I Pose A Question

[sodamntired]

Now I, among with many others, consider Audio Of Being to be Matthew Good Band's best album.

 

I was listening to the album and thought about how they broke up over it's recording.

 

Do you think the inner-turmoil within the band during it's recording could have resulted in it's excellence?

 

Just wondering what everyone thought.

[pintosack]

ya, there might be some truth in the fact that when a band is amongst a great deal of tension they produce really great work. Take Siamese Dream for example -> one of the best albums of all time, and it was wrote while the pumpkins were having big problems.....

 

maybe it forces each person to play at their best...

[Jay]

I definitely think there's truth to that, as it seemed to bring about much more vivid lyrics. AoB was the most moving album I've ever listened to, MGB or otherwise.

[heyrabbit]

I don't know if this is true but it seems like Dave's influence in the songs became less and less with each album. Personally, underdogs and beautiful midnight are my favorite albums.They were "Matthew Good Band", not just Matthew Good.

Edited January 5, 2005 by heyrabbit

[guitarchick]

I think Matthews illness had a lot to do with it.

[ecnarf]

When I hear AoB, the music seems t osound a bit hollow. DOn't get me wrong, it's a great album, but it sounds like Matt wanted to experiment more with the music, take it a step further, but the other band members didn't like that.

 

I can hear a lot of places where the instrumentation sorta sounds a bit hollow, or it could have gone a step further, like in "the workers sing a song of mass production"

[cavalier_eternal]

i haven't even heard all of aob yet. but it's rather dark, based on what i've heard.

 

if depression makes for good art, perhaps i'm on my way to creating something decent.

[wentwj68]

I think Beautiful Midnight was my favorite MGB cd, but Audio of Being is defently close, and its one of those CDs that once it gets itself into the CD player it doesn't come out for some time. And i could see turmoil bringing out hte best in the band, every person would want to showcase their talents and try to outdo each other. Not sure if that's the case, but I could see it happening.

[Mr. Chips]

If you read the old manifestos Matt talks about the break up and the whole aob thing. He said that the songs on that album where examples of everyone in the band traveling in different music directions.

 

Suffering has produced some of the best art in the world. The situation before the break up definetly contributed to it's greatness.

[mrs jesus]

ya, there might be some truth in the fact that when a band is amongst a great deal of tension they produce really great work. Take Siamese Dream for example -> one of the best albums of all time, and it was wrote while the pumpkins were having big problems.....

 

maybe it forces each person to play at their best...

maybe so..

 

when fleetwood macs rumours album came out, you know,

there were two couples whose relationships were ending..

im sure that was just a tiny bit tramuatic for everyone

 

and a lot of people consider rumours the best mac album..

im sure that all has something to do with it

 

<shrug>

[xcham]

To the original question - Absolutely. I've done some of my best writing when under pressure from team members. I'd imagine others are the same way.

[bryce]

Definitely inner turmoil causes greater writing. There are more feelings and thoughts to inspire songs, basically.

[sedated19]

yeah the turmoil seems to have made them "think out of the box"

[here is no why]

I agree, you write a lot better when you have a lot of shit to work out with the rest of your band. Especially if two members could hardly talk to eachother. There is a lot of raw energy in the album, thats the angst and turmoil that Matt and the rest of the band were going through at the time.

 

That is why it is my fav. MGB album.

[timotheory]

I think Beautiful Midnight was my favorite MGB cd, but Audio of Being is defently close, and its one of those CDs that once it gets itself into the CD player it doesn't come out for some time. And i could see turmoil bringing out hte best in the band, every person would want to showcase their talents and try to outdo each other. Not sure if that's the case, but I could see it happening.

Pretend I said that.

[THE MAN]

Its incredibly true that bands being in rough times create great CD's. Theres too many to name here. Look at "in utero" by nirvana or "rocks" by aerosmith. The list goes on and on. Anthony Kedis said it perfectally in a line from californication:

 

"Destruction leads to a very rough road but it also breeds creation"

 

Brilliant

[tempest]

Its incredibly true that bands being in rough times create great CD's. Theres too many to name here. Look at "in utero" by nirvana...

Nirvana was ripping apart at the seams during the production of that album. Although I'd have to agree with you that it's an incredible album, "in utero" is more of the destruction of one man recorded sonically for everyone to hear.

 

There's more than just teen angst there, but it's not the internal band chemistry (or lack thereof) that caused in utero to be great.

 

Then again that Do Re Mi song off with the lights out is more of what made in utero so damn great, personal destruction.

 

I'd prefer my rock stars in crippling depression, and i realize that makes me a bad person.

[regularguy]

without question, his greatest album "artistically speaking" was White Light Rock and Roll review. It seems, that Matt just keeps getting better and better.

[uglyredhonda]

Nirvana was ripping apart at the seams during the production of that album.

Off-topic, but I wouldn't describe it that way. The record was recorded and mixed in two weeks (save for the minor additions and mixing in later weeks). Kurt's life had been a mess the previous year, but the band was still functioning as a whole. The real "tearing apart at the seams" came during and after the 1994 European tour.

[Sinael]

The quintessential break-up album: Third/Sister Lovers.

[Mick]

My pesonal favorite album is Beautiful Midnight.

 

I have heard of the theory that inner-turmoil to make the Audio of Being a good album previously and I agree with it. It is very possible that this turmoil was influencial in creating such a solid album.

[Kharmalina]

While I agree with the theory regarding egos and trying to get people to out-do one another, I think it was more detrimental to the album than good for it. I mean, don't get me wrong, I really dig AoB, but it's not even among my top 5 MG/B recordings. While it's good, I feel that it's missing something that Beautiful Midnight before it and Avalanche after it both had. That little extra something that makes an album great. It is a dark album, but I think Beautiful Midnight was just as dark and insanely better [that's my #1]. If you're going in different musical directions in a hostile environment, I don't think it's possible to make your greatest recording ever.