csberry | 290 - Talking Heads - Talking Heads '77

With a stuttering sound and a warbling, hiccuppy vocal, the Talking Heads made their recorded debut with this album. The band created a collection of songs that played with shifting tempos, staggered rhythms, spare instrumentation, and odd guitar tunings. The songs aren't particularly avant garde and still maintain basic pop song conventions...just with a few quirky twists here and there. How many other bands were writing songs from the POV of a killer or in satirical praise of the good works and intentions of government projects and the politicians behind them?

What stood out to me quite a bit when focusing on Talking Heads '77 is how the instrumentation on the songs sound so spare and yet contain a variety of sounds from horns, chimes, keyboard, and steel drums. The staggered rhythms help break up the sounds from being layered on top of each other and, instead, they exist in rhythmic pockets along side each other.

Another aspect of the rhythm section is how funky the songs are. I found myself wanting to dance with the groove. At the same time, the time changes and use of rests/false stops makes dancing difficult.

Songs I knew I liked: "Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town," "Who Is It?," "The Book I Read," "Don't Worry About the Government," "Psycho Killer," and "Pulled Up."

Songs I didn't know but now like: I own the album and have listened to it quite a bit the past couple of years, so no surprises during this listen.

Songs I can go the rest of my life without hearing again: None.