Shudder To Think - The Alt-Rock Band from An Alternate Universe
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- Опубликовано: 9 май 2020
- A Video Essay exploring a forgotten but very influential Alt-Rock band from the 90s. I discuss their history, and how they managed to make one of the strangest major label releases in Rock History.
this is extraordinary -DEEPEST thanks and love.
Wow! This is surreal! Thank you very much Craig, that really means a lot! Thank you for your work, it’s been a constant inspiration
You are my hero
My nose was buried in metal and only metal back the day when I first heard Shudder To Think, the band blew me away and to this day sound as fresh as the day I head it. Bravo.
Seeing you guys at Maxwell’s was honestly life changing.
Planet Fest 95 in Champaign IL with Hum and Poster Children. That was my college radio station. Amazing!
I was shocked when I saw their name in my feed. I listened to them constantly in 91-92. I found their music beautiful and haunting.
“ in a world of their own” hits it on the head.
Thanks for this man !
I remember PULLING OVER IN MY CAR, because the radio reception faded out as I got closer to home, to hear X French Tee Shirt on Q101 in Chicago. I was COMPELLED by Shudder and they’re still in my top ten all time.
Pony Express Record was and is still groundbreaking.
Thanks so much for this! FYI, PXR came out in 1994, not 1992.
No, Thank You Adam! You made one of my favourite albums of all time! It’s so surreal to see your name pop up in my notifications, I’m so glad you enjoyed the video!
Dude, since I’ll never get to meet you guys, thank you. PXR is one of my all time favorite records. It’s SO special, and SO unique. Thank you thank you
Great live band. Got to see them many times in the early nineties. They played out a lot In NYC. Saw them with Fugazi, Jawbox, circus Lupus (my personal favorite). DC had a great scene. All the bands sounded very unique. No copycat scene shit. Hoover, Autoclave etc. I’m pleased to see a new generation of kids listening to the nineties amazing array of indie/post hardcore.
Easily one of my top 5 records of the 90’s
Still one of my favorite bands of all time. I still listen to Pony Express Record and 50,000 BC regularly.
I remember seeing them in DC. They were the opening act and I was SO excited to hear them live. Turns out they were opening for Foo Fighters, and I couldn't care less. Paid for a Foo Fighters show just to watch Shudder To Think. They absolutely killed, BTW.
been going through some records to sell to buy Christmas presents and it appears I have £200s worth of Shudder To Think records. I've listened to Get Your Goat regularly but the other records have been tucked away for the the last decade ... I've given them all a spin over the last couple of days ... they are NOT for sale. Magnificent band.
You're a lucky dude! Those are some very very cool records to have in your collection, I'm envious.
@@campion95 ...can't stop listening to the rebooted version of 'Red House' .... Holy moly .... one of the best things I've ever heard .... and I'm a 50 yr old with taste :)
I was at an advanced screening of Wanderlust and Craig Wedren was in the house. They briefly acknowledged him and after the polite applause I shouted “I fuxkin’ love Shudder to Think Craig!! Thank you.!”Which got him another cool round of applause and I could’ve swore I heard him say “Thanks.”
Excellent analysis 👍
I remember discovering them in 1994 - alongside Tool, Helmet, Hum and others (good times).
I was already listening to a lot of "independent" bands, for lack of a better word, but I was also a *huge* (early) Genesis fan, and I saw something in STT that would not have been out of place in Nursery Cryme. Mainly the vocals and the quiet/loud dynamics and the apparent, calculated madness of it all 🙂
Thank you for this video. I’ve said before that Shudder To Think might be the most unique rock band of all time. I know that’s a huge statement, but I truly believe it could be true.
It is, but it may be a true statement. As a huge fan of specifically “unique” rock bands I don’t think there’s really anyone that matches STT’s beautiful balance of bizarre and catchy. Primus and Mr.Bungle definitely can have hooks for days but they’re outwardly bizarre, I think what makes Shudder to Think so interesting is because they’re kind of like those bands disguised as a 90s Rock band, and to be in on it is a lot of fun!
OMG. just found this documentary. Discovered these guys in 1992, while in my 2nd year of highschool! The most alternative of alternative bands....still in my top 10, all of these years later. Absolutely mind blowing, the first time I heard " Pony Express"!
My father played Red House Road for me so many times when I was super young, it’s fully ingrained in my mind. I still love that song now along with X French Tee Shirt.
I was literally nodding the entire video. This was amazing
Thank you very much! and Thanks for subscribing, hopefully, I can find time to make a few more videos like this one in the future!
Thanks for this summary of this very unique Post-Hardcore band. I spent a lot of time with their albums in the mid-nineties and they almost felt like a special kept secret, even though they were on a major label and had a Buzz Bin video on MTV in 1993/1994 (or whenever that was). Only a couple of my friends were fans. Later on, I was backstage with a friend at a Yeah Yeah Yeahs show in LA and I saw Craig Wedren. I went up to him and thanked him for the amazing music and he was super appreciative and charming. Class act.
I Love this album, one of my favs, never gets old :)
By far one of my all time favorite bands. Saw them at the old 9:30 club when an unknown band Rage Against the Machine opened for them. Craig came out and said "That's a hard act to follow". I really learned how to play guitar that night by watching Nathan from 4 feet away. I have never seen a guitar player with that amount of swagger to this day.
Growing up in Washington DC, I didn't quite get Shudder To Think at the time. I was more into their straight ahead contemporaries like Helmet and Quicksand. It wasn't til years later that I grew to appreciate how bizarre and unique they were. Another band that had a somewhat similar approach was New York's Barkmarket, who were fronted by Dave Sardy. Like Shudder To Think, they would often slip in really dissonant and angular guitar riffs in between more approachable melodic parts.
Another band from that era that had awesome dissonant riffs I really like is Stanford Prison Experiment
LOVE THIS ALBUM! Gave it a listen recently and it still holds up for me, unlike a lot of albums of this major label post Nirvana era.
Amazing concise encapsulation of this record of solid gold tunes about booze, inner tubes, apeguys, tears, the Major, etc
Saw these guys open for the Foo Fighters in NYC in '95. Craig sang Journey's "Loving Touching Squeezing" with the Foo's during their encore. It was epic 90's times.
me too, but in Nashville
Ive listened to X french T shirt so much but when you said that the second part gets repeated for 3 whole minutes I was like "theres no way this is true"
but it sure is
That part never seemed too long or dragging or anything to me. I always loved that part the most. The way it builds.
It's actually impressive to be able to pull that off
It's a musical illusion, I kind of couldn't believe it myself when I first realised it.
It literally transcends time and all on that one chord, I'm still perplexed and amazed by it.
i loved them, and still do. i still have my tapes and maybe a cd and a tshirt. i got to see them open for Foo Fighters in Nashville. i think it was 1995... oh i just found my ticket stubs
GREAT band. Thank you.
Craig Wedren has an amazing voice. Saw them in 1995 in Buffalo NY. Amazing show..
Great work, par excellence. The holy trinity from Dischord: Fugazi, Jawbox, and of course Shudder to Think. I think Red House on the following record is a masterpiece as well.
Thank You. I saw this bad ass band three times in the 90s. They’re still my semi little secret.
"X French T Shirt" is a song that pops into my head literally at least once a day. I'm not using "literally" in the modern emphatic way, I'm using it in the proper way, as defined in the dictionaries of old.
you mean, pre-17th century dictionaries? Cause that's how old that use-case is :P
@@obscillesk Absolutely.
Hey! That's my comment @3:32! Nice!
Excellent. STT produced some fascinating and brain bendingly unique rock. Pony Express is filled with the sort of songs you need to sit with and focus on. The hooks don’t jump out and wave at you all the time, but once they find you they’re undeniable. “9 Fingers” remains my favorite track on that album, but the brief bluesy guitar solo midway through “No. Room 9 Kentucky” is one of my favorite in all of rock, and the return from the sloshy middle section in the middle of “Hit Liquor” bangs so hard you need a helmet. Thanks for giving this band their due respect.
Fantastic comment! Thank you very much Andrew, you absolutely on the ball. Once their hooks grab you, they never leave and you never get tired of them. A true testament to their staying power!
I adore that groove/mantra they get into at the end of X-french Tee Shirt, and those changeups they'll do go places :D
The way they were able to juggle discord (they were signed to dischord haha) and melody is incredibly unique. Dissonance, noise, odd time signatures and beautifully absurd lyrics make them so great. 🔥
Edit: Dillinger, nice. I spoke to Allen from Shiner/The Life and Times and asked about STT and he professed his love for them and the Pony Express Record
Great comment man! For sure I can imagine there are so many bands that are into STT big time, they definitely make Music for Musicians for sure but also with the Pop & Melodic sensibilities that a lot of “Music for Musicians” severely lacks! A truly unique band!
One of my favorite albums of all time
Oh this is amazing, I've lowkey loved these guys since I was like 16. I've come to the point now where I feel like they were a good 20 years ahead of their time
Easily one of the best most underappreciated bands of the era.
A bit harsh to call Get Your Goat 'a turd album' , it's great!
That's the dodgy Irish Bogger accent kicking in
hahahahahahaha
Thanks for doing this Nathan, really good stuff.
Thank You for the music Stuart! You guys made some incredible music, this video was the least I could do to celebrate it!
Incredible band, Incredible album, but DO NOT forget "Get Your Goat", it's an equally brilliant album. Bizarrely, as an Irishman, you might get a kick out of the fact that DaveFanning played "Love Catastrophe" off that album quite a bit back when it was released. He didn't touch Pony Express Record at all, oddly enough.
This rules. What a wonderful distillation
Love this record...I always thought it would be interesting to have been a fly on the wall when they turned the final product in to the record company... I'm sure there were some of the suits thinking "what did we just finance" lol
Been listening to them for years. An underground gem.
The last time I saw them play was in Boston, opening for Dinosaur Jr. Most of the kids had come to see Dinosaur Jr, but not me. Everyone was standing there with their little backpacks on, as was the style at the time, politely watching S2T. But there was one kid who was bouncing around like a pinball, bumping into everybody, and mouthing all of the words. When he saw my S2T t-shirt, he stopped bouncing around, and yelled to me, “You get it man! You get it!” I thought that was so perfect. In another setting, I probably would have found this guy completely annoying. But in this context, it seemed appropriate. Most people didn’t really “get” this band. But those that did, thought they were the best thing ever.
I love this, such a fantastic story. I'm very envious of you, although I must admit, I think S2T were so ahead of the curve that I would've probably been one of the people that didn't get it.
Best rock record of the nineties.
Can’t believe I haven’t come across this
Excellent work! Much like King’s X, these guys have always been a favorite of other musicians. It doesn’t pay the bills but it is a hallowed place to be held in such regard from the people that get it.
I certainly dig King's X as well.
Thanks for this awesome essay! I have loved Shudder to Think since "Curses, Spells, Voodoo, Mooses" came out. I must've first seen them live around 1990. I've also got a Nathan story from when we were 15ish that I won't share here.... BUT unless I'm mistaken you didn't mention Stuart AT ALL. Give the man some credit! He had the best hair in the band.
Wow, I gotta admit, I'm very jealous. I'd kill to see them live but I doubt a tour of Ireland would be on the books if they ever did reunite. I'd love to hear your story about Nathan, if you feel like sharing it. And you absolutely right, I definitely should've mentioned Stuart in the video, it really stuck out to me after I re-watched the video a few times but as with most video essay on bands, the bassist is often the one that's forgotten, I'll try and improve on that next time.
What's left to say -- a priceless essay on an insanely underrated band.
Thank you very much for this essay. It's good that younger people starting to apprechiate the music of the like of Shudder and Jawbox, and how they inspired pop music.
Hey there, Ned from Spain here to say a gigantic thank you for making this video about. STT are amazing and this album is one of the great twisted wonders that a major label somehow, put out and promoted. I wish you would've mentioned that Wedren can't remember Chakka's lyrics which were lost or never written down. I've tried to figure them out to no avail. My late 80s band in NYC played a show with them and Craig was really complementary to us but I can't remember a thing about the show. As a drummer I must say both Mike Russell and Adam Wade, who's on "Pony.." are fantastic players.
Thanks for you comment! I wish I'd mentioned it too but that's actually a new fact for me so thank you for that.
I doubled checked after seeing someone post lyrics to Chakka but they're wrong. Adam Wade did an interview and thank the Lawd said that the opening lyrics are in fact pure gibberish. Like when you sing but don't really know the lyrics. @@campion95
And don't forget the supergroup "Mind Science of the Mind", a collab project of Nathan Larsson with Mary Timony of Helium
So great to see this band and the masterpiece Pony-get its due. Changed my life.
I couldnt agree more
10,000 BC may have been less daring or more mainstream but i LOVE that album too. Resident Wine and All Eyes are Different, really great stuff there
50,000 BC. And I absolutely love it too. Red House & Resident Wine are two of my all time favorite songs.
Thank you, I'm always trying to sell people on this band, and you made it easier to do with this video.
Pony Express Record was pretty much the soundtrack to my junior high/high school years. I'm 41 and I still listen to that album and to STT regularly. PER is funny because, it sounds good and right to my ears, even though it's weird as shit, but I always forget that when I show it to someone, just expecting them to obviously love it too lol
Love Shudder to think
+1 sub. i agree, STT is an incredible band that makes other bands sound like a joke. thanks for posting.
A beautiful little film about the music that has pretty much been the soundtrack to the last 25 years of my life.
Thank You so much! It must’ve been amazing hearing this album at the time of release. Even though I only discovered their music in the past year, it still feels so fresh and innovative.
@@campion95 And I promise it will never get old! I saw them touring for "Pony Express Record" in 1995, opening for the Foo Fighters on their first tour, then again in '97 for "50,000 B.C.," also a masterpiece. The '95 show happened to fall on Pat Smear's birthday, and Craig dedicated "No Rm. 9" to him.
This is a fucking cool analysis. I may finally get into this band now so long after the fact. I remember when they were popular in the 90s and liking it but not understanding.. I wasn't ready for it at the time.
You're a legend for making this video
I saw them live twice in San Diego back then. Offstage they seemed pretty chill as well. Epic album
One of my favs, I had no idea of their history. Thank you
Greatest band ever! Thank you for making this.
So good! Thank you Nathan!!!
Thank you for your kind comment!
greatest band ever
GREAT band
I tend to like odd bands like this, bands that just do their own thing and not care if people "get it"
Great job on this! Funnily enough, despite their riffing of the band and their music, Beavis and Butthead were my gateway to this band when I was about 11. I never forgot the sound of Hit Liquor, even into my twenties and thirties, and one day I followed that memory to the rest of their catalogue and absolutely loved it. I had a stretch of about 3 months where I would listen to "Abysmal Yellow Popcorn Wall" at least once a day.
One of The best bands of their or any era. Great melody and angularity, delicacy and power, and memorable SONGS. Should be remembered with the best of the best. Where the band ended up musically, is all the more impressive when you follow along from where they started. Funeral at the movies, ten spot, get your goat - all classics!
Well done sir. Well done.🙏🏾🤘🏾✊🏾
Thank you.
You're welcome! I'm glad you enjoyed!
one of my first punk shows was Shudder To Think, Swiz, & Verbal Assault at a church in DC. I sat outside & watched a van drop of Shudder & their equipment & was struck that they were just kids (i was 16)- They were the best band that day & I was really impressed by the bespectacled, singing drummer. As a local band, they stood out among other great local bands, by not sounding like any of them.
Phenomenal documentary work!
Oh the many many copies of Pony Express Record on CD I gave away(and bought again and again) to share with anyone that showed even a little interest in the band.
One of my favorites nights(shows) was seeing Shudder to Think and Sunny Day Real Estate together in NYC. Two bands that would release the two best albums of the 90's.
Great job! Hope you make more videos.
Thank you very much man! I surely will eventually, I just need to find a topic that I feel passionate enough about and isn't already done to death.
Amazing video. Thank you again.
What an amazing tribute to this band!! I saw these guys a couple of times, once opening for Fugazi. Met Stuart Hill twice and he was always so kind. I still listen to their music all the time.
Phenomenal video, I love shudder to think!
Love this video, wish I could deep dive into your vids. Make more!
Thank you for your kind comment Mick! I wish I could find the time to make more, I hope to eventually so keep an eye out!
best coverage evar
Tremendous work. It's lovely to hear someone dig into this album and pull out all the love. Thank you.
Great job on this one. It's also great to see that band members noticed and liked it.
Good man yourself Nathan, saw them supporting Fugazi at Brixton Academy and it was... a very pleasant surprise
Thank you very much Liam! I envy you, that’s a hell of a lineup! I’d kill to see STT Live, it’d be a beautiful to see a reunion and a cheeky Irish date!
My favourite STT moment is on Get Your Goat when it sounds like he's singing "I'm brown pudding you to sleep". He very well may be... ah well, we'll always have the Glow soundtrack!
Great video. I've been a fan of this band since high school. Their music is so good.
Thanks for the comment man! I wish I had found them when I was that young but honestly I say wouldn't have even understood the genius of their music back then.
This was fucking excellently written and delivered. Perfect balance of storytelling and analysis on such a beautiful and strange album.
This video deserves so many more views, and this band deserves so many more listens.
Great job!
I love this! But you didn't even really get into the sheer WEIRDNESS of this record, like Rm 9 Kentucky, Trackstar, etc. Best rock album ever? I think so...
Thank you! I would’ve loved to but I was keeping the tone as a general introduction to the band and this fantastic album. Perhaps in the future I could dive deeper into it but unfortunately it’s hard to find the time. With the rise of Black MIDI and Black Country New Road, hopefully we’ll see more creators take a second look at this album which undoubtedly inspired this whole new wave of weird rock!
LOVE
Amazing video and amazing band. Well done
Nice work! What an album.
Great video man!
As far as I am concerned they are the best band that ever came out of DC.
good work fella ... a very special band
Awesome man! Really cool editing and loves the ending 👌 kepp it up!
Thanks Man!!!
Awesome Nath!!
Thanks Ves!!
This was outstanding
Thank you very much Joshua, I’m glad you enjoyed it!
I'm so confused. My cynicism knows no bounds. I thought this was a parody *of* video essays about lesser known musical artists, and hyperbolic music criticism. "A band that was forgotten", "from an alternative universe"... I know your game! I was marvelling over how well constructed all the incidental footage was, and the filters used really DID make them look like videos from the 90s, and how the person that did Jeff Buckley's voice was hilarious. And thought "You know what, I actually wish this band was real, I like the sound of them". And then thought the comments were all on-point tongue-in-cheek impressions of know-it-all youtube commenters - making up album names which you forgot to mention like "50'000BC" - omg yes that is such a typical album name for a navalgazing rock outfit. And the album covers showed so much understanding of design cliche's in cover art.
Dubbing over live footage of other bands was a genious touch. And wow you must have *made* some of the footage, haha the IMDB is there... it's publicly edited so that makes sense. Oh the music videos exist, guess you have to do something with the outtakes and broaden the hoax... and then I see "Uploaded 10 years ago" and after briefly wondering if RUclips was in on it, everything fell apart and I don't know what's real anymore.
I want to enjoy Shudder To Think, but how will I shake the feeling that that they're an incredibly well constructed hoax? Does it matter? Does being privvy to an excellently curated reconstructed corner of rock music history have as much to offer me as the mythology of being 'in the know'? Is the intersubjective abstraction of parody so closely akin to the subversion of musical and lyrical expectations expressed by intelligent and revolutionary artists to render the distinction meaningless? What is love? Baby don't hurt me?
You also forgot to mention the 1995 E.P. Switchblade Kangaroo which was released on Spontaneously Conceived Records, but never found widespread appeal despite breaking such musical ground that it was even cited by music critic Simon Reynolds, as "The single most important musical release of the late 20th century".
This is an amazing comment.
Are you Andy Kaufman?
I LOVE THIS ALBUM SO MUCH!!!!!
Great video! Always love your video essays even if I don't know anything about the topic lmao
Thanks man! Haha, probably down to the fact that I keep choosing topics that are way too niche
@@campion95 just niche enough in my books 😎👉👉