Artist: Meat Puppets
Album: Sewn Together
Year: 2009
Grade: 2.5 pretzels
Oh, the Meat Puppets. What a charming little band. One of the original purveyors of “cowpunk” (yup, that’s a genre), a mixture of punky enthusiasm and country twang, the Puppets have had a long career, dating back to 1980. Although they’ve never really had much mainstream success (their appearance during Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged session was probably the highest point of their career), they’ve had a tremendous influence on bands that came after them, particularly the alt-rock boom of the 90s. I highly recommend their albums Meat Puppets II (1984) and Up On The Sun (1985). You won’t be disappointed.
Still, that leaves the question of just what the hell the Meat Puppets are doing recording music in 2009. After not one, but two reunions, the Puppets have finally reassembled something close to their original lineup, with the creative partnership of the brothers Curt and Chris Kirkwood together again for the first time since 1996. Original drummer Derrick Bostrom is nowhere to be seen, but having the Kirkwoods together is really the important part of this reunion. Sewn Together is their second album with this lineup, following 2007’s Rise To Your Knees. It’s starting to look like the reunion could actually last this time.
In many ways, the idea of the Meat Puppets recording again is better than the actual album. Sewn Together is a generally bland slab of R.E.M.-shaped, country-flavored rock. Curt Kirkwood even abandons his classic deep-fried drawl in favor of a very Michael Stipe-esque croon. If the Meat Puppets are angling for any kind of mainstream success with antics like that, they’re about twenty years too late. At this point in their career, sounding like other bands really won’t do them any good. They might as well stick to their strengths instead of branching out. This doesn’t mean there isn’t room for growth, however, which the Puppets demonstrate ably on “Sapphire”, a dark waltz that features a glowering chorus, all crashing guitars and moody piano. It’s certainly something the Puppets have never done before, but it actually works pretty well.
Honestly, the world doesn’t need another Meat Puppets album at this point. They recorded their best work long ago and the chances of them ever equaling it are beyond slim. It’s just a question of whether or not we want another Puppets album. While Sewn Together has moments of interest, it fails to really justify its own existence. While I’m glad the Kirkwoods are still expressing themselves musically, making music this derivative and generally forgettable feels a tad self-indulgent. Of course, the Kirkwoods are musicians. Releasing albums is kind of, like, their job. However, as with most bands this far past their prime, I have to ask what they hope to accomplish.
Still, that leaves the question of just what the hell the Meat Puppets are doing recording music in 2009. After not one, but two reunions, the Puppets have finally reassembled something close to their original lineup, with the creative partnership of the brothers Curt and Chris Kirkwood together again for the first time since 1996. Original drummer Derrick Bostrom is nowhere to be seen, but having the Kirkwoods together is really the important part of this reunion. Sewn Together is their second album with this lineup, following 2007’s Rise To Your Knees. It’s starting to look like the reunion could actually last this time.
In many ways, the idea of the Meat Puppets recording again is better than the actual album. Sewn Together is a generally bland slab of R.E.M.-shaped, country-flavored rock. Curt Kirkwood even abandons his classic deep-fried drawl in favor of a very Michael Stipe-esque croon. If the Meat Puppets are angling for any kind of mainstream success with antics like that, they’re about twenty years too late. At this point in their career, sounding like other bands really won’t do them any good. They might as well stick to their strengths instead of branching out. This doesn’t mean there isn’t room for growth, however, which the Puppets demonstrate ably on “Sapphire”, a dark waltz that features a glowering chorus, all crashing guitars and moody piano. It’s certainly something the Puppets have never done before, but it actually works pretty well.
Honestly, the world doesn’t need another Meat Puppets album at this point. They recorded their best work long ago and the chances of them ever equaling it are beyond slim. It’s just a question of whether or not we want another Puppets album. While Sewn Together has moments of interest, it fails to really justify its own existence. While I’m glad the Kirkwoods are still expressing themselves musically, making music this derivative and generally forgettable feels a tad self-indulgent. Of course, the Kirkwoods are musicians. Releasing albums is kind of, like, their job. However, as with most bands this far past their prime, I have to ask what they hope to accomplish.
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