It’s new clash week on the pod and, following on from Detroit, the next stop on our tour of famous musical cities is:
…...it’s Detroit.
Yep, that’s right. No, that’s not a typo. Kev couldn’t be bothered to think of a different city, so it’s very much as you were, at least Geographically speaking.
Musically speaking, however, it’s a complete change of pace from the soulful, funky grooves of Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder. The subjects of our latest clash are two albums that gave birth to what would eventually become punk rock: MC5’s ‘Kick Out the Jams’ and The Stooges’ self-titled debut. And as with many trailblazers throughout the course of history, both albums were somewhat unappreciated in their own time…
Kicking things off this week it's the MC5, with their debut effort from 1969. As usual we manage to stretch a conversation about a 45-minute album to over 80 minutes, during which we talk about how the band’s political activism attracted the attention of the authorities, what led them to make the unusual decision to release a live album as their debut record, and how their ‘outspokenness’ led to some considerable friction with their record company in the immediate aftermath of the album’s release…
We also talk about the huge influence that this album had on the next 50 years of rock music, and the number of acts who have been inspired by what the MC5 did.
In our latest ‘can’t get you out of my head’, Tim exorcises some demons by going on an extended rant about the latest instalment in a certain department store’s festive advertising campaign (though not about the thing that many of Twitter’s resident flag-loving bigots seem to have taken objection to…).
Also this week we achieve peak Christgau as Tim subjects us to nearly four minutes-worth of Nobby McGhee’s incoherent, hubristic ramblings...
This. Is. ALBUM CLASH!!
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