aquarium Drunkard Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:Deep One Perfect Morning Album:Darklands Link Text:Deep One Perfect Morning File Name:02 Deep One Perfect Morning.mp3 Blog:Mars Needs Guitars Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:God Help Me Album:Stoned And Dethroned Link Text:God Help Me File Name:12 God Help Me.mp3 Blog:Mars Needs Guitars Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:Happy When It Rains Album:Darklands Link Text:Happy When It Rains File Name:03 Happy When It Rains.mp3 Blog:(((withoutsound))) Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:Happy When It Rains Album:Darklands Link Text:The Jesus And Mary Chain – Happy When It Rains File Name:03_Happy_When_It_Rains.mp3 Blog:clever titles are so last summer Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:In A Hole Album:Psycho Candy Link Text:In A Hole File Name:06 In A Hole.mp3 Blog:(((withoutsound))) Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:Just Like Honey Album:Psycho Candy Link Text:The Jesus & Mary Chain :: Just Like Honey File Name:01 Just Like Honey.mp3 Blog:An Aquarium Drunkard Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:Just Like Honey Album:Psycho Candy Link Text:Just Like Honey File Name:01 Just Like Honey.mp3 Blog:Music For Kids Who Can't Read Good Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:Just Like Honey Album:Psychocandy Link Text:Just Like Honey File Name:jesusandmarychain_justlikehoney.mp3 Blog:silence is a rhythm two Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:My Little Underground Album:Psycho Candy Link Text:My Little Underground File Name:11 My Little Underground.mp3 Blog:Music For Kids Who Can't Read Good Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:Never Understand Album:U4 Club, Vienna, Austria – 1987 Link Text:Never Understand File Name:13_Never_Understand.mp3 Blog:rbally Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:Some Candy Talking Album:Modern Girls Link Text:The Jesus & Mary Chain – Some Candy Talking File Name:Jesus and Mary Chain – Some Candy Talking.mp3 Blog:Looking at Them Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus & Mary Chain Title:You Trip Me Up Album:Psycho Candy Link Text:You Trip Me Up File Name:12 You Trip Me Up.mp3 Blog:(((withoutsound))) Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus and Mary Chain Title:Happy When It Rains Album:Darklands Link Text:The Jesus & Mary Chain – Happy When It Rains File Name:JAMC – 03 Happy When It Rains.mp3 Blog:My Old Kentucky Blog Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus and Mary Chain Title:Just Like Honey Album:Psychocandy Link Text:Just Like Honey – The Jesus and Mary Chain File Name:Just_Like_Honey.mp3 Blog:All Time Champion Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus and Mary Chain Title:Just Like Honey Album:Psychocandy Link Text:The Jesus & Mary Chain – Just Like Honey File Name:01 Just Like Honey.mp3 Blog:My Old Kentucky Blog Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus and Mary Chain Title:Sometimes Always Album:Stoned & Dethroned Link Text:The Jesus & Mary Train – Sometimes Always File Name:JAMC – 03 Sometimes Always.mp3 Blog:My Old Kentucky Blog Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus And Mary Chain Title:You Trip Me Up Album:Psychocandy File Name:13. You Trip Me Up.mp3 Blog:Kill Your Co-Workers Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Jesus and Mary Chain Title:You Trip Me Up Album:Psychocandy Link Text:The Jesus & Mary Chain – You Trip Me Up File Name:12 You Trip Me Up.mp3 Blog:My Old Kentucky Blog Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Artist:The Shins Title:Taste Of Cindy Album:Live Link Text:The Shins – Taste Of Cindy (Live Jesus And Mary Chain Cover) File Name:Shins-TasteOfCindy.mp3 Blog:The Sound Of Indie Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Link Text:April Skies File Name:06 The Jesus and Mary Chain – April Skies.mp3 Blog:Audiography: Stop. Pause. Play. Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Link Text:The Jesus And Mary Chain – “Head On” File Name:jesusandmarychain-headon.mp3 Blog:BadmintonStamps Status:active Checked:2487 days ago   Page   1 2 3 Next > […]

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