Niki N. Phaser

              Mazzy Star’s best known song, Fade Into You, is not a very complicated track, it hardly ever crosses the acoustic border. Hope Sandoval’s vocals are also pretty steady all over. The structure is simple, the production minimal. Yet maybe it’s just these things that make Fade Into You the perfect soundtrack for that moment we all take once in a while, those few minutes when we just stop. It provides the distance we all need sometimes when looking at our lives. It might be mistaken for a love ballad, but Fade Into You just seems more like an ode to closeness. Lyrics like “I look to you and I see nothing, I look to you to see the truth” are as truthful and cynical as any relationship, no matter what are the circumstances. The demystifying of love is exactly what gives it strength and before happiness there is the warmth of a comforted heart. But then again, I’m really just guessing here, hear for yourself:

FADE INTO HERE

                With a Soundgarden reunion in the works, this is a good time to take a look at one of their non-single masterpieces. It’s no wonder that they agreed on this comeback only if all the original members would be in it, considering that each of them had an essential contribution to what this band is. Head Down, from their breakthrough album, Superunknown, is penned by bass player Ben Sheperd and, though in the neighbourhood of such classics as Black Hole Sun or Spoonman, it stands out as an unique sound and feel. It has the schizo riffs and the chainsaw guitars that defined Soundgarden and helped Soundgarden define grunge, but Chris Cornell’s possessed vocals and the ambiguous lyrics create the feeling of your little devil standing on your shoulder and whispering f#%^ed up shit in your ear: “We see you try, We see you fail, Some things never change”. The constant use of the first person plural enhances the impression that these demons are watching you, ready to settle in your body at any moment. The drumming filled with crashes, the absence of a genuine chorus, they back-up the evil chant quality of this prog-grunge masterwork.

HEAD HERE

                  Smashing Pumpkins have premiered a new single, Widow Wake My Mind, through MySpace. The song is the second installment in Billy Corgan & co.’s 44 tracks project, entitled Teargarden by Kaleidyscope. It’s quite a different kind of tune than first single, A Song For a Son, which was made available as a free download last month. Maybe it’s just the infectious hopeful sound of this new track, but this diversity promises an interesting project. It is not set yet, but if this will be a one-by-month kind of venture, Smashing Pumpkins might become a favorited show, though waiting 30 days for a new episode is a bit frustrating. Anyway, it’s nice to always have a little pleasure to look forward to. Like the rest of the tracks which Teargarden by Kaleidyscope is comprised of, Widow Wake My Mind is a free download.

LISTEN TO THE WIDOW