Beulah
"Yoko"
Velocette Records
Grade: A
Bottom Line:
A work of emotionally destroyed art, Beulah will break your heart and soothe your ears at onceIf the recent releases of Bob Dylan's "Time Out of Mind" and Neil Young's "Are You Passionate?" were any indication of marital trouble in America, then the emergence of Beulah's "Yoko" is another nail in that coffin. This is the breakup album of the year; and this is Beulah at their most pessimistic. Yet they keep it beautiful, filled with the bitter but sweet harmonies and slight, poignant horns that are always in the background and never in the way. What has happened to everyone's favorite indie popsters? A whole lot, actually.

So what would cause songs like "Fooled with the Wrong Guy," "A Man Like Me," and "Landslide Baby'" to be written? How about a divorce? How about three? Now you're beginning to understand the album title, which is also an acronym for 'You're Only King Once,' another song about divorce. Reflecting irreconcilable differences, lead singer and main songwriter Miles Kurowsky split with his girlfriend of over two years. This isn't very good at all for the band members, but it just may be great for the music and the fans. "Yoko," is the shot through the heart that Bon Jovi promised but never quite delivered.

To like this album, one does not need to know prior Beulah material. First is "A Man Like Me." This is the perfect way to start an album dealing with the big issuesconcerning love. First you hear a rotary-phone beat that could have been on Wilco's "Yankee Foxtrot Hotel," accompanied by a descending piano line and the soft, sweet voice of Kurowsky. Soon, the words will take you to a place of self-doubt and hurt, and the guitars will help transcend the moment to an almost triumphant point. Almost. Despite what it sounds like, this is a love song-not of pure love but of the realistic kind. He's not perfect, love him anyway. "Try, try wasting all your days on a man, a man like me."

Second, "Landslide Baby." After the first song, this one, with its background harmonies and upbeat tempo, will fool you into believing that it's happier. Anything but the truth. "A Man Like Me" was Miles' plea to his ex, and "Landslide Baby" is her reply, complete with all of the criticisms that come with a bad breakup. "You're scared and you're weak and you don't give a fuck about me...and I do believe that you hate yourself."

Third, "Your Mother Loves You Son." This has got the Ramones' vocal drone, the ample distortion, and, of course, the attitude to stand as the song with the most propulsion. It just grabs you and pulls for three minutes, the Beulah version of the two-minute song. For anyone who doubts the band's desire to balance the darkened skies and the sweet sun underneath, this song is strong, strong proof. "Last night's a loaded gun, you better hope that the world won't end tonight/ All the mothers love you son, you better hope the world don't end cause..."

Now, I could go on for all ten songs, but I won't. I don't need to. The other seven contain the same levels of quality as these three, employing a banjo-like guitar melody on "Fooled Around with the Wrong Guy," lush harmonies mixed well with horns on "Don't Forget to Breathe," and a seven and a half minute "Wipe Those Prints and Run" that is as Floyd as Beulah will probably get without sacrificing their own musical values. And much like Dylan and Young, Beulah has succeeded in making a great album, as opposed to a good batch of incoherent songs, without falling into the trap of repetition and banality. For the Beulah fan, they already know to expect such quality. For the newbie, it will be a fitting introduction to a band that knows how to do its job, does it well, and makes it seem so easy.