Superstars here in Canada, The Tragically Hip are without
a doubt the most popular and successful rock band our country has produced throughout
the 90's and into the new millenium. I'm convinced that had the band existed
twenty years before its inception in 1987, they would have succeeded in the
U.S. as well. While the Hip - as we Canucks affectionately call them - can sell
out a 15,000 seat stadium in Toronto, they still continue to slug it out in
the bars and clubs south of the border. I believe poor marketing and bad luck
has befallen the band in an industry that prefers to sell image and emphasize
"product" in its big exports to the States. The entire careers of Celine Dion
and Shania Twain are proof of this, but the Hip have continued to persevre and
it seems that everyone loves them. Their crossover appeal is enormous among
grannies, white collars, blue collars, kids, rockers, potheads, straights, gays
- you name it.
Formed in Kingston, Ontario, a town most famous for the largest maximum security
prison in the country, the band met when they were still students at that town's
Queen's University. Quite possibly the reason for their success in Canada is
the amount of touring they did which preceded the debut album. I'm sure that
they hit every shithole and pisstank bar in the rural areas of the province
just to gain some early exposure, and being smalltown guys themselves, probably
worked their way around the whole province of Ontario before they started packing
them in at the clubs in the big cities. Lee's Palace, a rock club in Toronto
much like CBGB's in New York used to post a "wall of fame" in a glass display
outside the club of all the bands who've graced their stage since they opened
in the early 1980's. Among the jaw-dropping ones like Nirvana in 1990 and Oasis
in 1994, the Hip are up there from the very beginning, but could never play
an announced gig there now, as crazed fans would probably mob and tear up the
place.
It's weird looking back at this album now (which feels more like an EP at a
mere 27 minutes long) after watching the Hip evolve and grow musically over
the years. It was also considered a rare album for some time (I'm actually reviewing
my friend's sister's copy..you can say it..I'm a BAD CANADIAN) and not widely
available in the early days. Many thought 1989's "Up To Here" was actually their
debut, but here it is in all its low budgeted glory. The album is the basis
for the band's sound, which is simple, blues-based, but also contains flavours
of folk and country.
I've always loved vocalist Gord Downie's voice: yearning, passionate, intense
and earnest are just a few ways I could describe it, and it sounds even more
unique when bassist Gord Sinclair and guitarist Paul Langlois are harmonizing.
There are no other bands I could really compare the Hip to; they've cited the
Stones and Ry Cooder as influences, and many critics have drawn parallels with
REM, but while the latter band write songs based on pop structures, the Hip
are primarily rooted in the blues. But don't get me wrong - they weren't old
farts retreading the same old blues riffs in 1987, as they made that very clear
with this debut.
"Small Town Bringdown" opens the album and has lyrics more suited to a country
ballad than the aggressive rocker the song is, but the Hip can become pretty
intense, as anyone who has seen the band live can attest (myself included).
You can see how they'd win over a small town bar with lyrics like "It's a sad
thing/bourbons all around/to stop that feeling when you're living/in a small
town." "Last American Exit" is terribly catchy and an early live favourite with
its very patriotic chorus of "I'm on the last American exit to the northland/I'm
on the last American exit to my homeland." Yeah, take that Yanks! With lyrics
like these, it's easy to understand why groupies and crazed Canadian fans follow
them throughout various stops on their U.S. club tours, waving their giant maple
leaf flags at the gigs.
"Killing Time" sounds a lot more like later Hip songs, with the band jamming
around Downie's contemplative lyrics, and building to a rocking climax. "Evelyn"
sounds like a reworked old blues tune, Leadbelly perhaps, with a frenzied Downie
wailing "Evelyn, where were you last night?" "Cemetery Sideroad" once again
points the way to the Hip's future, as they would eventually write more complex
songs and lyrics such as this scorcher.
The album's last three tracks reveal both the band's strengths and weaknesses.
On the plus side, "I'm A Werewolf Baby" plays with a blues riff at a pretty
fast tempo and allows vocalist Downie some room to breathe. Loose doesn't even
begin to describe his technique, as at times he can come across as a countrified
Iggy Pop, stalking and staring down the crowd in concert, and howling out like
a wolf on this tune. On the negative side, sometimes the band will run out of
ideas in a songs and resort to the same blues cliches and chords which make
this album fall flat on the last two tracks "Highway Girl" and "All Canadian
Surf Club". These are small critiques, however, for a band that at this point
were still perfecting writing songs collectively, a practice which they would
later master.
Any comments or reviews to grant us with?
This album is very much like the much celebrated novel The English
Patient, as before it was ever made into an award winning film, it seemed like
everyone had a copy of it. Among the highbrow and lowbrow, young and old, you'd
find several copies in any given household, even if no one had actually read
it. It would be stopping doorways, lining birdcages, propping up chairs, copies
just seemed to reproduce themselves out of nowhere. Parents used the English
Patient to whack their kids over the heads...for what reason? Discipline? The
act of transferring wordy prose through osmosis?
Anyway, it seems everyone I know has a copy of the Hip's second record, regardless
of the types of music they frequently listen to. Some acquired it on vinyl through
older brothers and sisters, others stole it from ex-boyfriends or girlfriends
or even some unsuspecting people were given a gift copy of it by rabid psycho
Hip fans. If I were to take a poll of records my friends have in common, the
Hip and Bob Marley would probably come up most frequently.
This one of the first actual c.d.s that I bought, since I bought my first c.d.
player in 1989, but I ended up selling the album a short time later. What the
hell for? I don't know, I was 15 so I probably need the money for more pressing
matters like..what? drugs? gift for girlfriend? porno? I eventually obtained
another copy and listened to it everywhere - in my walkman (this was the 80s
after all), in the bath, on the toilet, whilst driving my parents' wood grain
panelled station wagon through the suburbs. I think the Hip's crossover appeal
finally hit me when that mullet haired metalhead who sat in front of me in my
11th grade French class overheard me talking to someone else about the Hip,
and was like "yeah dude...that guitar part in 'New Orleans Is Sinking' is fuckin'
awesome". This coming from a guy who thought I looked too square to be
a Slayer fan. What, like I have to look the part and have a zillion tattoos??
What a
dork! He's probably in jail now anyway, or an accountant.
As for public reaction, AOR rock stations started to play Hip songs, and it
was not uncommon to hear "New Orleans Is Sinking" sandwiched between Zeppelin
and Aerosmith on those stations' dinosaur oriented playlists. I believe part
of the reason for this is CanCon, which is a government regulated law that requires
Canadian radio stations to play a certain percentage of Canuck artists on their
playlists. Regardless of this, it was refreshing to hear the Hip's punkish blues
come roaring through the speakers, and many new fans were born. College and
alternative stations still supported the band, as they had from the start.
This leads me to describe the mysterious "Nirvana" story which is now famous
in Hip lore. Apparently some time in 1989 when the Hip were touring the Pacific
Northwest states, a little known band called Nirvana opened for the Hip in some
small town in Washington or Oregon. To this day, the Hip are bewildered at their
brief meeting with the band that many say "revolutionized" music in the 90s,
who themselves were still plugging away in the clubs at this point. As the story
goes, Hip singer Gord Downie had a short conversation with Kurdt, the singer
for the opening band, who was playing pinball at the bar. Later, Gord would
say that
Kurdt seemed nice, although appeared quite quiet and shy. And that was it. Both
bands played their shows, packed up, and set out in different directions, never
to meet again. A weird twist of fate.
Up To Here benefits from a punchier, more focused production,
and an arsenal of songs which are instant classics. I've always liked producer
Don Smith's touches, especially when he's worked with Cracker and other bands.
He brings out a swampy, raunchy, hard-edged sound to Bobby Baker and Paul Langlois'
duelling guitars. "Blow At High Dough" blows by as track one with its punkish
refrain and junkie's lament of "sometimes the faster it gets/the less you need
to know". Gord Downie was later noted on subsequent albums to drop the
"drawl" affected in his singing. Apparently, he may have been faking an American
southern accent? I personally liked it but oh well...
"I'll Believe In You" jumps out as track two with guitar playing that sounds
like AC/DC trying to cover an REM song. "New Orleans Is Sinking" is truly the
"Stairway To Heaven" of overplayed Canadian rock radio songs, but still
remains a booze-soaked tribute to the Big Easy. If the song were a mixed drink
it would contain two shots of bourbon, a Mooshead beer chaser, and a big blusey
bar brawl kick to the head. "38 Years Old" is a truly moving song about a convict
who escapes from jail for one last time, only to be caught again. An acoustic
ballad, it's one of the most beautiful songs they've ever written.
"She Didn't Know" continues the more melodic punk blues, while "Boots Or Hearts"
is a more traditional blues song. After this point in the album, all the songs
are perfect and flow into each other as they do on all classic albums. These
last five songs such as the yearning "Everytime You Go", the melodic "When The
Weight Comes Down" and the album's closer, the drugged out "Opiated", veer towards
jangly post punk or even power pop. These trademarks established the band as
brainier at the songwriting craft than your average empty headed generic hard
rock band and promised them a great future.
It's a great starting point if you're a newbie to the group, but don't forget
the bourbon. You have to listen to this album drinking bourbon and Moosehead
beer. The great white north tradition implores you to!
Any comments or reviews to grant us with?
I have three distinct memories of this, the third album from
Kingston, Ontario's favourite sons. The first brings me back to grade 11 at
my suburban high school in Toronto. I was 16, spotty, and pretty damn miserable
like just about every other teenager past and present. My memory is that I sat
in the school cafeteria with this album in my walkman, thinking, what a fucking
disapointment. This album sucks, I thought, giving anyone who came within a
five mile radius of me my best teenage scowl. Of course I was basing this decision
on a first or second listen, and also weighing its merits against the last album,
which truly said something to me. Apart from my own teenage angst (for which
I cannot attribute this as a soundtrack...that came later when I discovered
hardcore punk and Slayer) which I eventually got over, I finally understood
this album later on.
My second memory came as kind of a twist of fate. A friend from my grocery store
job called me up and asked if I wanted to go see the Hip in concert, as another
friend of hers had cancelled and she had an extra ticket. Christ, I totally
jumped at the chance even though I was second string. It was 1991, so the band
was in fact touring to support this album. All I can remember is sweat, lots
of sweat flying off lead singer Gord Downie and a performance that totally blew
me away, and still remains one of my favourite concerts to this day. We had
6th or 7th row seats, I didn't have to pay for the tickets, and the memory is
pretty good, considering they've since torn down the old Ontario Place Fourm
where the concert was held and built a more posh venue. I was so sad the day
that venue, with its trademark revolving stage was torn down. Now Phil Collins
plays there every year. People pay over a hundred bucks to see him. Why these
people are so stupid I really can't fathom.
So the third memory is understanding lead singer Downie's aspirations as a poet.
At Queen's university he studied English and Philosophy, so really, this kind
of explains the nature of his lyrics, which can be often obtuse and baffling.
But "Cordelia", a lament for Shakespeare's fallen and lost daughter from King
Lear, was really quite a highbrow choice for a single off the album. It's a
lovely song though. You really begin to understand Downie's passion for the
printed word (he has since published a book of poems). If you're cynical enough,
any mention of the words "rock star" and "poet" is bound to make you roll your
eyes, but it's apparent that Downie is in it for the long haul.
Many Hip faithful swear by this album, but I'm still not convinced of its brilliance.
It's a good album, but not quite as "rock" as the previous ones and should be
appreciated within its own poetic context. "Little Bones" was another single
and is a common Hip song to hear on the radio. It rocks out nicely, kind of
like a harder REM song. "Twist My Arm" is another variation on the blues theme
and contains a great riff. "Three Pistols" is my favourite though. It's probably
the second most aggressive song on the record next to "Little Bones". I believe
the song is about a region of the province of Quebec here in Canada (which is
also famous for a beer of the same name. Here was Downie revealing the "Canadiana"
themes in his lyrics on which he would expand on later albums.
Any comments or reviews to grant us with?
Don't you just hate it when the masses embrace your favourite
band? You know, you start hearing their music in supermarkets and trendy cafes
and your next door neighbour decides to replace Phil Collins' Greatest Hits
with The Hip's Fully Completely and you're so tempted to throw a molotov cocktail
over into his yard when he and his barbeque dinner guests are chomping into
their pizza with sun dried tomatoes and drinking that yuppie shit beer called
Corona that's trendily Mexican even though Mexicans don't drink it. You hear
snippets of conversation: "This music is so refreshing...oh god have you heard
the new Whitney Houston??" or "This new band is really good. The Tragical Trick
they're called?? Silly name, but still they're so much better than Supertramp",
or even worse, "I can't get over that rap music. What's with all the violence?
Makes me want to strangle the kids every time they put it on..."
Definitely the band's most commercially accepted album, "Fully Completely" also
found the band reaching new creative heights, and found leader Gord Downie expanding
his musical and literate palate. Frequently compared to REM's "Automatic For
The People", the album's commercial success was and still is baffling, but I
think mostly had something to do with adult contemporary stations playing "Courage"
and "Locked In The Trunk Of A Car" quite a bit. Their success in that radio
format didn't last long though, as typically fair weather those playlists are
unless your name is Rod Stewart (and they play Downtown Train more than Maggie
May, which, even if you hate Rod with a passion, is still a wicked song). At
the time of the album's release, I think I was most offended by a local rock
journalist who remarked that "the Tragically Hip, once a swampy bar band, have
cleaned up their sound and are now poised to take over the world" or something
typically cliched like that. I was like " hey buddy, I liked them when they
were swampy".
But I also was wowed by the new "clean" production of this album, courtesy of
Chris Tsangarides. The guitars chime instead of roar, and the songs are more
subtle, but after a few listens become as direct as can be. "Courage", a tribute
to the lost Canadian literary hero Hugh McClennan, was the most popular single
off the record, and remains a triumphant, passionate opener. If anything, this
my friends, is vintage Hip. This is one of those albums that doesn't hit you
all at once. I know at the time I had a different favourite song every two weeks
or so. "Pigeon Camera", then, fascinated me both musically and lyrically. It
came last however, after all the other songs had sunk in. I'm still not really
sure what the lyrics mean, but I believe the song is about being passionate
about something for awhile, and then totally losing interest later on. For a
lot of people it's much like falling in love I suppose. This was a single from
the album too and I used to glow every time I hear d it...actually it still
has airplay from time to time. Is it right for guys to glow?? That sounds like
a chick word..hmmm...
I've never really understood the appeal of "Locked In The Trunk Of Car". I hated
it then, and I hate it now. For me it's really the only blemish on this otherwise
perfect album. Why don't I like it? Well, the lyrics are stupid and Gord Downie
should be ashamed. And the music is boring...just a straight E/G/A riff - which
admittedly the Hip use a lot - which they use way better in other songs. Great
video though, although you can guess what it's about...yeah, Gord is actually
locked in the trunk of a car. Big surprise! But the Hip always made, and continue
to make intersting arty videos. "Wheat Kings" is one of their most beautiful
ballads; just a spare acoustic number. "Fifty Mission Cap" is another Canadian
history lesson song about the mysterious life of former hockey player Bill Barilko.
Again, I'm baffled and have no idea what the hell a fifty mission cap is, but
as a proud Canadian, I can appreciate stories about old hockey players.
Damn this album kicks serious arse. You should start here if you need some Hip.
The world would be a better place if everyone needed a little more Hip, and
a little less Phil Collins.
Any comments or reviews to grant us with?