Tad: 8-Way Santa

Album: 8-Way Santa
Artist: Tad
Year: 1991

Forget about folk, for now. This is my 3rd post and this is probably the heaviest band so far to be featured on my blog. (Haha, out of 3). Right now I'm listening to 8-Way Santa by Tad. A lot of people already have an impression of Grunge but if you go into this album expecting Nirvana or Pearl Jam then you are in for a surprise. I've had conversations before about people's voices, (actually I was just told that I like bands with strange sounding vocals.) Is that so weird? I mean, I think weird sounding voices are more interesting than your American-Idol-winner vocals. Certainly Bob Dylan would never have even made it into the first round of American Idol, and he's more famous than any of those guys will be. Anyway, I'm digressing and I regret that, lets break it down.

1. Jinx

If I were in this band, i would have a lot of fun playing these songs. The guitar is really cool and heavy, the drums have some variation, these are songs you can get really into on stage and I like that. Also, I'm a big fan of a lot of distortion when it comes to bands like this, and there is distortion to spare in this song. I think this is one of the songs released as a single for the band, which makes sense. Its a good opening songs, it has really good structure and it seems to be about drug use. People in this scene probably really dug that and I read somewhere that this album was named after a kind of Acid so, there you go. Drugs drugs drugs. Great song, definitely a standout, I'd choose this one to represent the record.

2. Giant Killer

This song wouldn't be as fun to play, but I do like the guitar and there are some vocally cool moments as well. Other then that I don't have a whole lot to say about this song. Its definitely not as good as the first song though.

3. Wired God

I don't have much to say about this one either. Some cool guitar stuff but I don't really care for the lyrics.

4. Delinquent

I like this song a lot more than the previous two. The lyrics are much better, and the guitar is still just how I like it. The vocals are half spoken-half spat. Tad Doyle definitely has the voice for this band, and on this song he shines.

5. Hedge Hog

I went into this song expecting great things. I think Hedgehogs are cool, Sonic the Hedgehog is probably one of my favorite video games. Of course, this isn't really a song at all, more of a bizarre break between songs where the band seems to express an interest in crushing hedge hogs.

6. Flame Tavern

I really like the guitar at the beginning. Vocally this song just doesn't deliver like the other ones... I think it might be a different vocalist altogether, which is fine, but I like Tad Doyle's guttural cries. Anyway this song is still pretty good, just not a standout. There is a guitar solo in this song but its nothing special.

7. Trash Truck

There are those guttural vocals I missed in the last song! This song is much better than the previous few, more of what I would expect after the album's awesome opening. I never thought of a Trash Truck as a vehicle of escape or redemption, but I think there is something very bad ass about escaping in a Trash Truck.

8. Stumblin' Man

This is another song I'd love to perform live. Just to grunt like that during a song, a lot of energy. For some reason listening to the guitar interactions in this song it reminds me of the planet Venom on the Star Fox 64 video game. Why am I thinking about video games while I listen to this? I have no idea. Some good lyrics. "Walk the crooked mile / it'll take away you're smile."

9. Jack Pepsi

The opening of this song reminds me of "Jesus Christ Pose," by Soundgarden. Once the vocals start, it is obviously nothing like that song, but the opening is similar, which I guess is what joins them in grunge. The vocals surprised me at first, I wasn't expecting just spoken words over the drums. This song is maybe better than the first song. Its interesting, engaging, and in-your-face. Who the hell is Jack Pepsi anyway... and what could he possibly do to help...? Oh wait... Jack Daniels and Pepsi. This record has more substances than a public service announcement. What does that say about the scene at the time? Maybe it foreshadows the deaths of some of its heroes... (Layne Staley, Kurt Cobain). Rest in Peace.

10. Candi

This song has a very badass guitar opening. The rest of the song just doesn't impress me.

11. 3-D Witch Hunt

Whoa. This is the debut of clean guitars on the album, and it sounds very alien. This song features the other vocalist, (if it even is another vocalist) But it is head and shoulders above the other. The guitar is more interesting, the melody is better... overall this song is definitely a contrast to the other songs on the album but its pretty good! I'm surprised I'm enjoying it as much as I am. "Smile and shake it off" Sounds like the themes of substance abuse have taken a turn into something a little more cliche. That's okay, I think this song has a lot of strength, lyrically. This song seems to be more like a relationship than anything else.

12. Crane's Cafe

This song starts with a very triumphant YEEEEAYEAH. Very urgent guitar, anxious vocals. This song has a lot of drive that some of the other songs are missing. One of the verses towards the end has a almost guitar except for a few cool embellishes and what sounds like pick grinding or whatever its called. I'm a little confused about the name of this song. Crane's Cafe. Not to be confused with The Decemberist's "Crane Wife," for sure.

13. Plague Years

The lyrics are a little cliche, but this song sounds very good. There is cool guitar and drums and the melody isn't so bad. This song is more rounded out with distorted and clean guitars. Again, for an album with only two songs with any clean guitar, both of them are pretty good. There are even some hooks in this song that sound as though Stephen Malkmus could have written them. The song is disappointingly short, but a good closing nonetheless.

Closing Remarks:

Tad was on the forefront of Grunge, that is for sure. They predate Nirvana and Pearl Jam. It is very clear upon listening to the album that they were drawing from a different pool of influences than most grunge bands were at the time... although I'm not entirely sure I would be able to tell you what influences those were. If you like grunge ok, but you've never heard of Tad, that's okay because I don't know if Tad ever truly got as farout of Seattle as other grunge bands like Alice in Chains or Mudhoney. This is an okay album. Maybe Tad isn't quite a record band, but they definitely know how to rock out and they deserve a listen.