Vivid, Living Colour

It's black music month!  Except I skipped the first week.

Vivid, Living Colour, 1988, :49

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

I was a teen when this came out and it was a big deal in my early college years.  I think I was too young for it, or maybe this band was just too far ahead of their time.  I liked it, but I didn't pay too much attention to it, and that was a mistake, because this is a solid hard rock album.  I'm sure that way too much was made in the press of these guys being black and not just great rock musicians.  That kind of spotlight can put undue pressure on anyone. Favorite tracks: "Cult of Personality," "I Want to Know," "Open Letter (To a Landlord)."

Surfer Rosa, Pixies

Currently doing one album for each year, 1960-2020. Today: 1988.

Surfer Rosa, Pixies, 1988, :34

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

The debut of the original quietLOUDquiet band.  Produced by Steve Albini, who no doubt helped with the visceral, raw sound that propelled it to the top of so many college radio lists.  "Something Against You" seems like Nirvana came back in time to record (and name) it.  Otherwise its inchoate but recognizable Pixies: pained yelps, inscrutable lyrics, buzzy guitar.  This album was a nail in the coffin of 1980s era synth-pop, or at least I like to think so.  Favorite tracks: "Gigantic" (the only song co-written with Kim Deal, sadly, because it's a real standout), the stuttering weirdness of "Tony's Theme," "Bone Machine."