I wasn’t really sure what to expect with this album. Sure, I’d heard their live album Stop Making Sense a handful of times while growing up, so I knew from tracks like “Psycho Killer” that they could be weird. But I wasn’t ready for this album to groove so hard. The first three tracks alone are chaotic, claustrophobic dance tracks that groove over a clattering of multi-layered drum cadences, and they are only undermined by the fact that they’re preceding one of the greatest rock tracks in the history of the genre (or at least, one of my favorite rock tracks of all time) “Once in a Lifetime”. From there the album takes a darker turn, immersing the listener in a moodier, more introspective atmosphere while still maintaining enough of a bass backbone to get the listeners head bobbing, or at least nodding. If the beginning of the album is a dance party, the end is the conclusion where, after reaching ecstasy through movement and expression, the party-goers are sent shuffling out into the dark and the cold to maybe see the world with clearer, more sober eyes, and I’m here for it. “The Overload”, at first glance, doesn’t sound on paper like the right closer for an album that starts off so high energy, but in context it’s perfect. Seductive and haunting, it’s easy to see how this track might go on to influence bands like Duran Duran, or even one of my favorite bands, The Deftones.
In general, there’s not too much to dislike about this album. The Talking Heads, inspired by African drum circles, funk, hip-hop, and the immaculate production of Brian Eno, hit a lot of the right notes with this one. It’s funky enough to make you want to dance, but heady enough to draw you back in for deeper analysis with its intricate lyrics and multilayered instrumentation. And while I haven’t been able to dig into the nature of the lyrics, I’m intrigued to the point (much to my wife’s dismay… David Byrne’s voice isn’t for everyone) where I’ll be returning to it multiple times over the years and can easily see myself recommending it to family and friends who haven’t yet dug into the strange, funky, trance-y world of Remain in Light.
My Rating: 4/5
The Word and The Song 