Paradise: Land of the Meat Puppets
Tallahassee Democrat, January 19, 2001
"Give us our Meat Puppets," by Kati Schardl
Rumors of the Meat Puppets' demise have been greatly exaggerated.
In fact, the legendary band from the suburbs of Phoenix is alive and well, still doing what it does best - confusing and delighting fans and critics with its powerful, physically subversive music. And though the Pups have undergone significant mutations in recent years - the band calls the music mecca of Austin, Texas, home these days, and the lineup has shifted considerably - its most recent release, "Golden Lies," is every bit as strange and exhilarating as the vintage Puppets recordings re-issued by Rykodisc in 1999.
The feeling of delicious disorientation is not unfamiliar to longtime Pups fans. Since it roared to life 20 years ago, the band's stock in trade has been its heady desert mushroom magic, an altered state of musical consciousness that's almost alchemical in nature. On early albums such as "Meat Puppets II" and "Up On the Sun," the Pups demonstrated an almost shaman-like ability to meld seemingly disparate genres - punk, hillbilly, screaming psychedelia, jangly pop - into something wild, weird and unique.
Along the way, the costs have often outweighed the rewards. Of the original trio - drummer Derrick Bostrom, guitarist Curt and bassist brother Cris Kirkwood - only Curt Kirkwood remains in the current lineup. Bostrom has maintained ties to the band by overseeing its Web site (www.meatpuppets. com) and supervising the Rykodisc re-issue project.
Cris Kirkwood is missing in action, his life shattered by a seemingly unconquerable heroin and cocaine habit. Although the brothers haven't played music together in more than four years, Cris is still considered a band member. Curt calls him "a Meat Puppet in outer space."
The band's new lineup includes former Bob Mould and Alejandro Escovedo bassist Andrew Duplantis and ex-Pariah members Kyle Ellison on guitar and Shandon Sahm (son of the late, great Doug Sahm, to whom "Golden Lies" is dedicated) on drums. In a phone interview from his home in the Austin hills, Curt Kirkwood said the new album was designed to showcase the current band's talents.
"I want to start off by showing the strengths of this band," Kirkwood said. "This time around I got to edit (the album) entirely. Derrick and Cris always did a lot of the editing before."
"Golden Lies" - named for a song that didn't make the cut for this release - is a personal resurrection of sorts for Kirkwood.
"I didn't just go into the studio and record this. This is me just pulling myself up off of my face," he said. "My goal is to prove I'm just as valid as the next person. I'm not going around being some kind of anti-hero."
Kirkwood is using music to make sense of the past few years, during which he's had to endure constant questions about his brother's health, the death by overdose of Cris' wife, Michelle Tardif, his mother's death from cancer and the supposed death of the band itself.
"I'm just trying to put a face on the music for myself," Kirkwood said. "It gets real confusing sometimes. You do what you want and try to interface it. I just want to figure out what I'm supposed to be, here and now, and move on from this album."
A new musical component makes its presence felt on "Golden Lies." On several tracks - "Hercules," "Take Off Your Clothes" and "Push the Button" - Kirkwood contributes wacked-out, rap-style vocals.
"I've been messing with spoken word since the early albums," Kirkwood said. "As white as I am, I was one of the first people in punk rock to get into rap. I think NWA was more punk rock than Black Flag. That first NWA record, Easy E's stuff, it had such impact musically for me. I think Dr. Dre is the Todd Rundgren of his time."
Kirkwood's rapport with the new band members is seamless and sustained throughout "Golden Lies." Sahm is a ferociously percussive presence throughout, particularly on anthems such as "Armed and Stupid." Duplantis' bass is a crucial, ominous element on the trippy, creepy "Batwing" and Ellison's fretwork bolsters Kirkwood's own ax attack to build a dense wall of guitar studded with chunky riffs.
Kirkwood says the band's combined musical impact is even greater onstage.
"It's been a kick in the pants to see that in spite of all the questions, queries and aspirations, the strongest suit we have is what we offer on stage," he said. "I'm used to critics liking what we do and having a group of people around the stage who'll stay and watch us spit up, but having people really cheer is something I've never had.
"That's a stunning thing."
Music hasn't been Kirkwood's only form of artistic expression. For years, he's been putting his visions down on canvas. Many of the Meat Puppets' early albums featured Kirkwood's paintings on their covers, as does "Golden Lies." Late last year, he had a show at a New York City gallery that was written up in Rolling Stone magazine's "Random Notes" column.
"I started with paint by numbers," he said. "The first thing I ever did was a painting of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, which I still have. I've moved beyond that subject, but the process is the same."
MEAT PUPPETS
What: The Meat Puppets, with Damnations TX and The Divided Body, in an all-ages show
When: 9:30 tonight.
Where: The Cow Haus, 469 St. Francis St.
Cost: $10
Phone: 425-COWS.