In its first release of live performances from “120 Minutes,” MTV has outdone itself in its exploitation of alternative music.
Though the album includes exciting and popular artists, it sucks the life from new music. Music fans are looking for something fresh and never done before. MTV 120 Minutes Live (Atlantic Records) is not the place to look for innovation.
The first song on the album is “Supersonic” by Oasis. Unfortunately, Oasis has been played-out by MTV itself. No one really cares about the band, even with its recent break up. While Oasis performed “Supersonic” live, it still sounds dead. Instead of the opener, “Supersonic” should be buried in later tracks. It only demonstrates further what MTV can do to good music.
MTV did something right when it included Weezer’s “Undone (The Sweater Song).” But it failed to capture Weezer’s live performance abilities. It’s a positive thing that instead of opting for “Buddy Holly,” the slightly less overplayed “Undone” was included.
MTV almost makes this album something to buy just by including PJ Harvey, Morphine, Bad Religion and Victoria Williams with Lou Reed. MTV has shown it has an eye for talent, sometimes.
This lineup also demonstrates the album is not as homogenous as it seems. PJ Harvey, with her deep voice and forceful lyrics, does not seem to be in the same genre as the loud and hard Bad Religion. Neither do Lou Reed and Porno for Pyros.
Sex Pistols was a driving force in alternative music when it first hit the music scene, so, wisely, MTV added it to the list. “Pretty Vacant” is not the band’s best song, but by including it, MTV obviously researched for the release.
Though most of the songs sound identical to their original recordings, a few performances are quite good. The Violent Femmes’ live version of “Kiss Off” gives fans a fresher look at an old song. Vocals and guitar solos have been altered from the original recording. Likewise, “Aeroplane” by Bj?rk has been changed from her album version.
They Might Be Giants took the opportunity to change “Particle Man” a little. Using only an acoustic guitar, accordion and one singer, the band managed to make this hollow-sounding song sound even more hollow. Any depth in the original version is lost in the live one. However, it does show the band really can play instruments. And, as always, the band’s humor stays in the foreground.
“Crazy Mary” performed by Victoria Williams and Loud Reed is the highlight of the live album. Even with Williams’ nasally voice, the song comes out as a beautiful acoustic piece. Reed’s amazing ability on the guitar shines. Both demonstrate they can improvise with their mingling voices.
Radiohead could have taken the chance to change its lullaby-sounding “Fake Plastic Trees,” but did not. If anything, Radiohead slowed the song even more. Though the performance showcases the band’s talent for evoking emotion, it still makes listeners skip to the next song out of boredom. Too bad it’s the last track.
MTV could have used this album to show it can do what it purports to do: bring new music to its watchers. But MTV fails again. It is as stagnant as ever.
