Soul Asylum
The Silver Lining
2006
Sony Records

Long-running Twin Cities party band Soul Asylum return with The Silver Lining, their umpteenth album since nearly the dawn of the Eighties. It’s easy to forget, in a world full of media-shucked artists like the Harvey Dangers, Goo Goo Dolls and Jack Johnsons of the music biz that there are still actually a few bands out there who have stuck by their pop/rock guns (guitars, in this case) over the years and never really given in to the pressures of corporate/genre change, hometown sellout and radio whimsy. And while I’m not exactly known for giving A-1 reviews of albums—particularly ones that really don’t need press from small town hacks like me—I’ve felt a burning need for awhile to let people know how I feel about this one and why. It’s no secret—I love loud guitar/pop, think the guys in the band are decent folks, and believe casual fans or new listeners deserve to know why they’ve gotten as far as they have.

Me, I’ve always had a deep respect for Soul Asylum (what’s left of it these days, anyway—it’s no secret that SA’s been without a sure-thing drummer for quite some time now, and that talented and beloved bassist Karl Mueller passed on this year), and frankly haven’t heard them release an album yet that hasn’t had at least some redeeming qualities. It doesn’t hurt that I’ve pounded a few pints and seen them gleefully (and musically) kick the shit out of a room full of people, as well—be it the squishy, smoky confines of the 400, or the wall-to-wall sweatfest that can be First Avenue’s Main Room—knowing their live strengths only heightens the thrill of hearing new material from some hard workin’ local faves.

Their personal and professional qualities aside, however, the question remains: Have Soul Asylum managed to overcome both their longevity (read: Boredom and apathy from snooty local press wankers and the challenge of maintaining a fresh and ever-growing fan base along with their legions of already loyal fans, some of whom probably prefer sitting home nowadays with a six pack and “Law And Order” on the box to struggling through a veritable cattle herd of younger music aficionados who are probably out and about to catch Low or Bright Eyes or Cat Power that night) and their personal setbacks to create an album both longtime fans and younger lovers of catchy, well-crafted, hook-heavy pop music can equally appreciate?

I think, based on the individual strengths of the songs populating The Silver Lining and the band’s obvious determination (both in the letters section of certain other music rags around town—or at least one—as well as on stages from late-night television to their favorite local dives) to continue to proudly crank them amps up to eleven and lyrically/figuratively spit in the face of their rather uppity detractors proves that they have and I’m willing to go on record and say this album is the most relevant, in-the-moment, hard-hitting, plain old DAMN GOOD effort Soul Asylum has released since their commercial heyday. Special guests abound, as well—though as far as I know Karl didn’t hear the final product, I’m willin’ to bet contributions from Tommy Stinson, Kraig Johnson (Run Westy Run, Golden Smog, etc.), Jeff Victor (Honeydogs) and John Fields (producer / musician / huge scene supporter) woulda made him mighty proud.

Awright, all sappy hometown hoo-ra aside, another glaring question remains: Are the songs on this album any good? The short answer is YES—as a matter of fact, there’s not really a stinker among the batch, depending on your mood, the emotional level you’re willing to invest in the tunes and, frankly, how loud ya play it. There are some real torch-carryin’, barn-burnin’, you-just-fucking-know-they’d-rock-live nuggets here, as well as some of the most heart-on-yer-sleeve, damn-the-torpedoes ballads and brutally romantic anthems I’ve heard on an SA album since “Runaway Train” was in heavy rotation on MTV. Back when that station actually played music videos, that is.

I’ll also go into this with the caveat that The Silver Lining isn’t perfect—there were a few moments (and a few lines, in particular) that I thought could’ve been done differently, or maybe made a bit more effective or powerful had they been approached differently. Hey, nobody (or hardly anybody, anymore especially) makes an album that I love every single bit of—it’s partly that recording processes are different, albums are released at a much more hurried pace than they used to be and let’s be honest—I’m gettin’ older and pay more attention to detail and lyrical depth.

Sometimes a line that wouldn’t even register with me 10 years ago now has the ability to make me cringe in embarrassment, or I’ll hear a guitar riff or a bass lick or a keyboard run or a drum binge and I’ll go, “Oh fuck, that kinda blew”—but hey, that’s life. The good news is, I didn’t have a lot of those moments here. Bottom line: The Silver Lining has a few kinks, raw spots and blips that didn’t exactly rock my world—but the album on the whole is a more-than-decent effort, and I think it deserves a dollop of ink so fans get a couple different takes on the album. Hence, my current rant. ‘Nuff said.

Album opener “Stand Up And Be Strong” might be a bit too “yay-team, go!” for wordy, stick-up-their-ass rock-dork scribes to be able to admit liking in print; me, I like to think those types of writers secretly don their high-school cheerleading outfits or Madonna gloves and wigs, paint their faces (yes, the male writers too) and prance around full-length mirrors shimmying to lines like, “Stand up an’ be strong / It won’t take long, you won’t go wrong ... you might have to fight / You might have to cry ... You live in the hills, you take too many pills / If you’ve lost the thrill, against your own will, stand up an’ be strong ...” They just have a hard time admitting it. Me, I just played some low-key air guitar to this track and made rock faces at myself. Oh come on—you do it too, you’re just self-conscious, little buddy.

I haven’t played this song—hell, this whole album—to one music-lovin’ pal of mine who hasn’t thought it rocked—and Tommy Stinson sounds more at home playing bass here than I’ve heard him on record in ages. Basically, this song proves Soul Asylum as a unit has a lot of life left in it, and that Pirner and Murphy are two of the TC’s most talented pop/rockers— no matter who thinks it’s cool to say they’re not. Guess sometimes the people really do speak, eh?

But hey, that’s just me, and my experience with it. I think this song kicks ass, call me a sucker for liking a killer hook, a sing-a-long chorus, an absolutely driving rhythm section and ringing, fuck-you-if-ya-don’t-like-volume axe work, but I’ll take this over Daniel Powter’s “Bad Day” or some cutesy “Oh-he’s SO attractive cuz he’s depressed” fucking alternative tune for the gazillionth time on the radio if I have to listen to it.

“Lately” is an in-the-moment rock ballad that viscerally describes the angst, loneliness, underlying lust and inherent loyalty involved in the lives of a young couple, one of whom is stationed in Iraq, and their confused, yet stubbornly concerned, male friend who’s hanging around back home balancing his relationship with both. A subject sort of broached—albeit with a completely different outcome—in the SA classic “We Three” from And The Horse They Rode In On, this track is a great example of how Pirner’s knack for writing engaging, timely, heartfelt lyrics has only gotten less self-conscious and more universal as time’s gone by.

“Crazy Mixed Up World” is a mid-tempo rocker that touches on the above-mentioned subjects to a degree, set to a chiming, layered and catchy rhythm and smart, memorable lines like “... it leaves you wishin’ for change, a fast car to take you away / It’s a crazy mixed up world out there / Someone’s always got a gun and it’s all about money / You live with loneliness or you live with somebody who’s crazy / It’s just a crazy mixed up world ...” It’s an SA classic-to-be, one that should make that mythical box set when the time comes—and another one that would fit in great on both radio and those maddening movie soundtracks that seem to be taking over the world. Oh well, guess I’d rather have these guys get a spot on one of them than some dillweed who won American Idol last season. Ack.

“All Is Well” is another hook-a-riffic hard rocker, Pirner in fine voice, stand-in bassist John Fields right at home on the bam-a-lam with longtime SA pal/drummer Michael Bland crackin’ an’ snappin’ in all the right places. If you heard this song on a jukebox in a truckstop in Yuma, Arizona, you’d probably amble over just to check to see for sure who it is and who’s slammin’ out this radio-friendly, pop-perfect ditty with lines like, “All is well here in hell / I wish you were here / I’m wishin’ you well / All is well here in hell / I wish you were here ... all in all, all is well ...”

Other standouts include the melancholy, soul-heavy “Oxygen,” which thrums, pounds and loudly whispers a muted shout of loneliness, sorrow and deep-seated wanting so palpable it’s almost breathable—a shattered, almost hopeless indictment of emotion that glaringly bares it all: “A couple more volts of shock treatment for you,” moans Pirner, “they say you’re crazy / But it don’t even phase me / Cuz you’re the sanest one I know / Just a couple more breaths of oxygen will do / They may say you’re crazy, it makes you so amazing ... just a couple more pills, a couple more pills for you ...” I really like that you mention pills a lot on this album, Dave—I have a bad back and pills and Soul Asylum have helped me through more than a few damp, painful evenings here of late. Compassionate rock. Good man!

And finally, my favorite—“Bus Named Desire.” I think this howling, wild, heart-caught-in-your-throat anthem takes a big snarling bite out of the sorry-ass, shoe-gazing, whining, boo-hoo-my-girlfriend-left-me jive bullshit that seems to ooze out of every iPod, radio dial and record shop sound system from here to, well, Hell these days. Hey—I love Nick Drake and yeah, Elliot Smith has some decent shit, but sometimes it’s nice to just hear the guitars cranked up, the singer pissed/hyped-up/excited enough to make me FEEL a song like this one does—in my hips AND in my heart. And it’s not a political rant, or a psuedo-serious rave about the state of the world, a harangue on the lousy ecology or a diatribe on class discrimination.

It’s just a furious, no-holds-barred, ringing blast of fuck-yeah that makes me wanna hit “10” on the stereo and kick it out. “Out of the blue and into the fire / I got no use for bein’ tired ... I’ve payed my dues under your tires ...” yelps Pirner—and I gotta say, I think this is one band who HAS paid their dues, made another great album and deserves not only the respect to have this album heard and celebrated by their fans, but also to enjoy decent airplay and to be cranked out for a whole new generation of pop/rock aficionados.

They definitely don’t deserve to end up under the literary tires of some small-minded, small-market “rock writers” who wouldn’t know good rock if it jumped up and bit them on the ass of their brand-name jeans. Fuck ‘em—The Silver Lining is a good album, and the silver lining for them is that their music will long outlast the self-involved, trend-sucking miasma of poo their detractors extrude on a weekly basis. I for one will stand up and thank them for a couple decades of kick-ass gigs, decent treatment out at shows when they probably had better things to do than shoot the shit with half-drunk music writers like me and more than a few albums worth of great rock an’ roll I can proudly say comes outta my home town.

I think this record will also stand as a sweet and honest testament to Karl, to the band’s fans, and to the end/beginning of an era for an outfit who, despite what certain elements might say, did a hell of a lot to help other bands, local artists and endeavors, and people in general, and has a lot more to offer. Pirner, Murphy, Bland, Stinson, Fields and the whole crew should be damn proud of this album and proud of themselves for NOT TAKING SHIT and standing out as great examples of what real, tried-and-true Minnesota musicians are all about.

“Heroes will never let you down / Just as long as they’re dead / Sometimes you gotta pick an’ choose ...” croons Pirner on album closer/political-social rant “Slowly Rising/Fearless Leader,” and that priceless bit of back-porch wisdom goes for rock and roll bands as well as cultural icons—maybe we should spend a little more time appreciating our heroes while they’re still around, and less time searching aimlessly for new ones to make ourselves look/feel more important, eh? Great stuff, guys. Check it out at soulasylum.com

Sorry, gang—outta room for this week, back next time with tons more! Make sure and get out to hear the angelic pipes of EDIE CAREY at Gingko Coffeehouse on October 18. She’s touring on her latest, killer album, the Crit Hammon-produced Another Kind Of Fire, and it’s definitely worth a listen. Check it out, and check her out online at ediecarey.com. I gotta run—until we meet again, make yer own damn news.

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