Review #172: The Stooges - Fun House (1970)

FUN HOUSE

Year: 1970
Genre: Hard Rock/Punk Rock/Noise
Label: Elektra Records
Tracks: 7
Length: 37 Minutes
Style: Fun/Sexual/Emotional/Scary
My Rating: 7/8

The Stooges released one of the coolest albums of their time and still one of the best albums ever, "The Stooges" at the end of the '60s and you probably know about all that SHIT 'cuz in the summer I reviewed that album for you, didn't I? Well, I got this one used on CD and it's also good, but it doesn't sound just like the first album, so expect something a little different. You also know how they originally played blenders and trash cans and stuff as instruments, which iz AWESOME! I should find a blender-player for my band! But this iz the second Stooges album, and it's FUN just like the title suggests, so let's begin, now shall we?

1. Down On the Street
This album is mixed pretty well. OOOH! RAAAAKHHHH. HEE! Iggy's voice sounds real badass here, and this one's sort of subtle but wild and fucked-up at the same time. Nice lead guitar. The chorus is more aggressive than the verse, but it's all pretty sexual and positive-feeling. Back when music being "sexy" meant it was good. Goddammit. DEEP IN THE NIGHT, I'M LOST IN LOVE... Then there's a shit-ton of improvised stuff like many Stooges songs have, so you'll hear a lot of that which makes the song twice as long as its pre-written mirror half.

2. Loose
YES! The best and coolest song on the album, totally. It's got that AMAZING bass melody and you can hear the rhythm and lead guitar, but it's more off to the sidelines, the bass dominates, and Iggy's snotty voice that cuts straight thru yer SKULL like a sharp KNIFE. 'CUZ I'M LOOSE! ALWAYS! Aw, man, this is such a great party song, you've gotta listen to it! What more SHOULD I say? Great song.

3. T.V. Eye
"LOOOOOOORD!!" - that's what Iggy yells out at the beginning before the song ends. This song has a really good beat and a neat-o bass melody and guitar riff n' stuff and you'll probably like this one also if you like the first two tracks; perfect punk energy to keep you goin' through the night! Iggy screams and hisses some more. At one part, it sounds like the song's ended, but then it starts again for a short while. That part sounds like it was recorded live or something. Man, he sounds like a wild animal...

4. Dirt
This iz a slow one. A little sadder and calmer. Kinda seems like it would've influenced "My War" by Black Flag. The guitar melodies here are pretty neat. DO YA FEEL IT WHEN YA TOUCH ME? It's like the calm after the storm, I suppose... the first three tracks are real rowdy and this one seems more like... whatever you feel like it could be. Could be anything... mud turning into dirt? HAH, I didn't even realize that one! "Dirt", who woulda THUNK, man? End of Side 1.

5. 1970
Remember "1969" from the first album? Well, the Stooges came ("came", hahaha) back a year later to give you... "1970"! Wow, how amazing! The beat is even similar. Lyrically it's another sex/party/chaos sorta thing, just like all of the other songs on here, which is pretty cool 'cuz the Stooges don't sound LAME when they sing about (and I can hear some guy tellin' me, "well YOU sound lame when you TYPE about it", and to him I say, "I KNOW THAT, now FUCK OFF, MAN!"). There's even a cool saxophone solo starting towards the end of the song. Jesus whiz!

6. Fun House
Even more saxo-magic! Not referring to the anglo-SAXOns here, but rather the SAXOphone... perhaps there is a connection, no? This one reminds me a bit more of "Loose". And similar beat to "T.V. Eye", beat-wise. But what the hell do I know? HEY, LET ME IN! OOOOH! OOH! OOH! TAKE IT DOWN! I FEEL ALRIGHT! OOH! HOO! !OOH HOO! !OOH LITTLE BABY GIRL LITTLE BABY BOY... sounds like Iggy's wantin' a threesome here, no? With CHILDREN, man! AAARRAAGGGGHH! WAHWAHHHOOOWAAAHHHOOOOWAHAHOWEOWEOWEOWEOWEOWOWWEOWOEOOWEOEO...

7. L.A. Blues
Okay, this is a conceptual song in which a nice family is going to visit the circus, only to find out that the circus is actually really tiny and the whole thing is stepped on by a regular-sized elephants with an asshole filled with peanuts, and the whole thing just goes to hell, man. This is total chaos and total noise, with guitars, drums, saxophones, voices, and all that great stuff. It's like getting stuck in a giant hurricane with no escape. It all just swirls AROUND and AROUND and AROUND and AROUND and AROUND and AROUND and I DON'T THINK WE'RE IN TEXAS ANYMORE. It'd be really funny if the band was picking up the amplifiers and spinning them around in the room and breaking shit in the studio and stuff. That'd be hilarious. Just like a REAL LIFE TORNADO, KIDZ.

Well, that was crazy! But it wuz ze Stooge, s what you do expect? Feelin' good n' really right now, so less juss lev a' tha', sha' w'? Do go listen to the alb', y' w' like i', unless you suck! TEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. Drink alcohol and party to this album.

Top 3 Favorites:
1. Loose
2. T.V. Eye
3. L.A. Blues