Good Morning!
Today we’re listening to “Scorpio Rising” by 10,000 Maniacs
I’ve always associated 10,000 maniacs’ very specific, very literate sound with universities. And not just any university, but somewhere like Dartmouth (sorry, Hurricane fans). It’s a sound that, to me, has always felt more at home on a campus with a vibrant field hockey program than on the Billboard charts.
The Wishing Chair came out when I was in elementary school, but it has always been a record I connected with the older siblings of my friends who would come home on school breaks with all kinds of new music for us to listen to (or overhear in the hallway coming from their bedrooms). I imagine it sounded the same in the dorm halls, too.
The band peaked with Our Time In Eden—that album shows a band that has refined its sound over a few records and is comfortable in its own skin. Natalie Merchant has a voice like none other, but a competent rest of the band backs her. It feels very polished and very much of the era (this would also mark the end of Merchant’s time in the band).
1985’s The Wishing Chair also feels very much of its time- and much more in line with what most people would associate with college rock. This was their first record to see widespread distribution. It’s not their debut, but you’d be excused from thinking it was. Drawing a comparison with mid 80’s REM is easy, and it doesn’t hurt that Joe Boyd was behind the boards for this and Fables of the Reconstruction.
Like the earlier work of their friends from Athens, it’s a little rougher around the edges and drenched in much more jangle than In My Tribe, or Eden would be. There is still a bit of rawness. There’s room for looseness. “Scorpio Rising” represents the last of that. Refinement and the band’s signature august sound would come later; the group was trying to find their footing at this point.
With the benefit of hindsight, it might be seen as w work in progress, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth checking out. Even here, it’s already clear that Natalie Merchant is the engine for this group; her vocals already fully formed. At this early stage, there’s a purity & power to her voice. The band isn’t too far behind her, either, and while In My Tribe would mark a shift to a smoother sound, at this point, there was still room for a bit of kicks rock on their set lists.
Tracks like “Hey Jack Kerouac” and “These Are The Days” graduated 10,000 maniacs to pop stardom and a permanent spot on the playlists of upscale boutiques worldwide. The Wishing Chair and “Scorpio Rising” are a snapshot of the band on the way.
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Finally the release also excels as it has some of their most muscular bass oriented tracks on it, that include the true album stand out of Scorpio Rising (see below), My Mother the War and Colonel Wing.
These tracks have a rumbling, grumbling quality that eptomises what the best bands of the college rock era (R.E.M / Miracle Legion etc) were doing at the time and with the beautiful intensity and strength of the Merchant vocals and her politically agitated lyrics, these tracks sit extremely comfortably in such exalted company.
Click here to read the rest of the review.
Listen:
“Scorpio Rising” by 10,000 Maniacs | The Wishing Chair, 1985
Click the record to listen on the platform of your choice.
As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this track!
Thanks for being here,
Kevin—
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I will forever love 10KManiacs. Don’t forget the majesty of that Unplugged album.
I absolutely LOVE 10,000 Maniacs!!!! I’ve seen Natalie Merchant more times than I can remember. The first time I saw 10,000 Maniacs they were playing William and Mary and I had won a front row center seat. They were amazing!!!! I have all of their CDs.