333maxwell - December 31st 1989

Hear The Track Here

There was a rumour doing the rounds a while ago that I was some kind of vampire who never needed to sleep, well I ain't but I do know a man who never seems to sleep - but I doubt his vampiric abilities. 333maxwell is the name of the bar and - believe me - the bar is very, very high. Not only is the man highly talented with just about every instrument under the sun, he's very prolific with it. Much more to the point he is, like Avalanche's Mike Foster, a chatty kind of guy, ready and willing to fill you in on every detail of the track and - believe it or not - I like that. It's nice to have a back story to work with. My most horrendous musical decade was definitely the 70's, despite some blazing highs, the decade is notorious for it's excesses and banality. Maxwell's happens to be the 1980's and this is a song written to commemorate their demise - hence the title.

See backstory, makes all the difference.

Max spent the decade going through blues, metal (with the hair even) and then country phases so you can bet quality is going to be on the money - as it always is with this artist. Mind you, he's a bit of an odd bugger when he wants to be. As much as I like everything he throws at me, some things take more getting used to and December 31st is right up there with the best of them. What is it? I KNOW it's my job (Ed: falling about laughing) to describe these things but this one if a humdinger, certainly ain't a bird or a plane. Mind you, its starts off with the New Year celebrations complete with faux-Jimi (Ed: Hendrix, for the young ones...) rendition of Auld Lang Syne, so after that almost anything goes, innit? There again, that's always been the case with this guy anyway.

It's basically a guitar instrumental, in a strangely rock pop universe that - to my ears - is redolent of the kind of ruckus young Marc Bolan was making before his untimely death. What it shows is that 333maxwell is a guitarist to be reckoned with, but we already knew that. So, other than the inevitable crick in the neck excessive head nodding will give you, what else did I come away from this with? I've spent a good long while now with 333maxwell and - material notwithstanding - I've never heard him sounding better. Rock as I like it, rough as sandpaper and more aggressive than an estate full of rottweilers. I almost pooped my pants at that very Beatle-ish drum part that introduces the song proper, absolute masterstroke.

MUST HAVE for fans, Highly Recommended rock instrumental nonetheless.