Stephen Malkmus
& Jicks
Real Emotional Trash
Matador Records
By Mike Randall
Has Stephen Malkmus been holding back? From the album-opening, Toni Iommi-inspired guitar onslaught of “Dragonfly Pie,” Malkmus makes it clear he’s come to play with a loaded six-string on his back for his fourth post-Pavement solo release, Real Emotional Trash. As he’s joined by the latest and tightest incarnation of the Jicks, Trash technically isn’t a solo release, and he gels with his supporting cast like never before, as they propel him to levels the oft-lazy Pavement could never reach.
Some of the longest, most melodic and complex songs Malkmus has ever written make up the bulk of Trash. Trey Anastasio very publicly expressed his admiration for Pavement as one of his favorite bands during Phish’s heyday, but Malkmus never returned that sentiment. He may have started listening to the former jam band, though: the title track is the best latter-day Phish song they didn’t stick around to write, complete with a razor-sharp blues riff that is utterly filthy. “Elmo Delmo” shows additional evidence of a potential Anastasio influence, with its tumbling, multi-part rhythm and heavy tension-filled solo. He’s kicking out the jams, but definitely not noodling; Malkmus’ classic rock-infused playing is jaw dropping and rightfully takes center stage. “Hopscotch Willie” finds bouncy rhythms giving way to a ferocious Crazy Horse solo above a soulful keyboard bed, while the coda of “Cold Son” is straight out of David Gilmour’s playbook. The Jicks’ presence is most apparent during “Baltimore,” which displays the musical strength of the band by transgressing from a waltz-y rhythm to power-pop that recalls The Who thanks to Janet Weiss’ thunderous drumming.
Those in search of his former band’s ragged sloppiness need to look elsewhere, for the Jicks are a well-oiled machine. Thematically, it’s not a huge departure from past releases and for the most part not as mature as some might give it credit for. Malkmus’ hollow, quirky humor is as prevalent as always, as is his self-depreciating charm with lines like, ‘The world is my oyster/I feel like a nympho stuck in a cloister,’ from “Cold Son.”
Given that Pavement’s Slanted and Enchanted was just named the best indie album of all time, it’s already been cemented that Malkmus’ legacy will always lie with his former band and deservedly so. Their canon is forever solidified in the annals of time, but it can’t be argued that he’s never played with a more gifted band than the Jicks, and it shows. Trash is a guitarists’ dream, even during its most gorgeous moments (“Gardenia,” “We Can’t Help You,” “Wicked Wanda”), and Malkmus sounds like he’s having more fun than ever. Has he been restraining himself over the years, waiting for the right people to join him? Probably not. The most educated guess is that he’s doing something with this band that he rarely did with Pavement: practicing.
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