Jason & 'Soloitis'

[jadams501]

I got into spiritualized about 10 years ago, when on the strength of rave reviews i bought Ladies & Gents and Lazer Guided Melodies on the same day. I liked Ladies & Gents immediately, and didn't really get LGM, but over time i came to think LGM was a far better album than its more famous successor.

When i started listening to spacemen 3, they struck me as an off-beat prelude to Spiritualized, quite good but not quite on the same level. And when i started to listening to Spectum, it struck me as a typically flawed solo career.

At some point along the way, i began to prefer spacemen 3 as richer and bolder than spiritualized. I came to think that both spiritualized and spectrum exhibit the usual symptoms of 'soloitis' dating back at least to the beatles and probably before -- a certain self-indulgence, some staleness and self-parody, and in general a deficit of freshness and excitement. There's still a lot of good stuff, but in general it's not as good as when there was another creative equal in the room to push them to loftier heights.

I think this realization is why i'm less excited for this new album than i was a few years ago merely for silent sound and mr. lonely. no offense to jason or anyone, of course. Does anyone else feel the same way?

[spzretent]

My intro went this way.
The first LP I heard was Playing With Fire, followed by Recurring. Then backwards to SOC, PP, Performance.
When Spiriualized started I was a bit underwhelmed by Anyway That You Want. When LGM came out I slowly but surely got very into it. A good sign for an LP that will be a part of my life for the long haul. Ditto Pure Phase. The lives shows were mindblowing further sucking me in as a mega fan.
Do I love everything Jason has released? Not as much as those first two LPs but he is one artist I get very excited about whether its a tour or new release.
Regarding the Soloitis issue. I just see that as some stretching out and experimenting with other far less commericial forms of music and being able to other avenues to release projects be it a soundtrack, Guitar Loops, Silent Sound or the self financed Acoustic Mainlines tour.
Spectrum? The first three Lps were good. For whatever reason I was far less tolerant of Sonic's forays into E.A.R., Speak & Spell etc. Dont own them and when I did I never played them. Matter of fact I haven't played the first three in eons.
I also think there is a point when in a band the relationship becomes more toxic and detrimental and less people pushing each other to new heights.
You need look no further than the Beatles for that.
Having said all that I cant wait for the new LP and the artwork? That is entirely up to Jason. If thats his choice that is good enough for me. Its his art. Inside and out.

[TheWarmth]

This is an interesting thread. My introduction to Spiritualized was by way of the Electric Mainline single (prior to the release of Pure Phase) and LGM. It took me awhile to get into LGM, too, so it seems as though we're in agreement that it's a grower. I went back and bought most of the S3 catalog after that. I've said this before: Perfect Prescription has always bothered me for the horrible mastering and overall poor sound quality. Forged Prescriptions is far more enjoyable. These days, I actually don't listen to a lot of S3. I play Spiritualized records more frequently by a large margin.

Anyway, I think the real discussion here is that of "soloitis". I don't agree with jadams. I think the Spiritualized cannon is phenomenal. Yes, there are some misses, but overall it's a damn fine catalog and certainly no more flawed than the S3 catalog. I've said this before, too: the only album that, as a whole, I really think was a misstep is Amazing Grace. To be clear, I'm only talking about Spiritualized releases here, not J's solo stuff. That's a different topic.

[angelsighs]

interesting, I found Ladies and gents to be the 'grower' (about a year for it to click with me).. mind you my music tastes were relatively conservative at the time. whereas Lazer Guided Melodies hit me straight away.

I've said this before: Perfect Prescription has always bothered me for the horrible mastering and overall poor sound quality. Forged Prescriptions is far more enjoyable. These days, I actually don't listen to a lot of S3. I play Spiritualized records more frequently by a large margin.

I'd go along with this. the songs on Perfect Prescription are largely sublime but my CD copy is flat as a pancake. (PWF is similar). although I gather this isn't a problem with the originl vinyl, and unfortunately master tapes have gone awol.
I can't be the only person that has made a playlist out of Forged Prescriptions emulating the PP tracklisting.

Spacemen 3 have a more lo-fi, less polished sound that many prefer to the more produced Spz, or vice versa.

I myself listen to Spz more than Sp3, but ironically some of my fave Spacemen stuff is the early, very lo fi Sound of Confusion/Taking Drugs era.. work that one out!!

I wouldn't say either Spz or Spectrum suffer from 'Soloitus'. the story of two rivals pushing each other to great heights can often be true but also often a myth. it can go the other way where tension and bad blood can make bands dysfunctional and their records suffer from being a bit of a compromise.

it seems both Jason and Pete are doing EXACTLY what they want now, and more power to them.. we are getting pure Jason and pure Pete

surely two of the most artistically successful 'solo/side projects' ever. how often do you hear about someones new project after a band splits up and your heart sinks Seahorses anyone? Beady Eye? The Firm?

[bunnyben]

surely two of the most artistically successful 'solo/side projects' ever. how often do you hear about someones new project after a band splits up and your heart sinks Seahorses anyone? Beady Eye? The Firm?

all high flying birds