Tonight’s selections from The Jesus and Mary Chain’s moody sophomore album, Darklands. This diary was originally published in January 2022. Slightly updated and revised.
For those excited by the raw, feedback-laden wall-of-sound of Psychocandy, the arrival of the Jesus and Mary Chain’s 1987 Janus-faced sophomore record Darklands might have come as quite a shock. The Scottish brothers William and Jim Reid replaced their drummer with a machine — seems he was busy forming a little side project called “Primal Scream” — and then proceeded to confidently write, play and record a melodic, accomplished, darkly-themed pop record more mature than even their critically lauded debut. Crystal production quality, quiet in both mood and atmosphere, was completely void of the crashing, cacophonous drugged out Beach Boys mess that gave them their reputation and acclaim. When Jim was once asked in an MTV television interview to explain why he thought critics were so excited about the band’s sound, Jim responded very matter-of-factly, “It’s because we’re so fucking good.” Though the interviewer laughed it off awkwardly, Darklands would seem to have vindicated him of the arrogance. — Spectrum Culture
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Darklands
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If there’s anything that testifies to the staying power of Darklands, it’s the album’s delicate balance between the antipathy of old and surprisingly optimistic romance. Psychocandy went in a single direction as a whole, with the gloom and viciousness of a motorcycle crash - especially considering they wrote a song about dying in a motorcycle crash. In contrast, Darklands takes a distinct pleasure in creating its own light at the end of the tunnel. William Reid’s turns on the microphone often regress to nihilistic ideals and broad strokes of the world, “as sure as life means nothing / and all things end in nothing.” Jim, on the other hand, opposes his brother, balancing the scales with a gentle, crooning “There’s something warm in everything / I know there’s something good about you.” The world may still be bleak to the Jesus and Mary Chain, but they have never been brutish, one-dimensional caricatures. The Reids are complex, vulnerable men like the rest of us, and Darklands goes a long way in establishing this.
Duality, once again, defines the Jesus and Mary Chain. However, it shifts from lying within the music to lying within the brothers themselves. There’s always a fight going on in the Reids’ world; it’s just not against the audience at this moment, and this respite allows us to fully take in the grim beauty of it. If the band is the equivalent of a tornado, Darklands is how they sound in the eye of the storm. They’ve never sounded better. — Sputnik Music
A bit of flashing in the video below. Non flashing link Happy When It Rains
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Happy When It Rains
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“Nine Million Rainy Days” is the most minimal and moving track on the record. William takes over vocals again and sings out this perverse song of love and devotion. “I have ached for you / I have nothing left to give / For you to take.” The tone is set as a sad love song but quickly turns sour and menacing: “And the way you are sends the shivers to my head / You’re gonna fall down dead.” The Jesus and Mary Chain would continue to play off this theme of love as a cause of derangement and personal downfall throughout their catalog. — Spectrum Culture
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Nine Million Rainy Days
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With Alan McGee's instantly infamous 'art as terrorism' quote ringing in their ears, The Jesus And Mary Chain's central duo Jim and William Reid opted for something different on 1987 follow up project 'Darklands'.
Shorn of feedback, it revealed a songwriting duo infatuated with classicism while adding a brooding sense of introversion; utilizing drum machines, The Jesus And Mary Chain re-positioned themselves as black-clad purveyors of petrol-scented rock 'n' roll with a mechanized beat.
Soaring to undreamt of heights - 'April Skies' became a bona fide hit, while 'Darklands' itself broke into the UK Top 10 - The Jesus And Mary Chain became an unlikely household name. Indeed, 'Darklands' is any many ways a greater summation of the band's sound than their seminal debut - the brooding songwriting, the 60s elements, and the pervasive sense of being trapped on the margins. — Clash
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April Skies
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On The Wall
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