Sound City: Real to Reel (ST)

  

I'm not a Dave Grohl fan.  I do not own anything by Nirvana or Foo Fighters.  I don't think he's much of a songwriter or singer/screamer, but I do admire his passion and energy, which was why I was intrigued by this project.  You don't need me to rehash the particulars as this soundtrack and documentary have been around for months with plenty of press and sales.  From the first fifteen years of Sound City Studios existence, I own over half of what was recorded there.  I started late, too, four years after it went into business with Elton John's "Caribou."  Multiple albums by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, REO Speedwagon and Pat Benetar; the only album I own by the Grateful Dead, "Terrapin Station," Cheap Trick's tremendous "Heaven Tonight," War's iconic "Why Can't We Be Friends?" Foreigner's 7x platinum "Double Platinum," RJ Dio's "Holy Diver."  In the 90's, besides "Nevermind" in 1991, came albums by Kyuss, Masters of Reality, Blind Melon, Tool, Slayer, RHCP, Weezer, Tonic and QOTSA.  Yes sir, that's a mighty fine lineup...   All-digital recording put the squeeze on the studio this century and when it closed a couple of years ago, Grohl bought the custom analog board and set it up at his home studio.  The premise of bringing any interested artists who recorded at Sound City over the forty years to his home studio for 24-hour recording sessions on the old Neve was a grand idea.  Too bad all that major-league talent couldn't save the majority of the weak songs Grohl brought to the room to play around with.   I had to get to the halfway point, track #6 (of eleven), to find the first worthy offering... 



That's legendary Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Neilsen.  The singer was in Slipknot, which I never had an affinity for.  You wanna wear masks so I don't know who you are?  Fine, I'll dismiss you all together.  He went on to front Stone Sour, which I suppose is where he's most known.  Not bad.  The next track features Josh Homme (Kyuss, QOTSA, Them Crooked Vultures), Chris Goss (Masters of Reality, QOTSA) and Alain Johannes (Walk the Moon...you're lying if you said you've heard of them..., Eleven, QOTSA, Them Crooked Vultures).  After writing that, I don't think I have to say any more.  Of course, the highlight of the project...



The whole thing was produced by Butch Vig, who basically defined alt-rock in the 90's manning the boards for Nirvana, Smashing Pimples and Sonic Youth.  And there is nothing wrong with the audio quality of this project...it sounds fantastic. 

It should have been a four song EP, though...