This album has been on my queue for a little while now – I added it to my list after listening to Uh-Oh (1992) by David Byrne. I’ve never really checked out much of The Talking Heads, but I do enjoy Byrne’s solo work, and I also enjoy Eno’s former band, Roxy Music, quite a bit as well. I figured I’d take a look into Brian Eno a bit more with his debut album, Here Come the Warm Jets (1974). This album made it to number 26 on the U.K. Hot 100 charts, and seemed to be well received. I don’t really have a whole lot of experience with the art pop and glam rock genres that Wikipedia lists this album as, but I’m interested in hearing what this album has to offer. With that said, I’m going to go ahead and jump on into the music.
“Needles In the Camel’s Eye” gets going right away with some guitar work that reminds me a lot of later bands like Galaxie 500 in the cheery chaos that is the soundscape. The vocals are somewhat difficult to understand as they come through the spiraling guitars and drums around the soundscape. Oh wow, that guitar and/or bass part that seems to be the main focal point right now is really awesome. Holy smokes, this song has me on the edge of my seat with how dynamic the movement is within it. Oh wow, now there’s some sort of synth harmonizing with the background instrumentation and vocals from the sound of it, and it’s really sweet. There’s a ton of music within just this one song – I’m looking forward to the rest of the album.
Oh wow, “The Paw Paw Negro Blowtorch” has a super strange, nearly exaggerated sound in the vocals that are echoed by the guitar work – super awesome, especially as it continues roll over into itself. That messy, bopping bass is super sweet as it gets emphasized by the drums while simultaneously giving the vocals a nice platform to stand on. Oh wow, this one gets extremely strange, and extremely might even be an understatement. This is really interesting – I’m almost reminded of other later groups like XTC in this song. Really interesting tune with a really unique groove.
Oh wow, “Baby’s On Fire” segues into things really nicely from the previous song. Oh wow, this one has some really tasty notes and timbre, all while taking a relatively straightforward approach to this one. I’m really digging this one – especially as that tight guitar solo comes on and really belts out some great licks with some great distortion and tone. The rhythm section to this one gives off such a great feeling of anticipation that the guitar solo really relaxes and leans into in a really awesome way – almost as if the guitar and rhythm section somewhat cancel each other out while driving the tune forward still. Wow, this one is a really awesome extended jam. I’m really looking forward to the coming songs. Really awesome tune.
“Cindy Tells Me” takes an almost California, Beach Boys-esque approach in the lighthearted pop feeling in this one, all while retaining a bit of that strangeness evident throughout the album, which might be surmised to simply be a relatively accurate depiction of art pop and/or glam rock. Wow, there’s some strange synth or guitar effect that almost sounds like cicadas in the heat of summer, all while some bright piano and some simple drums and bass keeps the tune grooving forward. Wow, the instruments in this one really wash together really nicely. Really sweet tune.
Oh wow, “Driving Me Backwards” sounds like a discordant rendition of some old western saloon tune with the piano and the simple accompanying bass line. The vocals in this one seem to grate against one another, similar as they may be. There’s definitely a strangeness to this one as well. It’s almost turned into a song that would play overhead as you’re led into some strange, dark circus by a shadowy circus ringleader, and nearly sounds like something you’d hear in a Tim Burton movie. The strangeness really washes over the soundscape while leaving you absolutely bewildered. Eno harmonizing with himself while being unsure exactly what’s about to be sung is awesome. This tune is really sweet.
“On Some Faraway Beach” sounds like it teases a resolution of all the strangeness in the previous song – said resolution stays somewhat distant while the piano carries you through the tune and the drums, bass, and vocals remain distant while gently warming over the soundscape. Oh wow, I can’t tell if there’s a horn part or if that’s a synth, but it seems to cut between the distance and starts to tie things together. This album is really sweet, and definitely feels like a really awesome concept album, and could even be progressive rock to some degree. Oh wow, when the vocals come together the tune comes to an almost gospel-like crescendo between the ringing piano, the lifting synths, the steady drums, the sturdy bass, and the ethereal background vocals. Really nice tune.
“Blank Frank” comes on with a strange rock sound, which seems to take certain cues from psychedelic garage rock to some degree with the rawness present in this one, while all being washed together in an art rock fashion present throughout the album. Oh wow, the guitar on this one is absolutely awesome with the way it swishes together some really intense effects with some groovy licks. Wow, it almost sounds like a sort of menacing anthem for some dark merry-go-round at this point, and I’m digging it. Wow, the jamming in this one is, pretty awesome. Definitely a rockin’ tune.
“Dead Finks Don’t Talk” has a really familiar drum beat right at the start, and sounds like a building sort of rock beat. Oh wow, this piano has a really tasty, building blues-inflected style to them. Oh wow, there’s a howling vocal line that really seems to break this song down to a certain degree – almost as if certain instruments continually build up the tune while others seem to grate against the melody and provide some great contrast. I can hardly believe there are only two more songs left on this listen of this album; time has flown by. There’s some super avant-garde elements to this one at the end, much like the rest of the album so far, and it really keeps things fresh throughout. Wow, the end of this one is super discordant – I really dig it.
Wow, “Some of Them Are Old” seemingly breaks through the discordant ending of the previous tune with some super harmonious, melodic rock orchestration that really have a very lifting feeling. Oh wow, there’s some really tasty electric guitar or possibly electric ukulele that really melts into the playing while being propped up by some super simple congas (or something drum-like not typically found on a western music style drum kit). Wow, this tune is really sweet, and definitely sounds like it’s building up slowly throughout, while still giving room for the individual instrumentation to breathe nicely. The ending of the tune is very harmonious and melodic – possibly more than the beginning, though I’m not sure as I’ve been lost in the tune as it’s played. The outro has an almost space-like effect. Really nice tune.
Oh wow, “Here Come the Warm Jets” has some super interesting tone with the electric guitars while the drums and bass providing somewhat of a pulsating beat to the tune – nearly like a rapid heartbeat. The space-like synths from the end of the previous track are present in this, and almost sound like a whale singing in outer space, as if you’re gliding near the edge of the air. The drums slowly build and play something that contrasts quite a bit with the melody the guitars built up, but somehow gets them to fall in line as though the drums were some sort of conductor for an orchestra. There are some vocals that slowly fade in near the end and sort of melt together with the instrumentation. This is definitely a pleasant tune for the album to end on.
Wow, this album was really awesome. There’s an incredible amount of music in each track, causing the album to nearly feel longer than the 42 minutes it is, while still making time fly by. I can definitely hear a lot of similarities with David Byrne, though quite a few differences. I definitely noticed some familiar sounds of future rock related artists like Galaxie 500, XTC, and even Radiohead, though admittedly I do need to check out Radiohead a bit more in depth. Regardless, if you’re into rock music, especially that of the early 80s, you might want to check out this one, as it sounds to me like a relatively close ancestor to 80s rock. If you dig avant-garde rock music, this is definitely one to consider checking out too. And if you do decide to give this album a listen, I sincerely hope that you enjoy the experience at least as much as I did.
-A