It's easy to confuse an album being difficult to write about with an album being less than pleasant to listen to. Was Dead is a blast, and I really don't know where to go from there in my critical assessment. So I instead turn to the tarot deck for guidance. I am told that the cards do not tell my future, but rather help reveal a hidden part of myself.
You feel confused, vulnerable and full of doubts. However, all is not as it seems. Feel the fear and do it anyway, because all will turn out well. Expect the new and unexpected to show up and welcome it into your life.
Your turbulent emotions are muddying the waters so step back and try to find clarity of mind, no matter how difficult this proves to be. Things may seem tough or confusing but stick with it, it's right for you.
Your turbulent emotions are muddying the waters so step back and try to find clarity of mind, no matter how difficult this proves to be. Things may seem tough or confusing but stick with it, it's right for you.
The music itself is not confusing. The opposite, really. It's clean and simple and you can't mistake it for anything else. Maybe the confusion stems from not understanding how this style of music had survived 60-plus years as a viable sound.
Think about it. Draw a line from here to, like, the Kingsmen for a well-known example. That line is pretty straight! It's comfort, not confusion, that we're still rocking out to those three-minute guitar-led hooky garage rock jams, after so many decades. The confusion is: why? What is it about this music that makes it stick? Or is it just me?
Doesn't matter. Like the cards say, I lean into the confusion. I embrace it. I let it smother me.
"And anyone and everyone will turn their heads to me,To meeeeeee,Just strut, just strut."
Right now you want to have someone around you that you can trust and confide in, knowing that they won't let you down.
There are moral issues here, knowing right from wrong, and you may feel that you need some advice or wise counsel from a teacher, priest, parent or someone you have a lot of respect for, in order to help you make the right decision.
I know there are people out there who aren't into this kind of thing. I haven't read any of the other reviews yet, but think about it—King Tuff is playing Johnny Brenda's, and not, like, Wells Fargo Center. The audience is smaller. I gotta assume that the majority of the people in my life, maybe even some of the musically-inclined, are going to dismiss this shit. Which is wild to me, and makes me feel disoriented. Who to turn to? A fucking priest?! Give me a break. Nah, King Tuff is my confidant right now.
Just think about how he bends time into a circle, creating an album that sounds like it could've influenced some of the classic rock giants, when really it was the other way around (e.g. tell me you didn't hear mad T. Rex vibes on "Lady," or VU on "Stone Fox," etc.). You keep bending that shit, and at a certain point, it goes from "of a time" to "timeless."
"You know you give me sweet feelings in my ears,You know you give me sweet smiles instead of tears."
You are afraid of making the wrong decisions. There is a warning here that foolhardy, impetuous actions could lead to major problems.
Perhaps you feel that you don't have control over a situation, either personal or professional. You may feel unable to complete a task or stay in a current relationship and fear the consequences of your decisions. Perhaps you know deep down that what you want isn't really such a good thing.
I don't want to just like Was Dead. I want to LOVE it. And I don't know if I'm going to get all the way there. Another rough week, though better than last for sure. I'll be honest, too, that King Tuff is an artist I've liked for a while, but have never dived this far back for. This is his first album! It's really good but occasionally... underbaked?
If this was my first shot, I'd be over the moon. I'd be really excited to move through the discography. But I already think that the next one, his self-titled, is one of the best albums of the 2010s. I already am really impressed by The Other, his 2018 effort, and how it upends the garage rock aesthetic and pushes deeper into psychedelia. I'll be shocked if the songs we hear at Johnny Brenda's in March—probably mostly the songs from Smalltown Stardust, which dropped seven hours before this review did—aren't uniformly fantastic and fun.
Was Dead can't be a misstep because it was the first step. Can't fault a baby for being a little wobbly before they gain their footing.
"And I want ya,I want your whole fucking world!!"
You may be overambitious at this time. Success may remain just out of your reach for a while. Are you being assertive and positive enough? Or are you using aggressive, bullying tactics to no avail?
Do not misuse your authority. If you have requested help from a strong, successful man, don't let him bully you—he either helps or leaves you to get on with things yourself.
Success is always out of reach. What I yearn for in this space is confidence and contentment. I want to know, and I want to know that I know, and I want to relax with that knowledge. Never going to happen. There's just too much world out there. Too much of this world specifically. I might even feel sometimes like one could know too much. You might hear a garage rocker sing something like "It's alright / it's a gas," and a bell rings in your head, yes, yes, it's a reference to "Jumpin' Jack Flash," and that sends you down a rabbit hole with the other lyrics, and it leads nowhere.
Aggressive, though? You tell me. Would you have preferred I called it a "bop" and left it at 178 words?
The Sun: The likely outcome
The Sun is shining on you—it's your time for success, joy and happiness. You will feel confident and full of vitality.
It's a time to celebrate with friends and loved ones, perhaps enjoy a well-earned holiday, a time of pleasure and good news around children or the conception or birth of a longed-for baby.
If you are not feeling this way take heart, you will enter this period soon.
My faith in the tarot cards has run out. I am in the second week of the semester, so I don't think it's time yet for a holiday. No more conceptions of children, as this week I literally scheduled a referral appointment for a vasectomy.
"I'm all loved out,I'm all loved out."
The Sun is shining on you—it's your time for success, joy and happiness. You will feel confident and full of vitality.
It's a time to celebrate with friends and loved ones, perhaps enjoy a well-earned holiday, a time of pleasure and good news around children or the conception or birth of a longed-for baby.
If you are not feeling this way take heart, you will enter this period soon.
My faith in the tarot cards has run out. I am in the second week of the semester, so I don't think it's time yet for a holiday. No more conceptions of children, as this week I literally scheduled a referral appointment for a vasectomy.
Okay, fine, it's time for joy and happiness. It's King Tuff Week. Those who knew him from before knew this was going to be a good one. I talked about how he leveled up in future releases, but I also want to say that I love this artist and this album exactly how it is. "Freak When I'm Dead" says it best—King Tuff will never change. That's a win for us. I'd walk with King Tuff till death.
"Just another sinner, just a lost soul,So dress me up nice and throw me in a hole."
GRADE: 4 pukes out of 5
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