[atsonicpark]

 

MR. BUNGLE, "DISCO VOLANTE"
1995, Warner Brothers Records
1. "Everyone I Went To High School With Is Dead"
2. "Chemical Marriage"
3. "Sleep (Part II): Carry Stress In The Jaw"
4. "Desert Search For Techno Allah"
5. "Violenza Domestica"
6. "After School Special"
7. "Sleep (Part III): Phlegmatics"
8. "Ma Meeshka Mow Skwoz"
9. "The Bends"
10. "Backstrokin'"
11. "Platypus"
12. "Merry Go Bye Bye

For whatever reason, my friend Mike (a raver but also a big Slipknot fan...) had a copy of Mr. Bungle's self-titled album, which he had apparently acquired at a rave. He knew I was into... uhm... "different" music, so he gave it to me one day. He said, "It's fucked up. It's insane." So, I listened to it, expecting my 13-year-old mind to be blown. But it wasn't! Listening today with different ears, it's still a good enough CD, but there's a bit too much funk on it, and the production is irritating.

Around the same time, California had just come out and I read in some magazine called Request (which you used to be able to get free at Sam Goody's) . They had given it a 12 out of 100 and described it as "horrible"; "the worst songwriting ever". I downloaded it on IRC through a bot (on 28k modem !), and it blew my mind. Amazing! I remember I went to school and we didn't have two phone lines, so I downloaded it from a bot from like 7 in the morning until whenever I got out of school. My grandma was wondering why no one had called all day long, hahaha...

So, years passed by, and for whatever reason I never heard "Disco Volante". I hadn't read about it, I knew nothing about it! My friend Brandon is talking to me about Mr. Bungle one day and I told him I thought self-titled was okay, but "California" blew my mind. He said, "Oh, have you heard 'Disco Volante'? You might like it. It's a bit weirder than those two albums.." I said, "No... burn me a copy." Well, it took him a while to burn me a copy, but I remember being excited to hear it and I remember talking to a few people about it, and I remember someone saying that there were covers of cartoon songs on it (?!??!?) and someone else told me that it sounded like a band who couldn't play their instruments who were trying to mix every genre every together. Either way, however it was described and whatever I read about it (I remember NME gave it a 0 and called it the worst album of all time -- but they thought the strokes were the greatest band in the history of existence, so..), it didn't sound like it was the same band as the self-titled or "California" Mr. Bungle.

So, I finally acquired a burnt copy... and WOW. WOW. One of those albums I put on repeat for days and days and days. I still listen to it. I wore out my burnt copy and somehow found a used copy for $3 at a local pawn shop a few weeks after my burnt copy skipped through every track.

This ... I dunno. Impossible to describe. Every genre of music ever piled on top of each other. Yeah. The most skilled "rock" (?) musicians imaginable playing extremely well-written and wonderful music. Trey Spruance is without a shadow of a doubt one of the best guitar players ever, and by far the best guitar player that no one ever talks about. Trevor Dunn's bass work is UNBELIEVABLE, and the other musicians whose names I don't feel like looking up do a very good job but... the star of this album is definitely Trey. Oh, and Patton does okay work, not that he does much on this album (he only wrote one song, "Backstrokin", and he only wrote lyrics to a few songs). Speaking of lyrics, what really struck me at the time was how few there were. Can't say that about the other Bungle albums.

Just.. seriously, amazing music. Obviously, there were probably a million overdubs, but the actual individual parts that were played in each song are amazing.

Standsout include "Ma Meeshka Mow Skowz" which really does sound like cartoon cover songs; "Merry Go Bye-Bye", which is a Beach Boys death metal noise song; and "Chemical Marriage" which sounds like a song Danny Elfman would write if he had big balls.

Probably my second favorite album ever. Endlessly inspiring. One of those albums I really can tell you every single lyric and every part of every song without even thinking about it. I've memorized this album. And yet I could still put it on today and not be bored with it. I can't complain about any of it, except it probably needs to be re-released with the volume bumped up a bit (it's ridiculously quiet), and "The Bends" maybe goes on a bit too long. An interesting thing to note is that the self-titled Mr. Bungle album has tons and tons of filler in between tracks, but this album is devoid of them, except for a few short jokes (and what's there is quite creepy: "Why are you touching me?").

To this day, I don't think "Everyone I went to high school with is dead" is anything too special, but I think it's such a perfect way to open an album: the most noisey and worst song to open one of the best albums ever. It's like if "Doolittle" opened with "Silver" or something.

This album is simultaneously mindblowingly complex, dark, humorous, sad ("Violenza Domestica" is one of the most powerfully emotive tracks ever), thought-provoking, inspiring, and touching. One of my friends only listens to Mozart, Beethoven, etc. and generally has very little tolerance for any of the music I like, but he can get into this (and similiar bands, like Secret Chiefs, Vicious Hairy Mary, Darth Vegas, etc). Weird, eh? I'd definitely reccomend this for just fans of good music, not just "avant-garde fans". That being said, I don't think this album is particularly "Avant-garde" at all, it's not "Adult Themes for Voice" or anything. It's just well-played, competent, innovative, technically impressive music.

Too bad Bungle's dead, but as a whole Secret Chiefs 3 is probably better anyway (though they haven't made an album this good).

[Glice]

Possibly the least interesting album I've ever heard. And I've heard 2 Lighthouse Family records.

The twat said it.

[Glice]

Originally Posted by sarramkrop

The twat said it.

You have worms in your testes.

Originally Posted by Glice

You have worms in your testes.

I love you. Here's for you:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=modA9aa_ihA


Always loved this version of it.

[Sheriff Rhys Chatham]

I have california.
It's all I've heard.

[Everyneurotic]

i recently discovered it because, matter of fact, i hated mr. bungle.

i remember i heard a song by them that was completely schizophrenic and awesome back in the day and i got curious about them, then i heard the first record and i was disappointed that most of it was horrid ska songs or something like that. years later, i gave california a pssing listen and was not amused or impressed, in fact i barely remember any of their songs.

moreover, the idea of mr. bungle is the most unoriginal thing mike patton haas been involved besides fantomas, since the whole concept is a rip off of naked city. mr. bungle used to be a death metal band with a few odd, humorous touches here and there when they started, patton had never heard anything really off the wall to that point; now, john zorn devised naked city to play any style of music at any given time, jumping schizophrenically from one another to make the effect of cartoon soundtracks, furthermore, for the first album, they invited yamatsuka eye to sing in his own anarchic singing style in a couple of their songs. this was in the year mike patton was rapping over pseudo metal riffs.

still, i recently gave a listen to disco volante out of curiousity, since it's the only one of them i haven't listened and i LOVE IT!!!! why? probably because of the songwriting, they are amazing at writing incredibly accomplished songs that can integrate so many styles of music, something their alma paters naked city could never do (they couldn't fuse two or more styles in the same song, something that made them succeed)...anyway, adam expressed it so much better than me since he has listened to it more times.

amazing arrangements, amazing songs, obviously the weakest link here is mike patton and the music is still made around this weakness to make it work for them.

odd thing is, most patton fans qualify this album as "almost unlistenable", i can't imagine what would they think have they listen to pop tatari or soul discharge.

i'll re-listen to the other albums, but i think disco volante is a one of a kind albums.

[Pax Americana]

I dig this record. And I love 'California'.

I saw Tomahawk a while ago and they pretty nuts. They opened for Tool and Mike Patton was making fun of all the lame-ass Tool fans and he was getting shit thrown at him. It was fucking awesome.

[ZEROpumpkins]

Yes, you finally did this atsonicpark. Good job, and fantastic album.
Oh, and if NME gave this 0, calling it "the worst album ever" they obviously don't have an open enough mind to be a music magazine.

Oh wait, it's NME.

[Glice]

Originally Posted by Everyneurotic

...alma paters...

Dude: not only are you far more articulate than most people for whom English is their sole language; not only are you capable of expressing yourself about 50 million times better than the rest of the internet; not only do you have an utterly ridiculous taste in music [nb - compliment]; not only are you capable of listening to [what seems like] an utterly absurd torrent of music on a daily basis - on top of all this you've actually made me want to go back and listen to a record that is in my top 1 least interesting records ever (again, I've heard 2 Lighthouse Family records).

[Glice]

Originally Posted by sarramkrop

I love you. Here's for you:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=modA9aa_ihA


Always loved this version of it.

Wow. She's a total mental, isnt' she?

[PAULYBEE2656]

i cant stand mr bungle. dont know wha th deal is at all. i have one of their albums and it sucked. no intrest at all............

[Pookie]

Originally Posted by PAULYBEE2656

i cant stand mr bungle. dont know wha th deal is at all. i have one of their albums and it sucked. no intrest at all............

^That, plus, it's shit.

[ZEROpumpkins]

Originally Posted by PAULYBEE2656

i cant stand mr bungle. dont know wha th deal is at all. i have one of their albums and it sucked. no intrest at all............

Which one?

[atsonicpark]

don't understand how people can dislike a band so musically accomplished.

on that note, i've never heard anyone say anything bad about secret chiefs 3, so you all should check them out even if you don't like bungle.

[ZEROpumpkins]

I agree. Though i'm not too surprised. People don't like anything on a major label here at www.sonicyouth.com/gossip

OH the irony!!

[Glice]

Originally Posted by atsonicpark

don't understand how people can dislike a band so musically accomplished.

Yngwie Malmsteen, Steve Vai, Eddie Van Halen. All phenomenally talented. All utterly shit. I think the drummer from Mr Bungle, or possibly Fantomas, is Jascha Heifetz's son or grandson. Which is to say - good genes, shit drummer.

[atsonicpark]

heheh, but they're not only musically accomplished, they write great songs, they don't just jerk off like the people you listed...

oh well.

[dnorsen]

haha i was at that show too. at hsbc arena in buffalo right? such a great show between the tomahawk killer opening set and tool ragging on green jello because members were from buffalo....

Originally Posted by Pax Americana

I dig this record. And I love 'California'.

I saw Tomahawk a while ago and they pretty nuts. They opened for Tool and Mike Patton was making fun of all the lame-ass Tool fans and he was getting shit thrown at him. It was fucking awesome.

[timtimtim]

I like California better.
I also saw tomahawk open for tool in chicago and patton was ripping on michael jordan it made the boos became much more violent.