Ever imagine your favorite artists getting together over a few beverages (alcoholic preferably) and forming the ultimate super group? Lets have some fun with this real quickly, shall we? Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin Vocals) hooks up with Dave Grohl (Nirvana/Foo Fighters- Drums, Vocals, Guitar). Jason Newsted (Metallica/Flotsam and Jetsam Bassist) recruits Tommy Lee (Motley Crue) to play the drums while Eddie Van Halen (Van Halen Lead Guitarist) is brought in to round out the bunch. Quit drooling and lets get back to the reality of example. Velvet Revolver consisting of collaborating junkies such as Scott Weiland, and Duff Mckagan with Slash, or even the highly touted Audioslave as my friend "Terminator Cat" pointed out to me. leading the force is the latest attempt at this recycling of musicians method. But now that we’ve walked far from the original topic at hand, lets head back.
Whether Mad Season was to ever get back into the studio again will never be known now after the untimely death of one its members. We’ll get to that in a second. Although not the result of a dedication to a passed on grunge comrade such as the Temple of the Dog album, “Above” may very well be considered one of the best albums you never head in the 1990’s. "Above" was the brainchild of A.I.C. (Alice in Chains) front man Layne Staley (R.I.P.), and Pearl Jam’s Mike Mcready. The Super bluesy acoustic rock formation also included Barrett Martin, and John Baker Saunders from lower profile Grunge headers The Screaming Trees.
“Above” spotlights the hidden talents of the easily stereotyped grunge generation. Bluesy but still moody, tracks one through ten each set a tone for the next. Like the Pringles slogan, "once you pop you can’t stop", this album takes on a life of itself once your CD tray sucks it in. Track one “Wake Up” is quite self-explanatory. Slowly fading in this coming of age inspired song exploring the beauty of simplistic repetitions in Soulful Rock. It also affords just a taste of what’s to come.
Track two “X-Ray Mind” conjures a more up tempo beat, but still grasps the laid back atmosphere understood in “Wake Up”. Moving your mood back downwardly is the first of the two radio singles pushed by Columbia Records.“River of Deceit” is an echoey branding of stoner rock that has arguably not been re-visited by ANY artist since the day of this recording. Here you may recognize its eerie chorus. “Down, Oh Down…” All right maybe on that hint you won’t recognize it. Regardless, it’s a song all music buffs worth their weight in gold must hear before they register their last breath. Though the lyrical content here is the purest example of negative energy on the disc, seen at just the right angle even the negative aspects can be seen as a positive. Almost like a man crawling out of his useless shell, Staley slowly utters words of personal struggle. “My pain is self chosen, at least so the prophet says, I could either burn, or cut off my pride and buy some time. A head full of lies is the weight… tied to my waist.” The evidence of brilliant song writing is the ability to end in a syllable rhyming far from the initial beginning of the sentence.
Put a gun to my head, force me to play favorites and I’ll tell you no lies about my favorite track on this disc. I’m choosing track four “I’m above” and I am NOT hesitating twice. Regardless of what critics may speak of this song, if I die today tell my family to play this song at my funeral. A gingerly buildup gives way to the release of verbal and violent screams of emotions. Emotions that I myself have never quite been able to speak as the highest of Staley tones release. “How is it you’re feeling so uneasy. How is it that I feel fine. Life reveals what is dealt through seasons. Circle comes around each time. I’ve been blessed with eyes to see this. Behind the whole truth you hide. Bite to remind the bitten bigger. Mouth repaying tenfold wide. I’m above”…. Enough said…heh?
Track five “Artificial Red” also holds a special place in the mind of yours truly. Barely 21 years young, I was enjoying my…hmm… lets call them “experimental” days. My memories will never fail me as every time I relive these times of drug use, love gone sour, and poor living conditions. My brain is relentless in the face of fear as I recall such a confusing time. Compounding that confusion were the lyrics right on queue. “Is this the way I spend my days? In recovery of a fatal disease. Artificial Red, smoke, poison consumed in the house of ill repute, is this the place I search for love. When my need is within me, A gift from above.”
From there the album seems to dig down and get edgier like a rarified pit bull with sharp teeth, and a slovenly drool around the mouth. As in “Lifeless Dead” track six is a grimy distorted creation consisting of the same back beat drum splash on the previous five tracks.
For track seven “I don’t know anything”, its almost as if Jerry Cantrell and the rest of Alice In Chains joined Mcready and the gang to record this grungy and melodic radio single success. Though it was evident the lyrics weren’t given much thought or attention as Staley babbled the title repeatedly, its this track that carried the Hard Rock alternative sound we had all become accustomed to when listening to such acts as Alice in Chains, or Soundgarden. This really was the track my ears heard the most confidence and natural ability as Staley lead onwards. Though his tone, and vocal performance shine throughout the entire LP, this track only proves his natural fit for a more upbeat metal.
Track eight “Long Gone Day” is on odd fit starting with an upright bass, and a xylophone type instrument. Nonetheless a fit as these instruments are coupled with the talented Mr. Mark Lanegan (Screaming Trees vocalist) singing dual with Staley, and a saxophone solo by Nalgas Sin Carne this slow beat tiki bar tune allows Staley to showcase his golden pipes once again.
For the remaining tracks, we’re lead to believe three of the four members have morphed into one insanely stunning and beautiful instrument. Even during the final track “All Alone” when Layne is called upon, his echoey bellows fit so neatly into this puzzle, his addition seems more like another guitar or additional instrument, rather than a human’s voice.
There are just not many albums I would consider to be a living-breathing creature in its broken down form. So alive you can actually envision in your mind the very musicians creating that music right next to you in the same room. Though more time was spent in this review on the effort put forth by lead vocals Layne Staley, this album would not have come out as legendary in my mind, without the addition of these exact same artists (Mcready, Baker, Martin). Flip-Flop just one of them and you have a completely different project. Like a religious experience without the pressure of feelings religious, your mind, body and soul will feel clean and pure after listening to this record. There’s no verbal adaptation, or clever play on words effective enough to describe the unforgettable listening experience available at most stores for just $12.99. Even fans oblivious to the times of Grunge, or the genre of Rock Alternative just will not be able to turn the other way once exposed to this disc.
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