The Jesus Lizard, retrospectively, was one of the progressively noisy bands to fit the punk rock genre. On “Shot,” their 8th release, the noise prevails, but only rarely does it drown out the musical genius of Yow, et. al.
Upon one’s first experience of the album, “Shot” may only be considered a mediocre Jesus Lizard album. After a couple of weeks, however, listening to the album in traffic, in the summer heat, and through headphones, the multiple layers of musical and lyrical value begin to rise. Yow is noticeably sly on “Shot,” especially in the songs “Good Riddance,” “Skull of a German,” “More Beautiful than Barbie,” and “Mailman.”
Yet some of the greatest of all Jesus Lizard lyrics shine on “Trephination,” which is “Down’s” seventh track. The mode of delivery, embodied by a desperate phone call from one friend to another, is a stylistic break from other Jesus Lizard songs-a poetic move that further displays the creativity the members of Jesus Lizard deliver on a consistent basis.
Another display of the Jesus Lizard genius: the album’s production. On “Down,” friend and long-time producer Steve Albini makes his presence known. For the most part, and anyone who’s seen Jesus Lizard live knows this, Jesus Lizard songs are best heard in their purest, rawest form. Albini knew this as well, and managed to compliment Jesus Lizard’s style with his own talent.
But it’s Jesus Lizard’s talent that shines on “Shot.” Some of Jesus Lizard’s most interesting instrumentation is present on this short, but sweet, album. The guitar riffs on “Thumbscrews” remain, to this day, some of Duane Denison’s signature sounds. More memorable instrumentation comes on the final track, “Pervertedly Slow,” which sounds exactly how it’s titled-not because of any explicit perversion, but because it’s so slow and groovy it’s impossible to avoid perverted, dirty, dirty thoughts.
Yet what’s the most interesting aspect of this track is the possibility that it may have been recorded at full speed; Albini may have played a part in injecting some of his own perversion into the track, or at least that’s how it sounds to the objective listener.
But it’s the pervertedly (sic) fast songs that dominate “Shot.” That’s right; (and this may come as a real shocker to Jesus Lizard fans) “Shot” rocks, in a multitude of ways. There’s a quintessential, smoky basement rock on tracks like “Blue Shot.”
There’s a sneering, bat-swinging rock on tracks like “Good Riddance.” And there’s some of the freshest, windows-down rock on tracks like “Trephination.” Regardless of what the songs evoke, however, the entirety of “Shot” is noisy-in a good way-and undoubtedly genius.
