Pavement
Wowee Zowee: Sordid Sentinels Edition

Matador
1995/2006
A+
Reviewed by: Tal Rosenberg
Reviewed on: 2006-11-09



Posted 11/09/2006 - 09:06:26 AM by nyabinghi:
 This is the best and funniest of the Pavement offerings. I never tire of this sprawling set. I love "slanted" and "crooked rain" but this one never fails to reinforce my opinion in Malkmus' particular genius. This is more in line with the more experimental leanings of their early stuff a la "westing". Lots of hits and misses but all interesting.
 
Posted 11/09/2006 - 09:25:30 AM by averyisland:
 FOUR great albums? i think you meant to write five, as neither terror or brighten can justly be considered less than great.
 
Posted 11/09/2006 - 10:41:40 AM by foxconfessor:
 I agree with averyisland. 'Terror Twilight' is vastly underrated.
 
Posted 11/09/2006 - 10:47:46 AM by bassman08:
 I think "Terror Twilight" has a few good songs but isn't as consistent overall as "BTC". In my opinion. But "Folk Jam" and "The Hexxx" and "Speak, See, Remember" kick ass.
 
Posted 11/09/2006 - 10:50:33 AM by J_R_K_:
 i used to think they had 4 great albums, but after a few more jicks and preston albums i'll probably up it to five. silver jews remain the best pavement related band, or rather, pavement remain the best silver jews related band.
 
Posted 11/09/2006 - 11:59:07 AM by SebastianSS:
 This swell of Terror Twilight rah-rah revisionism is bizarre, particularly when discussed the context of Wowee Zowee. Whereas WZ succeeds with the forced spontaneity of those "throwaways" (carefully placed to break the determined flow of the mid 90s alt/indie record), TT suffocates in its composure. It may be a carefully crafted swansong with some "mature" songwriting and presumably a better editor, but those are hardly the elements that drew me to Pavement in the first place.
 
Posted 11/09/2006 - 02:30:02 PM by :
 I had a Wowee Zowee t-shirt when I was 15. Cringe.
 
Posted 11/09/2006 - 06:10:02 PM by nyabinghi:
 Well said Sebastian, I stand by three great records and fall off after WZ. Hell, SM's solo records are a lot more fun than those last two, although there are tracks I love like stereo, shady lane and the undeniable blue hawaiian. Furthermore, tracks like type slowly and major leagues find SM at his most wistful.
 
Posted 11/09/2006 - 08:48:41 PM by idunnowhy:
 terror twilight is definitely hit and miss to me, but it seriously breaks my heart everytime someone hates on Brighten the Corners. I love that album so much.
 
Posted 11/09/2006 - 11:08:55 PM by :
 Come come. Since from it`s inception, Two States junted borrowings to Terror`s Cricket applaudations the Pavements have smeared scorched heat marks across more concrete boardwalks than Everett True-written articles for Melody Maker forced indie fans to scrap their Young Marble Giants LPs for a grunge stinkfest and get For Real tatooes emblazoned on their school bags. Summer babe, how about a little bit of angular oblique sidewalk with your pop bedlam? Buddy Holly is the Solid Kid and Peggy Sue screamed I`m on the stereohh oh oh. That dry arc of a voice curdling satin vicissitudes fantasizes in Westing by Musket and Sextant a Jemimah Puddleduck kind of child`s retreating. Genius Malkmus writes his pendulumic anthem Shady Lane to a busload of Brighten The Corners touring hither into his collective graffiti-scrawled mind, an art that renounces in no-qualm rejigged terms Crooked Rain`s dullard second half and fractures the bones of further great singles-in-waiting by Godriching the last few phews of wino spew and scraping it all off The Pavements` guitar historical ironies. Bring back Gary!
 
Posted 11/13/2006 - 07:27:15 PM by cwperry:
 A+? Pavement sucked in 1995 and they suck now.