I finally came into possession of an old guitar someone had given me at a nightclub in San Francisco awhile back; Eric Drew Feldman has been holding it for me there on Haight Street. He convinced me that it looked cool (it... more » was black) and had been given in the spirit of benevolence. Every time I picked it up a nice chord came out and so I lovingly cleaned it with red wine in the dressing room the following night and began to write. I told the tour manager that we could drive in my Cadillac directly to a recording studio in Los Angeles (and he could book one, oh, and a rhythm section, too?) from the gig in San Luis Obispo which would put us at the studio at about 4am. It all happened according to plan and we cut the initial tracks there in the wee hours over a few days, and then moved onto an equally haunted studio in London and Eric Drew Feldman joined us there and we finished the record in St John s Wood. Like I said, the studio was haunted and I wrote many a couplet by candlelight in the studio accommodation, slept very little, and only felt the need to get out of there fast on the last night. The spirits had not ever bothered me, other than low drama moral support, but I was informed that they had heard enough and it was time to move on; plus I had a gig in Ireland.
When I was a boy the planet we boys called a fern was code for vagina, and to this day I love fern plants. The love of the father, dead or alive, the pain of too much pleasure, till death do us part, the voice of another song man from the other side, with or without God, Teri and the Possibilities, were ever you may be, the smell of sex in the air, seduced, slain, on my knees in prayer, sucking at the only thing that matters, my own personal Meret Oppenheim, I am Man Ray and I want you and to be all the way inside you, the cameras whirring as we put some elbow grease into the scene, the audience watching us in the dark.« less
All Artists:Black Francis Title:Nonstoperotik Members Wishing: 3 Total Copies: 0 Label:Cooking Vinyl Original Release Date: 1/1/2010 Re-Release Date: 3/30/2010 Genres:Pop, Rock Style: Number of Discs: 1 SwapaCD Credits: 1 UPC:811481011764
Synopsis
Product Description
I finally came into possession of an old guitar someone had given me at a nightclub in San Francisco awhile back; Eric Drew Feldman has been holding it for me there on Haight Street. He convinced me that it looked cool (it was black) and had been given in the spirit of benevolence. Every time I picked it up a nice chord came out and so I lovingly cleaned it with red wine in the dressing room the following night and began to write. I told the tour manager that we could drive in my Cadillac directly to a recording studio in Los Angeles (and he could book one, oh, and a rhythm section, too?) from the gig in San Luis Obispo which would put us at the studio at about 4am. It all happened according to plan and we cut the initial tracks there in the wee hours over a few days, and then moved onto an equally haunted studio in London and Eric Drew Feldman joined us there and we finished the record in St John s Wood. Like I said, the studio was haunted and I wrote many a couplet by candlelight in the studio accommodation, slept very little, and only felt the need to get out of there fast on the last night. The spirits had not ever bothered me, other than low drama moral support, but I was informed that they had heard enough and it was time to move on; plus I had a gig in Ireland.
When I was a boy the planet we boys called a fern was code for vagina, and to this day I love fern plants. The love of the father, dead or alive, the pain of too much pleasure, till death do us part, the voice of another song man from the other side, with or without God, Teri and the Possibilities, were ever you may be, the smell of sex in the air, seduced, slain, on my knees in prayer, sucking at the only thing that matters, my own personal Meret Oppenheim, I am Man Ray and I want you and to be all the way inside you, the cameras whirring as we put some elbow grease into the scene, the audience watching us in the dark.
CD Reviews
Competent as always
Nobody | 04/05/2010
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Probably it's impossible for Charles to ever be taken seriously when he pens a song worthy of a Waterboys greatest hits album and calls it "When I Go Down on You", despite the fact that he totally pulls it off and belts out the song without a trace of sarcasm. As usual, Black is really good here, but manages to pigeon hole himself as a semi-novelty act by the lyrical content, which may or may not be a fault, depending on your point of view.
What we got here will be instantly comfortable for most Black fans, the song writing touches are almost uniquely his. There's no mistaking who put together a song like "Cinema Star" from the early quirky excursions from the main theme, and no surprise when the song settles down into a rocking good coda and ends up sounding like a anthem. A very typical performance, a little rough at first, but eventually turning into melodic gems, as if all those good melodies inside him forced their way to the surface past the Frank Zappa style weirdness. And some, like "Lake of Sin" proceed the other way, but regardless there's a lot of memorable music here. The guy can just flat out write hooks, who knows what would happen if he deliberately sat down to write anonymous pop songs.
So, another album from Black Francis, what's it all mean? Probably nothing to the world at large, but another CD of killer music from a guy who doesn't miss much, at least within his own planet of sound. One star down for only being 37 minutes long, add 8 minutes in the "deluxe" version, which is the one to buy, the three "bonus" songs are all worth having."
"First, let me say I'm a big Black Francis fan. I've bought every one of his records, including the very rare---not to mention expensive--- Golem, which I consider far superior to NSE (and well worth your money if it's ever available in a wide, consumer-friendly format, which I suspect is only a matter of time). That being said, it's becoming increasingly clear to me that Black Francis plows his own furrow, consequences be damned. If anything, you have to admire his dogged persistence and his puritan work ethic. Like some artists, he's not content to rest on his considerable accomplishments or continue forth in a predictable direction.
Bafflingly, NSE is being hailed by critics as his best work in years, a verdict with which I must differ. Frank Black started to lose me a little bit with Honeycomb and especially with Fast Man Raiderman, but then he won me back with Bluefinger, which I consider one of his best post-Pixies records. It's fun, full of energy, and most importantly, it foregrounds his greatest strengths.
A few of the tracks on NSE do the same: Six Legged Man, Wild Son, Cinema Star could have all been on one of the first few solo albums, or at least from the sessions. The problem is, these seem like out-of-place and conspicuous standouts, almost as though they were recorded in a different session. They seem to have little to do with the sluggish and muddy numbers one has to wade through in the beginning of the album; NSE gets of to a wobbly start with Lake of Sin, which sounds like a Catholics throwback circa Devil's Workshop. Then comes O My Tidy Sum, which sounds like a Honeycomb outtake. Then comes Rabbit, which sounds like a demo from BF's stopgap Christmass project a few years back. Fourth up is Wheels, a Flying Burrito Brothers cover which sound like an obligatory rock and roll work out.
Point being, NSE, to my ears, is one of BF's spottiest and erratic records, not to mention frustrating. NSE has some fantastic production touches, courtesy of Eric Drew Feldman, but the nuances and subtleties are lost in the murky mix. The record tugs in many different directions as once, the product, seemingly, of several late-night sessions over the course of a few years. It's no wonder, then, that NSE sounds exactly like that.
"
More broad than SVN FNGRS of Bluefinger
N. Taggart | Salt Lake City | 04/05/2010
(5 out of 5 stars)
"NOTE: This review is for the import version of this album that includes the three bonus tracks (I purchase directly from a Japanese merchant):
12. 'Taint No Use
13. Rocket USA
14. The Grindsman
This collection spans more stylistic territory than recent output. Portions of this album would fit into the Catholics catalog, the Nashville period (Honeycomb and FMRM) as well as the Blue Finger/SVN FNGRS. That may not sound enticing to the folks that have been critical of any of those periods, but for folks that have largely enjoyed the span of Black/Francis' solo career, this collection is a treat.
"Corrina" is one of the best pure rock n' roll songs Black has done since (IMO) Black Letter Days. "Rabbits" is low key and atmospheric and has a sound that could have fit in nicely on "Christmass." I'm loving this record, and I highly recommend getting the import version. The three extra tracks are all keepers and add another facet to the album."
Charles is in my top five of all-time most talented songwriters. On a given day, he's my numero uno, depending on just how much I've burned myself out listening to his body of work - which has been quite a lot for a long time. Thought *Bluefinger* was the best record made in 2007 by anyone. Enjoyed the goofy *Svn Fngrs* too. Seemed to me he had found a new formula mostly distinct from earlier works in which to experiment.
Then comes *Nonstoperotik* .... don't be fooled. It's a dud.
I know lazy, pointless, I-can't-be-bothered-to-work-on-this-past-demo-stage songwriting. I've heard it from Westerberg, David Lowery, and others for a long time now. That is one of the reasons *Bluefinger* was such an edgy breath of fresh air. *Nonstoperotik* is about 15% of what Charles is capable of. He knows we're a loyal bunch and will buy it anyway, but please don't ask me to invent reasons why it's "good". It's biggest sin is that it is just plain dull. I've tried to give it second and third chances to grab me, but what I'm hearing are songs that break no new ground on any front, sung in a lame, annoying falsetto, and buried in lo-fi home studio mush that is the cherry on top.
I love you, Charles, but this is cereal filler. I'll surely buy the next one anyway, but oh, the waiting. All my heros are just tired of their jobs and want to retreat. Sucks.
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1