Suicide Albums

1977

Suicide - 92%

         It's funny how a brief, 31 minute album can change the world. Worked on and refined for several years, the debut album by Suicide aka duo of Alan Vega on vocals and Martin Rev on electronic keyboards/ bass/ drums was something completely different. 7 songs, all made the same way but showing a breadth of different genres from rockabilly via electronics ("Johnny"), punk via electronics (" Ghost Rider", a childhood Marvel comics obsession) or chill ballads for a ballerina recital (“Cheree"). "Rocket Usa" shines above all else, a pulsating bass by the synthesizer backed by lyrics about the present 1977 for them that is a sermon on the state of the world.

       The vocals by Alan Vega show a smart satirical take on tradition from Elvis Presley mutated through echo effects - think "Hunka Hunka Burnin Love"- or an excited child with his first crush is the adolescent "Girl", though that's probably the weakest song on the album. All songs have a sense of excitement via dread, and it all culminates in " Frankie Teardrop", a song that is ten minutes of a spin of The Doors "The End" from 1967 and tells the saga of a warped Vietnam Vet that ends up murdering his family because of the trauma he experienced. Turn the stereo down, the anguished screams echo more primal scream therapy than actual music (sometimes the music doesn’t exist at all beyond mere recitation) and it all ends with evil sounding synth wails and cacophony stating "we are all Frankies/ we are all in Hell."

      That song really feels like the end if the album, and maybe it should have been. The last song "Che" being sort of an afterthought and the single sometimes attached to the album "Dream Baby Dream" in retrospect feeling a more accurate ending, I usually treat this bonus track (though officially released a year later) as the album’s proper goodbye, as it is a more accessible version of the Suicide sound. In all, this opening salvo by the band does help show the diversity in punk rock, as there are absolutely no guitars/ it's all fueled by attitude and often overlooked emotional breakdown. A cry for help, but not for only Vega but for our society (and rock music at the time?) at large.

Best Songs: Rocket USA, Frankie Teardrop, Cheree

1980

The Second Album - 85%

With the second Suicide record, a lot has changed. For one, it’s 1980 now- the sound they have been harboring for years has been absorbed by the masses and in a way everyone sounds like Suicide now. Still, the band are the best at what they do- nervous energy through vocals and compelling and painstaking grooves though all the keyboard driven music. Keyboards mark such a role in the band as Martin Rev takes on the melodies, the rhythms, and the electronic drumming that form so many songs that makes him more of the protagonist. “Mr Ray” might be a cousin to the Velvet Underground, but a cute one that would never harm a fly. “Diamonds, Fur Coats and Champagne” has a more sinister vibe- one that the cousins Joy Division over in England might enjoy more- depressed, but happy about it. “Fast Money Music” feels cheap and easy, but has an influence never found before- Brian Eno and his happy sort of take on what keyboards can do- making it one of the band’s most fun songs.

Even better is “Harlem”, a sort of insane crescendo of possible noises and cacophony that keeps things constantly morphing. Closing duo tracks “Shadazz” and “Dance” point out even more that the band knows how to have fun when it wants to with different types of keyboard riffs and vocal reverb. There are a couple of songs that are among the band’s least successful (Be Bop Kid”, “Las Vegas Man”) and there is certainly nothing as life changing as “Frankie Teardrop” from the original album. Still, this more streamlined version of Suicide is something that could have led them to sell more records in the future. Unfortunately, this was the last album the band would make in their original line up, though both Rev and Vega’s solo outings are worth pursuing in the early 1980’s. Their impact on their world in two short releases and some killer singles, is substantial.

Best Songs: Fast Money Music, Harlem, Mr. Ray, Shadazz