Galaxie 500 - Peel Sessions

  by Jon Rogers

published: 20 / 1 / 2006

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In the late 1980's the trio of Dean Wareham, Naomi Yang and Damon Krukowski were effectively the summation of all things "indie". Laid back and ultra cool, they produced some utterly compelling music, most notably on their second album 'On Fire' which is a much neglected classic. They largely took the blueprint from the Velvet Underground's eponymous third album and made a career out of it. Now, along with the likes of Codeine, they're often mentioned as pioneers of slowcore. It is a testament to their durability that their two Peel Sessions are finally seeing the light of day, years after they went their separate ways. The band never really got past being anything more than a cult attraction, albeit a much loved one. An integral part of the band was their liberal scattering of covers. Nothing was too sacred to avoid and nothing was beneath them to have a crack at. This journalist remembers being captivated by Yang's delivery of Yoko Ono's 'Listen the Snow is Falling' which was placed in the middle of a gig in Bristol where the audience was struck dumb by her hushed delivery. They have also done a very commendable version of Joy Division's 'Ceremony.' Recording songs for the famed BBC Radio 1 DJ is perhaps the ideal place for attempting a few covers and Galaxie 500 don't let the opportunity pass them by. In a total of eight songs, recorded in two sessions in 1989 and 1990, the band bash out four covers. And not always successfully. On the downside are 'Moonshot' by Buffy Sainte Marie and the Sex Pistols' 'Submission.' Both lack the vitality of the originals, especially 'Submission' and are slowed right down to a narcoleptic pace. Worth of attention though are 'Final Day' by Young Marble Giants and the band's much favoured Jonathan Richman song 'Don't Let Our Youth Go to Waste.' Both are worthy of standing next to the originals. Inevitably the band's own songs - largely ones that would eventually appear on 'On Fire' - are of most interest. Here the fragile, wavering tones of Wareham's voice come to the fore as if he is constantly on the verge of sobbing uncontrolably as on 'When Will You Come Home' and 'Blue Thunder.' Then there's the delicate and desolate beauty of 'Decomposing Trees.' But just pigeonholing the band as slowcore misses the point almost entirely. The trio could kick up a storm if required. Instead of doing the much favoured quiet/loud or fast/slow dynamics that was very chic at the time, they would slowly build incrementally from a hushed silence becoming every more powerful and weren't afraid of an odd bout of guitar historonics if needed. These two Peel sessions don't really show off the band in their finery as does their three studio albums. The Peel sessions were always seen as something rough and ready, and being all the better for it. This will only really appeal to the converted fan, but there are some gems in there too. The cover though is truly awful.

Track Listing:-

1 Submission (October 1990)
2 Final Day (October 1990)
3 When Will You Come Home (October 1990)
4 Moonshot (October 1990)
5 Flowers (September 1989)
6 Blue Thunder (September 1989)
7 Decomposing Trees (September 1989)
8 Don't Let Our Youth Go To Waste (September 1989)

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