Product Description

The enhanced portion contains a video for \New gods" produced in 1984.
Genre: Popular Music
Media Format: Compact Disk
Rating:
Release Date: 16-MAR-1999"""

Track Listing

1. Split Myself in Two
2. Magic Toy Missing
3. Lost
4. Plateau
5. Aurora Borealis
6. We're Here
7. Climbing
8. New Gods
9. Oh, Me
10. Lake of Fire
11. I'm a Mindless Idiot
12. Whistling Song
13. Teenager(s) [*]
14. I'm Not Here [*]
15. New Gods [*][Version]
16. Lost [*][Version]
17. What to Do [*]
18. 100% of Nothing [*]
19. Aurora Borealis [*][Version]

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #44000 in Music
• Brand: MEAT PUPPETS
• Released on: 1999-03-16
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .23 pounds

Amazon.com essential recording
The seminal Phoenix trio's self-titled debut is one of the greatest hard-core punk records ever made--but it pissed the punk kids off. Whether it was the Meat Puppets' long hair (in '81!) or their set-opener "The King and I" it was hard to say. Yet they were reviled. Still, they broadened their horizons, mixing up their weird full-on frantic hardcore style with some Tex-Mex, some bluegrass, and a little desert sun. The result? The cultural icon Meat Puppets II, a landmark album that resonates with the acid trails and heat-driven madness of southwest America. (As a whole generation of musicians, from Dinosaur Jr.'s J. Mascis to Nirvana's Kurt Cobain and downwards, can attest.) Curt Kirkwood's dislocated guitar style veers between hillbilly, heavy metal, psychedelic, and the Oak Ridge Boys. His brother's bass sound is endearingly fallible. A wonderful, eccentric record (with seven bonus tracks!). --Everett True

From the Label
Includes the ultra-rare "Teenager(s)", released originally on limited-edition flexi-disk, and six previously unavailable tracks, as well as the band's promotional video for "New Gods". Also, an essay by Michael Azzerad and recording notes by Derrick Bostrom.

"Meat Puppets II" was a 180-degree departure from its predecessor, confusing old fans and creating new ones. Kurt Loder gave it a four-star review in Rolling Stone,calling it "one of the funniest and most enjoyable albums of 1984", while a bewildered Robert Hilburn proclaimed the Puppets "far more of an acquired promising though willfully unfocused rock act" in the Los Angeles Times.

For this reissue, the album has been expanded to include 7 additional tracks: 1982's "Teenager(s)", originally included on a flexi-disc insert in Take It!magazine, and the rest of the songs recorded during that session. "Teenager(s)", the Meat Puppets' first major break with "hardcore", starts off at a breakneck intro reminiscent of the band's first EP, then segues into a long spacey jam featuring one of Curt's best solos to date. The rest of the session offers runthroughs of songs that appeared on "Meat Puppets II"("Lost", "New Gods", "Aurora Borealis"), and some that make their belated debut.

As an added bonus, the albums in this series include an "Enhanced CD" partition for play on home computers. "Meat Puppets II"offers the band's first-ever promotional video, made for "New Gods" by Michael Gross and Tony Allard of the Modnar Group. Not actually featuring any footage of the band, the video offers instead a high-speed tour of the pyramids in Mexico.

Customer Reviews

The official soundtrack of the American Southwest.
[My 100th review. Yay!]

The hardcore punkers must have regarded the Meat Puppets as if they were aliens, back in 1984 for playing this weird blend of punk, country, and bluegrass. It's an acquired taste--untrained vocals, quirky lyrics, sloppy playing, and an overall rustic feel. The band's trademark sound later became more polished on gems like Up On The Sun, but II is the source. This music was very different from the SST-label punk released back then, and definitely not to everyone's liking.

And yet, despite its rough and unpolished feel, this record is compulsively listenable and enjoyable in its dry, acid-drenched Mojave atmosphere. Curt Kirkwood's off-key vocals grate at first but quickly grow on the listener, while his guitar solos attain moments of magic that 90% of polished professional musicians would struggle to reach. Yep, guitar solos, in a "punk" band. Imagine that. Curt's brother Kris (bass) and drummer Derrick Bostrum make up a loose, easygoing backing.

From top to bottom, there are no weak tracks, and most of them are stellar. Famously, Plateau, Oh Me and Lake Of Fire were all covered by Nirvana on their '93 MTV Unplugged concert. I used to think Cobain's reworkings were superior, but now I'm not so sure. I love the shimmering electric outro found on this version of Plateau, Curt's plaintive voice on Oh Me, and the epic feel of Lake Of Fire. Other highlights included here are the frantic Split Myself In Two, the disillusioned Lost, the great instrumental Aurora Borealis, and the fine closer The Whistling Song. The bonus tracks don't really add much, nor do they take anything away from this classic album. You can hear the influence of this album all throughout the Seattle alternative and indie genres.

Overall, if I was headed on a road trip to the deserts of New Mexico, this would be the first album in the CD changer. Essential to anyone with a taste in indie or alternative.

Good gravy, this is a good record.
Oh, I wonder-wonder hoom-a-doo-doo-who? Who has bought this album and owes it soley to the fact that Kurt Kobain and company played not 1..not 2...but THREE songs with Kris and Kurt Curkwood on MTV's Unplugged and muttered "All these songs are from their second album." ?

Cuz that's what I did. Don't expect anything like their (1994?) top-40 hit Backwater; that song's as different from the material on II as their full-length debut--an odd synthesis of slop-hardcowpunk songs that I would NOT recommend to just anyone--is. Kirkwood's off-key, troubled voice grows on one in an EXTREMELY appealing fashion, as the boys slap their instruments through these varied songs that lie somewhere between punk and country; folk and ballad (Listen at the very LEAST for the Neil Young-esque "The Whistling Song"). Awesome.

Warning: Takes several listens to fully appreciate, but once one is hooked, they will no doubt curse the rather short-length (under a half an hour? ) of this fine, fine rock masterpiece. The End.

New Fan of Meat Puppets
First encounter with Meat Puppets was when I heard "Backwater" on the radio several years ago and decided to buy the album but never got around to it. Heard "Plateau" on Nirvana MTV unplugged and didn't think much of it the first time I heard it. Then after listening to the song several times I began to love the guitar outro. I was looking for a change from REM and Nirvana. Nirvana seems to have been influenced by the Meat Puppets. REM sounds a lot different.

I bought my first Meat Puppets album "Up On the Sun" and loved it, especially Hot Pink and Maiden's Milk. Decided to buy two more albums "Huevos" and "Too High To Die". "Backwater" is on Too High To Die" but I liked "Huevos" better. In fact I liked it so much, I bought all of the rest of the Meat Puppets CDs including the live one "Live in Montana". "Meat Puppets II" is excellent, especially the songs "Plateau", "Aurora Borealis", and "Lake of Fire". Their first album "Meat Puppets" is punk rock and too hard for me to digest (especially with the kids in the car) and "Monster" is pretty good. I am looking forward to breaking the seal on the other albums (12 CD's total).

To summarize the Meat Puppets: weird, amazing guitar playing, great songwriting, good lyrics, good (sometimes great) singing.

Thank god for the Meat Puppets.