Altered Beast - Matthew Sweet (1993)
90s Intermezzo - some 90s albums I loved in the 90s
Matthew Sweet has had a long career of power pop greatness, but I imagine he’ll be most remembered for his holy trilogy of hooky and high-energy 90s alt rock albums that were hugh commercial successes for him. 1991’s Girlfriend and 1995’s 100% Fun each have their merits and are stuffed with excellent tracks, but Altered Beast is my top pick.
While he is and always has been an excellent songwriter, he really sets himself apart with his bold (and occasionally offputting) subversive recording techniques. Sgt Pepper-style stereo track trickery is everywhere, along with complex sets of overdubs, effects loops, and re-injected wet and dry signals into the mix at odd angles. It’s an extra layer of interesting stuff to pay attention to, besides the typically strong songs themselves.
Like the other albums from this era, most tracks feature the inimitable Robert Quine (-_-, O_o) on lead guitar, which lends to the overall squalling, manic energy of the tracks he’s on.
If you can’t get enough of 90s Sweet, I’d also recommend the odds and sods extra Son Of Altered Beast, which features contemporary live tracks including my favorite Sweet deep cut, Superdeformed.
Tracks I Liked
Dinosaur Act - an alt rock stomper, though I don’t remember the mix being such a fuzzy, sludgy mess. Maybe I just didn’t notice because all my gear was shithouse back then.
Devil With The Green Eyes - One of those songs that I can sort of make up my own story for, and don’t know or particularly care what the actual inspiration was.
Someone To Pull The Trigger - a lovely but dark ballad
Ugly Truth Rock - There’s a much cleaner and more pleasant version of The Ugly Truth earlier in the record, but why would we want that when we can drop the needle on this monster?
In Too Deep - lest I make you think that the second side isn’t worth your time from this selection of favorites…
