Pavement Album: “Westing (By Musket and Sextant)”

Description :

WESTING (BY MUSKET AND SEXTANT) collects all the material from Pavement's first four vinyl releases--the 7" EP DEMOLITION PLOT J-7, the 10" EP PERFECT SOUND FOREVER, the 7" SUMMER BABE and the 7" SLAY TRACKS--along with other early material and compilation tracks. <p>Listening to WESTING (BY MUSKET AND SEXTANT) is like looking at a photo album with baby pictures of one of the most important bands of the 1990s. A collection of Pavement's first EPs, WESTING presents the band in the early stages of its development. While singer/guitarist Stephen Malkmus would later blossom into a fine melodist/lyricist, the material here favors Sonic Youth-like noise attacks and fractured structures. Still, one can hear Malkmus's unique sensibility emerging on cuts like "From Now On," the oblique and tender "Home," and an early version of the magnificent "Summer Babe (Winter Version)" (later to be reprised on SLANTED AND ENCHANTED). <p>In its relentlessly lo-fi fashion, Pavement spins through chiming pop ("Box Elder"), driving anthems ("Price Yeah!"), left-field rockabilly ("Spizzle Trunk"), exuberant pop-rock ("Debris Slide"), and straight-up aural tomfoolery ("Drive By Fader"). The band's influences (Sonic Youth, the Fall) are more readily evident here before the band synthesized them into a potent and utterly unique sound. Smart, reckless, and full of charm, WESTING (BY MUSKET AND SEXTANT) shows Pavement finding its aesthetic legs. The collection is worthy for that alone, and also for everything it promises.

This is a great record here. I love nearly every song, even the ones that are just noise. Recorder Grot (Rally) is awesome! It's cool cause theyre not making it noisy with pedals or anything, theyre doin it with the horrible equipment they used to record it. Its great on long drives through Quebec and Vermont.

Pavement originated Indie rock, bands like Weezer and Jimmy Eat World claim Pavement to be their early 90's influences. This band isn't for the casual listener. Anyone who appreciates music, especially from the early 90's has to understand that this is where it all began. Pavement made it "okay" to hit the wrong chord and sing out of tune. Steve Malkmus, along with Kurt Cobain, is the premier song-writer of the past decade. This album symbolizes Malkmus and Pavement in its transition from raw punk to Velvet Underground pop. It is essential to buy this album if you ever want to understand where all the bands you are now listening to came from.

I play "Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain" the most and than this. One reviewer mentioned this is for diehard fans only. I couldn't disagree more. There is a lot of experimentation and some is with hardcore structures, but nowhere have I heard experimentation work better or be more enjoyable to listen to. I would actually call this a collection of awesome singles. I would gladly listen to "Angel Carver Blues/Jazz Mellow Decent" than anything off Slanted and Enchanted. This is an amazing record that should be enjoyed by anyone looking for an album filled with a stunning array of tunes.

Pavement not radio-ready? Listen to "Forklift" and "Debris Slide" and the old 7" version of "Summer Babe" about a hundred more times, chief. This is the type of comprehensive release that makes CDs worthwhile. The last pit stop before "grunge music took over the world" in the form of "Nevermind," the songs found here are the heart of the summer of 1991 in college radio heaven. Listen now, or forever hold your peace.

Following on the heels of Slanted, Westing features a lot of music recorded before the first album and, as such, is a window into the world of VERY early Pavement. Lo-fi, noisy, and a bit all-over-the-place, you'll find tiny track after tiny track of off-the-wall parodies on this-and-that with the kitchen sink thrown in and busted up for good measure. Everything seems to have been disgorged without much revision, which is a plus and a minus, depending on your tastes. Anyone who REALLY follows Pavement should own this... it's roots, baby.