Dammit, this should have been huge. This should have been tremendous, world-scraping, topping the goddamn charts everywhere on the planet; the Chavis brothers should be embarking on a nationwide tour at every arena ever and then some. Instead it's a world where when the yawnsome question of 'do African-Americans do rock anymore?' gets raised by the small-minded, the frustrating, bastard-ass sinful answer that is often given is, "Well, there's Lenny Kravitz, right?" OH WORLD, OH TEMPORA, OH MORES, WHAT HAVE WE WROUGHT, WHAT SINS HAVE WE COMMITTED? JUDGE OF NATIONS, SPARE US YET, LEST WE FORGET, LEST WE FORGET!
So why am I going off about a failed record from 1994 that nobody knows about, despite being released on a big major label with the resources? No doubt the band has stories of the idiocies involved and can tell them, and if I could find them I'd let you know. I know they at least recorded a new full album after it, because I only just found used. I'll yet contact them and celebrate them to the heights. Oh yes.
So this album and this band. The Veldt were, as implied, an African-American band with the exception of David Burris, and I can't remember if he did or does bass or drums, though I think bass, but the point is that he kicks but then they all kick. Damn, did they ever. And what did they do? How to put this, how to describe why I love this album. HM.
Well, production by Ray Shulman, because he did that for A R Kane, who the Veldt worship. In the interview I did with them back in 1994, they confirmed they were A R Kane fiends, and that "Heather," the seven-minute zone-out about midway through, was their specific homage to them, and a damn fine one it was as well, Danny Chavis' sweet soul voice riding his brother's huge guitar waves. Or maybe it was having Robin Guthrie play guitar or the Jesus and Mary Chain remix a track or Lincoln Fong on bass for a couple of tracks, so yeah, 4AD into feedback into shoegazing, done by African-Americans?, yeah, gotta problem with that, PAL? (Sorry, I had to deal with people who asked me that before. And I hate them I hate them I hate them why does such small-mindedness EXIST?)
But it's also the funky drum beats throughout and the hip-hop that fits in so perfectly with the rock power and the effects-pedal sonic cathedrals and soul beauty and everything combined AT LONG LAST COMBINED THIS IS THE ULTIMATE BAND EVER and Daniel Chavis just ripping on his guitar throughout like nobody's business and never ever having to stupidly ape Jimi Hendrix like that Kravitz fool and that's why "You Take the World" just fills my heart with emotional overwrought hope and why that gorgeous gorgeous GORGEOUS ending minute of the song leaves in tears every time I hear it. Or how "Revolutionary Sister" makes its anti-misogynist message feel so friggin' great and makes you wonder why exactly you do allow for sexism in hip-hop if you do or how "Wanna Be Where You Are" just beautifully floats over the funk or how "Soul In a Jar" just makes you dance and shimmer at the same time and how "Last Call" soars and spirals up and how the sweet Cure/Cocteau guitar chiming on "Juicy Sandwich" is the real blissout of every perfect summer day and how "Until You're Forever" beats down the walls of heaven and shines throughout the whole damn universe and how Danny Chavis can sing oh can he ever without sounding like so many of those annoyances who simply quaver or mumble and IF YOU THINK I'M BEING OVERWROUGHT OR JOKEY YOU'RE SO WRONG YOU'RE JUST SO WRONG THAT'S HOW GOOD THIS ALBUM IS.
So what I'm saying is that I like this album. And when I finally get a CD burner of my very own, I'm going to make sure everyone I knows why I love it because you're all going to hear it. Or if the Chavises sell copies of it directly, you will all have to buy it. Yep.