Cat Heads

Certain Songs #181: The Cat Heads – “Alice on the Radio”

May 3, 2015 by Jim Connelly

Album: Submarine
Year: 1988

Because Submarine didn’t have a lyric sheet and in the grandest indie rock tradition – or like a radio station that’s too far away to tune in properly – Alan Korn’s vocals are buried deep in the mix, I’m just going to make an educated guess that this song is a about a DJ that they love to listen to.

Alice stands her ground
And plays a melody so sweet as if from above
Broadcasting a symphony
That speaks to her autonomy
Destiny’s impossible to know

I think. The lyrics are not found anywhere, and that includes on the original album, one of the couple dozen or so that I still own from my once-massive vinyl collection, which sold off a few years ago because I am a stupid fucking idiot. Anyways.

Alice broadcasts all night long

So, not just a DJ. But a college radio DJ, naturally. And therefore I’m going to declare that “Alice on the Radio” is the perfect spawn of “Clap For The Wolfman” and “Left of the Dial.” After all, while the words are hard to figure out, it’s easy to suss out the joy as they all chime in on the chorus:

Alice on the raaaaaadiooooooooooooooooooooooo!
Alice on the raaaaaadiooooooooooooooooooooooo!

At the beginning of that chorus, Melanie Clarin joins in, but by the last syllable of it, all four Cat Heads are singing in glorious unison. Meanwhile, Sam Babbit & Mark Zanandrea’s guitars are just killing it, especially the choppy rhythm guitar that sneaks in behind the verses and the long solo after the second verse.

Alice doesn’t understand
Why she cannot talk to everyone

Weird postscript: in 1995, seven years after this song came out, San Francisco radio station KRQR changed formats from Rock to Adult Contemporary, and in doing so, decided to brand themselves as “Alice,” which they remain as this writing.

Giving voice to everything we know

Since The Cat Heads were a San Francisco based band, this seemed like more than a weird coincidence, but given that the same sort of folks who would give a radio station a person’s name were probably not the same sort of folks who would ever listen to The Cat Heads, it was probably just a weird coincidence.

Fan-made video for ”Alice on the Radio”

Certain Songs #180: The Cat Heads – “Apologize”

May 2, 2015 by Jim Connelly

Album: Submarine.

Year: 1988.

The second album by The Cat Heads, Submarine, wasn’t quite as great as their debut Hubba! – there were a couple of generic genre experiments into hard rock that didn’t quite work – but the overall sound (as produced by Camper Van Beethoven’s David Lowery) was fuller. Furthermore, Submarine featured the two best songs in their canon: “Alice on the Radio” and “Apologize.”

In fact, not only is “Apologize” the best Cat Heads song, it’s one of the best songs that 1980s indie rock produced, and I don’t know how many times I played it in a set with

Hüsker Dü’s “I Apologize” on KFSR, but let’s just say a whole hell of a lot. And no wonder: “Apologize” is a little-known indie anthem.

Over an absolutely roaring rhythm guitar, a lead guitar that never stops finding a new hook to play and her own distinctive drum beat, Melanie Clarin goes off on an Alan Korn-written rant:

Sorry for the things I’ve done
Sorry for the words I’ve spoken
I’m so tired of wasting all my time
Saying everything is going to be all right
And I don’t want to apologize
Thought by now you’d realize that
Don’t believe in what you’re saying
Don’t believe in anything
I know it’s not funny anymore
And I know that I’ve made that mistake once before
And I don’t want to apologize
I don’t want to apologize
And I don’t want apologize
I don’t want to apologize

All of this has just come out in a rush, like she’s been saving it up for years and years and now, finally it’s her time to say to to her lover or friend or parent or whomever is at the other end of this. On paper, “Apologize” might read as arrogant, but as sung by Clarin, it’s anything but. It’s clear that she’s at the end of her rope.

The dreams that can’t come true
Still are haunting you
You believe in every single lie
I’d tell you that I’m sorry, but never mind
Cos I don’t want to apologize
I don’t want to apologize
And I don’t want to apologize
I don’t want to apologize

In the end, with guitar after guitar after chiming in support, it’s clear that her refusal to apologize comes from a place of acceptance, because she knows that it wouldn’t do any good anyways. It’s harrowing, because you get the impression that the song could break apart at any second if it wasn’t so damn sure it was in the right.

In the horrible summer of 1988, the strength of “Apologize” was one of the things that I needed, but not because it was one of those songs that I could cry sing along with, but rather the because of strength I gained by singing along with “I don’t want to apologiiiiiiiiize” at the top of my lungs.

Fan-made video for “Apologize”

“Apologize” performed live in Oregon, 1989

24 Musical Moments To Die For, Part 2

August 29, 2008 by Jim Connelly

NOTE: Because of a godsdammed bug between Flash and Firefox for Windows, I’ve had to break this up into two parts in order for the players to work for those with that particular configuration. Stupid internets.