The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Methodrone

Their debut album from 1995. Album Description

A Great Drone Rock Album

The best place to start if you are a newcomer to BJM music is the retrospective Tepid Peppermint Wonderland. This debut album as other reviewers have noted, is a product of the so-called "shoegaze" era, whereupon a bunch of mainly English bands made jumping around on stage very unfashionable. They also used lots of layered guitar sounds, ditsortion and feedback. I'm talking Jesus & Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine and the early Creation Records (i.e pre Teenage Fanclub) catalogue generally. BJM do this with aplomb, but you can sense the 60s nostalgia underneath and sometimes it brims forth in songs such as "That Girl Suicide" (the best song on the album in my opinion.) Shoegaze had given way to Britpop and Grunge when this came out, which might explain why the BJM extended their musical palette to include Dylanesque folk rock and West Coast psychedelia within a drone-rock framework... an excellent mix in my opinion.

There are enough good tunes on the album to make it worth buying but I personally like their music when they ditched being part of a trend and started approximating the music they love... all those great psychedelic bands from the west coast like Love and the Music Machine, the Seeds etc etc.

With all the years that have past since this was released I think its for fans of the band rather than newcomers, but like all of BJM stuff, it is worth listening to. July 25, 2006

One of their three best

This album along with "Take it From the Man" and "Give it Up" are sheer genius. Anton may be one dysfunctional little prick, but, to paraphrase Courtney Taylor, it doesn't matter because he makes such important and powerful albums. This is not music to listen to while driving or puttering around the house. This is music you listen to while sitting directly between your speakers (or with headphones) and no distractions. Intoxicants are optional. This is a lush, layered tapestry that deserves four or five listenings to fully appreciate. Highlights include, but are not limited to, "Evergreen", "Crushed" and "Hyperventilation". This is probably BJM's most psychedelic record. I've played this CD for several people and their reaction is always "Who is this band?" "Why haven't I heard of them before?" "Are they a new band?" Unfortunately BJM, like too many other great bands, are not part of corporate radio's narrow playlists.
I would have given this five stars but BJM can be repetitive. Anton seems to be fond of certain chord changes and phrasing that he uses a lot on all of his albums, but they can all stand on their own merits. It's just when you take his (vast) body of work as a whole that this repetition becomes apparent. July 3, 2006

eh.....

I have tried to get into these guys based on the reviews. I purchased this and "thank god for mental illness." Not terribly impressed and I really don't get the hype. while both albums are quite different, they are both derivative. for methodrone, you would be better off checking out the bands they are ripping off (lush, ride, my bloody valentine, the telescopes, etc.....). February 27, 2006

shoegazing

Not like Anton doesn't add dreampop in some of his recordings, but Methodrone can rival any My Bloody Valentine, Ride, Catherine Wheel, Slowdive, etc - as one of the most overlooked treasures to the genre. This was made in 1995, a point when shoegaze was phasing out to britpop like Blur's Modern Life Is Rubbish in 1994 (look at the transition for the band LUSH regarding catalog). What I am saying is he was a penny short of getting real success with this record, not like Anton could ever put all his eggs in one basket. He is one talented bstrd and the debut should have gave him more of a fanbase. I am happy he is getting the attention now. August 11, 2005

An overlooked masterpiece!

Even though this music is (as of writing this) over 10 years old, you'd SWEAR that it was a brand new record! This is how well Methodrone stands the test of time! In fact the vast majority of Anton Newcombe's music stands up well long after publication/release!

As the names imply [BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE - METHODRONE] you get a heaping serving of early Stones attitude and sound set against a solid wall of shoe gazing/droning chords. The first four tracks of Methodrone make this an absolute must for any serious rock fan.

While there isn't a bad song on the cd, the remainder of the record is merely very good. But in BJM's defense think of the last few records you bought...can you say that every track is either outstanding or merely very good? Probably not. Methodrone is a wonderful start to finish ride.

I would recomend that if you're not familiar with BJM this record is as good a place to start as any of their MANY records. Other BJM records tend to be heavier on the 60's sound that Newcombe knows and loves. That isn't bad, in fact Newcombe is a (here it goes another BJM fan overstating) a GENIUS. Really, he is. Newcombe has the ability to re-create the best the 60's and early 70's had to offer but repackage it in a very contemporary ATTITUDE.

Newcombe & BJM are receiving a good deal of notoriety since the documentary "DiG!" has come out on DVD. In it he's protrayed as an as**ole. This may or may not the the truth. But don't let the documentary get in the way of your becomming a fan of his music. After all, isn't that the REAL point? Take Richard Wagner...he and his wife Cosima were SERIOUS anti-semites. They were both outspoken and loud as**oles. But what about Wagner's MUSIC. You'd never be able to tell that Wagner was a certifiable pr*ck while listening to the Siegfried Idyll! I'm not saying Newcombe is a horse's hind end, maybe he is and maybe he isn't. All I'm saying is let his MUSIC make up your mind.

OK, off the soap box and back to Methodrone...BUY IT! July 7, 2005

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