Released: 1993
Story by Kyle De Ville, guitarist for Growing Stronger.
Editor's note: Since this is an album on a major label, there is no download link available.
So when I was in elementry school, I got this album. I must have been in third on fourth grade. I remember listening to it on my big, bulky, yellow Sony Sports Walkman. It was the one with the locking mechanism so your tape didn't fly out of the walkman if you bumped it.
The first thing people might notice about this album is the great quality of the production compared to the previous effort It's A Shame About Ray. Another difference is that Juliana Hatfield, who was their bass player, is no longer in the fold, however she makes plenty of appearances on the record doing back-up vocals. In the first track, "The Great Big No," the ending showcases the great dynamic between singer Evan Dando and Juiliana's voices.
Like many albums, the commercial single is the second track, which is where "Into Your Arms" is placed. This song is a very catchy, upbeat number and I remember the video was Evan and the band playing outside in the grass during a sunny day, which seems fitting. If you were sucked into this song, I think you would have not been let down when you got the record.
A few stand-out tracks-- "It's About Time," "Paid To Smile" and "Big Gay Heart"-- have Evan Dando's appreciation for alternative country and there is a few steel guitar solos that really compliment the sound. You can really appreciate how great of a voice he has on these tracks.
"Down About It," "Dawn Can't Decide" and "I'll Do It Anyways" are good pop songs. A nice amount of distortion on the guitars and overdubs in the right places show that Evan Dando put some time into making the sounds of the instruments for each song appropriate.
"Being Around" and "Favorite T" bring out the great sense of humour of the Lemonheads. Witty lyrics like:
"If I was the front porch swing would you let me hang?
If I was the dance floor would you shake your thing?
If I was a rubber check would you let me bounce
Up and down inside your bank account?
Would ya trust me, not to break you?
I'm just tryin really hard to make you,
notice me being around."
I recommend this album as their finest hour, but don't forget to check out the previous effort and the self-titled album, which came out recently, especially because it has a great Descendants vibe.
Apparently during the recording of the album, Evan was going hard on drugs, especially Heroin, which he has had battles with for many years. Amazingly this album has been a desert island disc of mine and I have been listening to it consistently for about 17 years.
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