Thursday, April 06, 2006

Glass Eye Returns

I’m very excited about tomorrow night’s Glass Eye reunion show at Room 710 with Daniel Johnston and Cat Scientist. Glass Eye was my first favorite local band in Austin and 1988’s Bent By Nature remains my favorite local release. While time and circumstance undoubtedly played roles in turning me on to Glass Eye, their meticulous yet slightly unhinged take on pop music still sounds fresh.

Right before SXSW, I did a short interview with bassist/producer Brian Beattie for the Chron. He talked about how the band’s decade-long run came to a less-than- auspicious end in 1993 after a proposed record deal ran amok. Just before their final show at Liberty Lunch, they announced plans for a final album that wound up taking 13 years to materialize. The just-released Every Woman’s Fantasy has a harder, angrier tone than any of Glass Eye’s other albums, which is understandable in light of where they were when they started making it. Click here for my full review.

It’s always hard to articulate why the music that changed your life had such a profound effect on you, but I took an old college stab with this mash note review (scroll down) about the first time I saw Glass Eye at Liberty Lunch 18 years ago this week. I wrote it in 1999 on the occasion of Liberty Lunch’s demise.

1 comment:

Found in the Alley said...

oh man I really wish I could be there for that. I'd say Glass Eye is my favorite regional band too and for the same reasons as you. I still listen to Bent By Nature and this silly 7 inch they did - a cover of Satelite of Love. Texas Guinness Lovers covered Glass Eye's Dempsey Nash.

de Schmog was fortunate enough to play with both Glass Eye and Daniel Johnston in the early nineties.

grr they should bring that show to Chicago (so should Mr. Titter).