Protein sheiks
A bluesy, woozy classic from Chicago’s indie heyday gets the royal treatment. By John Dugan
Bunny Gets Paid (Deluxe Edition) (Sub Pop)
In the mid-’90s, Chicago’s underground scene was hot
as shit, after Smashing Pumpkins and Liz Phair broke
through to radio. Still, revolutionary rock label Sub Pop
surprised many when it picked up local act Red Red
Meat’s second album, Jimmywine Majestic, in 1994.
On the surface, the Chicago-based quartet had
much in common with the grunge rock of the era: It
mined beloved collections of ’60s and ’70s albums for
raw riffage and cultivated an attitude equal parts
blasé, nihilistic and nostalgic. Guitars, fuzzed and
blurred, were the act’s forte. But Meat was too quirky
for the tag and for alt stardom—and it didn’t go in for
bare-chested amplifier stabbing. The band also,
perhaps unwittingly, built on Chicago’s electric
blues heritage.
Sub Pop, ever the tastemaker, has done well to
select Bunny Gets Paid for a timely rediscovery and
two-disc reissue with extensive artifacts from the era.
Thanks to Fleet Foxes, Grizzly Bear and their ilk,
atmospheric folk experimentation is in. Red Red Meat
defined that vibe on “Sad Cadillac,” a slow,
disorienting meditation, with the line “someone
pissed in the hibachi.” Fittingly, the first word on the
album centerpiece, “Gauze,” is medicated, and the
album continually conjures visions of Keith Richards
on a Robitussin binge. Bunny is a beautiful mess,
precisely rendered.
At times, Tim Rutili’s songs dance dangerously
close to a version of alt-pop exuberance, as he
communicates by primal tones rather than lyrics—
his mumbling codes so mysterious they could be
backward. But FM-worthy sing-alongs, such as
“Chain, Chain, Chain,” make it an approachable
record, too. The record majestically balances noise,
folk, rock, blues and a tune from the 1964 Rudolph the
Red-Nosed Reindeer Christmas special. The group
even toured with Smashing Pumpkins.
So why didn’t Bunny Gets Paid send Meat to starry
heights? Splitting in 1997, Rutili and other Meat men
carried on as Califone, while drummer Brian Deck
went on to produce acts like Modest Mouse and
Counting Crows. Perhaps the problem was that,
outside of Chicago, playing gigs in a seated position
often came off as a fuck-you rather than a humble
gesture. Today, bands can do gigs on a stool or, hell,
even curled up in a beanbag. It might not have hit the
buzz bin the first time around, but Red Red Meat was
really on to something.
Red Red Meat reunites at the Empty Bottle Tuesday
17 and Wednesday 18. See Listings. Bunny Gets Paid
(Deluxe Edition) is out now.
March 12–18, 2009 Time Out Chicago