Lucid Nation - Tacoma Ballet

Courtney Love, an iconoclast of the now dusty Seattle scene, once spoke in an interview about Seattle, specifically a song she was writing for the city known for its coffee, space needle, and heroin use. She said (and I paraphrase) "I want to write a song about rain falling on a Douglas Fir tree, to represent leaving the dark, and the need and inevitablity of going to the light." You might not like Courtney, but I think the statement has validity in lieu of the Seattle scene, which prides itself for being punky, wood-grained, and honest. But, eventually, you have to write about something other than your niche. Gaining different perspectives equals great lyrics, great music. Staying in one place equals stagnant, non-productive pond, covered in the alage of your repression. But before I wax poetic, lemme just tell you about Lucid Nation, which, taking a fun fact into consideration, has former Hole drummer Patty Schemel back behind the drum kit. Yah! And, once you get past the general annoyance of vocalist Tamra Spivey's poor Selene Vigil (7 Year Bitch) cauterwail laid thick and oppressive over every track of this double-disc journey/opus, you've got a pretty good Sonic Youth album,Goo era. There's good grooves, good jams, and some overall pretty nice ventures back into the good parts of Seattle's garages. There's some poppy stuff, some quiet stuff- You've got 32 tracks to choose from, and, like I said, the music itself is great. But take a sample lyric: "There'll be no more crying in your beer/ All troubles left behind". First of all, this was done better when Kim Deal decided to be an Amp, and secondly, this is all sang in an unbecoming vocal cross between Mudhoney's Mark Arm and Janis Joplin. I'll just be completely honest with you; I know that this album, overall, is pretty cool, but it didn't get my mandatory listens because Spivey's voice grated me more than Britney Spears' digital squeal. This is an album that you could take on a fall/winter drive through the mountains with your unrequited love, or even just take it in as background to sit behind your own thoughts (at low volumes), because this album can provoke new thoughts or further exploration in old ones, and when your band's name is "Lucid Nation", that's about all you can ask for, y'know? [www.lucidnation.com]