HOLE - CELEBRITY SKIN

HOLE - CELEBRITY SKIN

It never ceases to amaze me that you can, not hear a song for years but have total recall of  the lyrics and what to expect next in the track listing. 

Courtney Love along with babes in toyland were solely responsible for impressionable young girls of the 90‘s finding it completely acceptable to wear old tie-dye nighties in public and I was no different. Although I cant specifically remember a time when I wore a satin slip outside of my house, I did own some. 

By the time Celebrity Skin came around though, Courtney Love’s dalliances with plastic surgery and heroin use had paid off and she was thin and barbie doll enough to wear but shards of see through cheesecloth on the cover sleeve of her albums. Her make up too, was suitably evolved and she was in movies with edward norton. 

This album is killer. Its a shame that Courtney has alienated most of the successful song writing partners she ever had, spending more time contributing blogs or tweets to the world requiring an interpreter to understand. Perhaps she needs to activate spellcheck and apologise to Billy Corgan. 

This is one of those albums that I acquired. I love it, but I never bought it. I’m wondering who I pilfered it from and I have no idea. This a record where if purchased at the peak of its popularity would be cause for judgement. Now though, with a few years to digest it, I guess its not such sheep behaviour to have it in your collection. 

I saw Hole at the Big Day Out around this time and the did a cover of paradise city that made me question my Guns N Roses revulsion. I mean, fair enough too. When I was younger, the kids who like Guns N Roses were turds. So sure of their white trashiness, they were almost superior about it. Since my first instinct is to vehemently despise the majority, I hated Guns N Roses. 

There’s not a lots of options left for Courtney Love now...she’s left it to long to come back with a rock/pop album. So maybe she’ll have to record a bunch of stripped back covers to make money or join ‘The View’. One thing that stuck in my mind was her comparing what she makes in one night from a gig compared to a movie role. It was the first time I thought of things that way. At every gig since (and there have been many) I have tried to calculate how much the band is making off the ticket and merchandise sales. I deduct staff and travel and any exchange rate differences. I guess you could say Courtney taught me the economics of music. A valuable lesson. 

STAND OUT TRACKS

#4 Malibu

#2 Awful

#1 Celebrity Skin 

#9 Boys on the Radio - harmonies almost like singing in rounds at school camp

SONG I WANT TO SKIP

#8 Northern Lights - too long and irritating