Shudder To Think – Pony Express Record - 1994

Shudder To Think Biography: Shudder To Think formed in 1986 and were a part of a wave of younger punk bands making music that was inspired by, but also independent from, the current Dischord scene. The band soon developed its own following and released a single and an album on Sammich Records. Before long their shows began to showcase the power of their playing and their weird melange of punk, glam, and theater. Ian and Jeff from Dischord Records decided to ask them if they wanted to join the label and soon after, released 'Ten Spot'. At some point they were asked to play the 16th birthday party of a local punk kid, Nathan Larsen, who was playing bass in a new band called Swiz. Five or six years later Nathan would join Shudder to play guitar when Chris Matthews left the band for school. A year or so later, Mike Russell also had to leave and was replaced by Adam Wade of Jawbox on the drums. In the mid-90's, Shudder signed to Epic Records, and became one of only two bands to leave Dischord for a major label. They moved to NYC and released a couple of albums on Epic, but became less and less of a touring/performing entity, focusing more on movie soundtracks before separating at the end of the decade.

Quasi-reunion: Wedren, Larson, and March performed a brief set together on September 17, 2007 at The Mercury Lounge in New York City.[2] On February 4, 2008, Larson and Wedren performed together at the Barack Rock event — in support of Barack Obama's presidential campaign — organized by Wedren for http://www.getupandvote.com.

Shudder to Think performed at the Virgin Mobile Festival in Baltimore on August 10, 2008, at the Park West in Chicago on September 5, 2008, at the Virgin Festival in Toronto on September 6, 2008, and at The 10th Annual Voodoo Experience in New Orleans on October 24-26, 2008.

The band headlined their own small tour for the fall of 2008.

Influence on Other Bands: Shudder to Think has been listed as an influence by other bands - Incubus went as far as covering part of "X-French Tee Shirt" in their song "Nowhere Fast" during Lollapalooza. [3] Jeff Buckley also listed Shudder to Think as a favorite band of his.[4] Pearl Jam also invited Shudder to Think to open for them on a tour of Australia in 1998, and even played a snippet of the Shudder song "Pebbles" during their set. [5] Thursday has also listed the band as a major influence.[6] Cursive mentions the band in their song "Sink to the Beat" off their EP Burst and Bloom.

Band members

* Craig Wedren - vocals,guitars
* Chris Matthews - guitars
* Stuart Hill - bass
* Mike Russell - drums & backing vocals
* Adam Wade - drums & backing vocals
* Nathan Larson - guitar & backing vocals
* Mark Watrous - guitar & backing vocals
* Kevin March - drums

Product Description: I can't remember exactly how old I was when I first heard this record, probably 15 or 16. I had a tough time during those years, as do most teenagers, and spent a lot of time on my own listening to records and reading about obscure releases that sounded interesting to me. It was the best way to deal with family, divorce, sexuality and insecurity, or at least it was for me, although it didn't solve any of my problems. That said, the loneliness of youth and not being popular is difficult for everyone, and doing something you like is a good way to establish your identity, but it certainly didn't help public opinion when directed to me, nor did it help that I didn't dabble in drugs or drinking, something everyone else in my podunk town did, and not because I was a goody two-shoes or anything, more because I hated not being in control of my faculties. So, the loneliness of my teenage years was supplemented by music like Prince Paul's Psychoanalysis, Foetus' Nail and Shudder To Think's Pony Express Record, easily one of the weirdest records to have been released on a major label in the nineties. The easiest way to try and describe Pony Express Record is the sound of alien punk rockers channeling Freddie Mercury, seventies glam metal and avant-garde time signatures while trying to find words that sound good even though they don't understand exactly what they're saying. Another comparison would be The Monks' Black Monk Time, but only in concept. If you're not familiar with The Monks, they were American soldiers stationed in Germany that formed a rock band in their free time. They wanted to sound like The Beatles, but they had never heard their music so they made music they thought fit the descriptions they'd heard and read of The Beatles and their contemporaries. Basically, alien punk rockers channeling what they thought was hip but accidentally creating a new style of music. The funny thing about Pony Express Record is if you compare Shudder To Think's music before and after it's release, it sounds practically nothing like anything else they ever did. Shudder To Think were members of the DC punk scene, a scene they didn't necessarily fit into from the start, but for their major label debut they did the unthinkable and took their sound even further away from their already unique style. Craig Wedren's vocals made even less sense, with his words chosen more for their sound than message, while Nathan Larson riffed on bizarre time-signatures. The whole band was intense, but Wedren and Larson were the dynamic duo as crazy freaks, creating two note songs like X-French Tee Shirt about god-knows-what and freaking people out. I didn't like this album the first time I listened to it. It was a lot to swallow and not easy to determine where it was coming from. I bought it first in a used bin for a dollar, traded it back in, bought back the same copy for a dollar, traded it back in and did this at least three more times before I couldn't find a copy any longer. A few years passed before I purchased a digital copy and eventually I found an original US CD in mint condition that I've held onto since. I guess you don't know what you've got until it's gone, and that was the case time and time again with Pony Express Record. The album has made much more sense the older I've gotten, although I wouldn't say it's gotten easier to listen to. Like that friend you love but can't let get too close to you, I can't leave this album again, but that doesn't mean I can listen to it whenever.

If you haven't heard Pony Express Record, give it a chance. I've read a lot of things about it's mythical status but most of the time I think they're wrong. Pony Express Record is the sound of Shudder To Think trying to see how far they could go, prepared to destroy themselves in the process. It's remembered for it's brave experimentalism, but the songs, as strange as they may be, are pretty damn great. Just be prepared not to like it the first time you listen to it. It has to get under your skin before you realize how special it really is. Kind of like being a teenager in high school, it's that moment where you try to show your truest colors and a lot of people might write you off, but you do it because you want to be true to yourself. As long as you're not telling everyone that you have sexy thoughts about cadavers or something equally vulgar, someone will remember you as long as you're true to yourself. And just like that, people remember Shudder To Think positively now, something I wish they would have seen when Pony Express Record came out.

Review: I've had this album since 1995, and unlike most of the albums I own from that era, it has steadily grown on me to the point that it is permanently stamped on my brain. I continue to go back to it, trying to figure it out. It's a musician's album, for sure. You have to think a little and submit to the album. But the amazing thing about it is that it is a pop album at it's core. Most progressive music (think Frank Zappa for example) seems to me to be a bunch notes for their own sake, to hear how they sound in succession and for the musicians to say "hey, look what we can do!" Shudder to Think took that progressive/jazz element and fused it with post-punk/emo/grunge. Who would have thought that would work?

Well, as time wore on, I never thought I'd get to see these songs performed live. I need that live performance for the music to really make sense. I need it for that permanent stamp on my brain I mentioned earlier. Seeing the performers makes it 100% real, not just music in my headphones. Shudder to Think recently reformed and played the Voodoo fest this past Saturday. My drummer and I drove from Houston to see them (and The Mars Volta, speaking of progressive!) Just like I figured, there was a small crowd of rabid fans there to witness it (as they were playing at the same time as Nine Inch Nails), and they blew us away. It was a priceless gift (to us and themselves, I'm sure) for them to revisit their past.

Now there is no doubt that when I revise my top 100 albums of all time list that this one will edge its way into the top 20, and that's saying something considering how much music I listen to and own. I mean, to get in the top 20 it will probably have to displace Led Zeppelin or David Bowie. That's how amazing this album is. ~ Amazon Customer