fartzarellah's Full Review: We're Only in It For the Money by The Mothers Of I...
On the surface, Frank Zappa was a bastard. He didn't like the hippies, he didn't like the establishment, he seems to have hated women, and he made his bandmates play in 7/8. But look a bit deeper and you will see the true nature of his bitterness: he loathed the ignorance and blind conformity behind it all. He didn't hate the hippies per se, he hated the "phony hippies" who consciously made an effort to "have a psychedelic gleam in their eyes at all times" (Who Needs the Peace Corps?) so they could "go to the dance to get some action" (Flower Punk). He didn't hate women, he hated the picture of "American Womanhood" (Harry You're a Beast) created by the media and adopted by real women, wherein the ultimate goal in life was to apply "moisture cream and velvet facial lotion" (Mommy and Daddy). With the album We're Only In It For The Money, Frank Zappa and The Mothers apply their very own special brand of lotion to a part of your body they believed truly needs it: your mind (What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body?).
So, how have I surmised what Zappa's real message is on this album? I'm just guessing of course, it could be that he just hated everything. But, do you know how when you are picking on someone you mimick their voice to make them sound stupid? Silly munchkin voices fill WOIIFTM from top to bottom, but there are parts where Zappa's voice, untreated with gonzo effects, comes through loud and clear as in the following lines:
All your children are poor unfortunate victims of systems beyond their control. A plague upon your ignorance...
People wonder why your daughter looks so sad. It's such a drag to have to love a plastic mom and dad.
The music bolsters the message, sending you spiraling through a dazzling array of dissociated sections, making discontinuity a sort of "conceptual continuity" all its own, causing listeners to question their own blind conformity to the hit single format. Surf rock, sound collages, orchestral music, folksy mamas papas type shtuff, doo-wop, nasal snorts, and just plain weird sheeeit jump out at you from every corner. I like that sort of thing.
Zappa's message is compromised by his hypocrisy though: he rails against the objectification of "the other", but he objectifies everyone in the process, making his whole point a little childish. But hell, I'm sure I could argue with you all day about that and you'd probably change my mind once or twice.
WOIIFTM is Zappa's crowning achievement in many ways. The songs are good by themselves but, more importantly, the disc hangs together beautifully. There's not much guitar wankery here, which Zappa was exceptionally good at mind you, but instead its all about the overall composition, which is just so cool. Yay! Buy it!
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