Today's listening

Public Image Ltd: The Flowers of Romance (WB) on vinyl

I'm currently on my second spin of this record, which I'd never heard in full before. I suppose it's notorious in the PIL catalog. It was recorded after the departure of bassist Jah Wobble, but before PIL would take a more commercial direction. That's relative of course, John Lydon was never destined to be a traditional pop star. 

I'm only modestly interested in in PIL. Their first LP has a few banger tracks, particularly "Annalisa"; "Fodderstomp" is also wonderfully abrasive. I remember really liking the opening track of this record ("Four Enclosed Walls") from my college radio days, and it's even possible I spun it once myself. Highly spare, it's mostly a heavy drum beat accompanying John's wailing vocals, with some occasional backwards instruments and other assorted sounds. I enjoy its starkness. It sounds deliberate, like they're leaning into the idea of no bass and fewer instruments in general.

Most of the rest of the album doesn't live up to the promise of that track. There was a single generated from this, "Flower of Romance", which amazingly charted in the UK. I'm reading the mix is different than the LP version. It's still an oddity, a drone piece with a Middle Eastern sound to it. 

Maybe it's not fair, but I think what this record could have been rather than what it is. There are too many tracks that sound like studio screwing around, and deserved more attention and development. Time is money though, especially in the studio. "Banging the Door" is the only other cut that I find really sounds completed, and it's the fullest production of the bunch: voice and drums, bass, synth drone, synth effects, and probably other things mixed in. 

What's clear was that this wasn't a sustainable direction for the band. Soon no original members save Lydon would remain. Is this the logical end of earlier PIL records or a side avenue? Am I going to have to buy a copy of their second album now and decide? I don't have to buy it of course. At least my curiosity about this one is sated.

The copy, used from Jerry's Records, is very clean. I'm guessing it didn't get too many plays before I purchased it.