Banned in the US!! Part 1

OK, so they’re not exactly banned, but this is a piece on recent releases by two very deserving bands that have nearly no presence in America and/or the UK, Magic Dirt and Bleach (aka Bleach03).

Australians Magic Dirt were actually up-and-comers in the US at a time. Once featured in Spin as a potential “next Sonic Youth” they were always harder edged, less affected, and closer to a noise-informed Motorhead/Stooges (with a female singer), though their use of feedback made the SY comparison somewhat inevitable. At one point they were on a US major label (Warner) and toured with Archers of Loaf, but their album for Warner, Friends In Danger, was a colossal sales disaster. It’s also a fantastic though slightly difficult 90′s heavy guitar rock album, and well worth the 25 cents it’ll probably cost you for a used copy.

Subsequently exiled back to Australia, the band has slowly gone much more mainstream (Liz Phair cover, acoustic ballads, lead singer Adalita takes singing lessons, etc.) to the point where they’re apparently featured on a recent Aussie postage stamp. Adalita has gone from a raspy voiced screamer to a glossily multi-tracked Singer, which may or may not be a good thing, depending on your preferences. The band currently put out reasonably solid alt-rock albums that have been described as “hard rock Pretenders” though bits of their past rough edges do pop up enough to keep things slightly interesting.

Still, the best place for old fans to meet Magic Dirt these days is on their b-sides. Arguably the top song to come out of the sessions for their 2003 album Tough Love was a b-side called “Love Me” that sounded vaguely like something that Some Girls era Rolling Stones might have come up with if they had tried for a harder sound (and replaced Mick with a girl).

Magic Dirt’s 2005 album Snow White is Aussie-only as far as I know, and may be a bit noisier than their previous two records. For fans of the band, it’s probably worth mail ordering.

Again, though, the real action seems to be on the b-side to a slightly sappy acoustic ballad called “I Love The Rain.” The b-side in question is “Johnny Loves Sara” with a fuzz bass, chugging guitars, feedback breakdown, and a great little bridge where we learn that “Johnny loves Sara, Sara love Paul, Paul loves Alice, and Alice loves them all.” At this point, a Magic Dirt b-sides and singles comp. might be the best thing they’ve released in ten years. Especially if it contained their cover of “My Pal,” originally by another somewhat obscure and long departed band from down under called God. Keep your eyes out, if you’re so inclined, for a recent EP on the band’s own label.

[Review by guest contributor Dana Paoli.]

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