Records: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion's Acme

By Nathaniel Rich

It is not surprising that The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion's new album, Acme, does not try to top the frantic energy of the band's last release, Now I Got Worry (1996). That album opened with 20 seconds of Spencer's tortured screaming amplified over a tight drumbeat, and the pace never really slowed down. In the wake of Worry, Acme feels like one long breakdown--the morning after. Nowhere on this album does the rawness of Extra Width or the mix of blues and rock perfected on Orange surface. Even Russell Simins, perhaps the decade's most talented rock drummer, is restrained, unable to show off his knee-breaking beats as much as in the past. As Spencer himself explains in "High Gear," "I drink more egg nog than malt liquor."

Nevertheless, Acme signifies the completion of a steady progression for the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, and it is the group's richest, most dynamic album ever. For Acme, the band has culled the best elements from its past musical experiments (organs from Orange, Beck's and the Automator's scratching on Experimental Remixes, Calvin Johnson's edginess on Worry). Spencer still yells his mantra, "The blues is number one," but on this album he follows it with, "but I don't play no blues, I play rock and roll." This time around, Spencer's rock has implosions as well as explosions. The pace varies, and as a result the eruptions are all the more compelling. And you can dance to it.

Take, for instance, "Do You Wanna Get Heavy?" which begins with calm strumming and Spencer's best imitation of a deep voice, with backup vocals by a gospel chorus singing bass. Unexpectedly, Judah Bauer's trebly guitar and Simins' heavy backbeat burst in, and the song regains the Blues Explosion's trademark edge.

Yet the real power of this band cannot be contained by your dorm room boom box. The Blues Explosion's albums only give the band a foundation for their famously hypnotic live performances. Don't be fooled by Acme's relaxed tone; most of these seemingly mild-mannered songs are ready to explode on stage. Jon Spencer still wants to get heavy. (Matador/Capitol)

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