Is Psychocandy the J&M Chain's Best?
 

I love psychocandy, I was playing it again yesterday.I've had it for years but havent got another record by them. The question is does anything really top their debut or does nothing ever reach that status again in their career?

God help us.

its awesome.

get darklands, honey's dead and speed of sound. honeys dead and speed of sound are a bit different that psychocandy, even more noisier.

Psychocandy is horrible. They obviously couldn't play their instruments when they made it. They are a disgrace if only because they put the word 'Jesus' in their name. He deserved better.

shush newbie who doesnt know what a boost does.

Yeah man, that is one crap album.The production is terrible and he couldn't sing.

...;)

Psychocandy's production is fucked because they should have used a 'feedbacker' instead of relying on their amps.

i was banned for over-posting and reccomending big muffs too much. :D that was funny

I think it's their best, but I like the B-side collection Barbed Wire Kisses almost as much. To me the lo-fi production is part of the greatness of the album, much as I love the production of White Light/White Heat and for that matter Confusion is Sex. Of course Psychocandy is way more of a pop effort than either of those, but at the time noise-pop was new enough people weren't so jaded about it. It still stands the test of time for me too.

I like it a lot, but then again, I also like Automatic a lot. They done some good stuff!

I have the same problem. Psychocandy is the only JAMC album I own, and I am unsure of which other of their records I should get.

Me too. I love Lofi, noisy rock, but I find the production of this album horrible. Boring...

I was just kidding when i posted about the production being horrible.Of course it's their best album and one that goes beyond production qualities alltogether.It's just that i've found it odd to see that question asked for the millionth time.

I thought Psychocandy was a bit repetitive. Some good moments, but not enough to give the album any momentum.

As for me, I wasn't kidding. I don't like the production.

I think it's their only GOOD album...

i've never heard any of their other records, and i'm in no rush to either, none of their songs i've heard from their other records have really done anything for me

Yes, it is the best.

But, Darklands is a great album too. "April Skies" although not the typical JaMC song, is one of their best.

Psychocandy is extremely simple and generally so groovy only Suicide's first album can top it on the groovy-o-meter; I always have the Psychocandy cover at the front of my record browser (well, a lot of the time).

I gave it 4.5/5 on RYM. The obvious melodies were given a new lease when played by JAMC.

psychocandy kicks darklands scrawny little ass.

Thanks for the clarification, as your sarcasm did not carry on the internet at all. It didn't make sense given the music you are into, but I still missed that you were kidding.

I once put on Electro Purra by Yo La Tengo at a barbecue in Olympia of all places (though this was a decidedly non-indie rock group I was with at the time, roommates friends thing) thinking it was a really catchy, pretty album that anybody should like. I ended up being lambasted by all present, and especially this guy who was somehow making a living producing records for big-alternative bands in Seattle with his Evergreen degree, for the production values of this record and by association all of indie rock (as if I consider myself part of that!) In retrospect, I'm certain that Psychocandy would have gotten a similar response.

basically i like most of everything they've put out but then again i have no taste so don't listen to me.

i have psychocandy and some shows. i love the song snakedriver, that's a comp track.

psycocandy is their best imo. but the b-sides collection is pretty close.
i love the production of their music, a friend described it, as if they recorded underwater, and i think thats pretty close. it sounsd so dark and distant, but each instrument has its own place. i love it.
you put me in the mood, im going to listen to barbed wire kisses now.
and their music is sexy... i dont cre what you orientation is, that is music for the lovers...

why the hell? you seem to have great taste ... you do love MBV, don't you?

and ... maybe that's just irony, right? haha, haven't been here long enough, obviously.

psychocandy is awesome. I loved when they played "Just like honey" in the end of Lost in Translation movie. that was sweet.

psychocandy is obviously best, what a masterpiece! honey's dead is another good one.

then again, they're all good...

the only jesus and mary chain that matters.

Well, apart from Barbed Wire Kisses, you could safely say that all the other Mary Chain albums sound better than Psychocandy, anyway. I haven't bought the re-issues as i have all the original albums, so i wouldn't know what they have done with them.

I don't consider Psychocandy (or any JAMC for that matter) to be lo-fi. In fact, the production on Pyschocandy is super-sharp and clear.
The first issue of the CD had a mastering problem, where everything was compressed and a lot of the dynamics of the sound lost, but the vinyl always sounded amazing.
I haven't heard the new CD remasters - I assume they sorted the mastering out on those.

i second this one. i only have psychocandy, darklands, sound of speed, honeys dead and throned dethroned. is there anything else from them? honey's dead is pretty cool.... different might some might say....

I was only joking about slagging off Psychocandy. Definitely an album that shaped my life. Amazing. It's dated a bit now though, esp. production wise. That said, the Mary Chain have never remotely matched it since.

I don't own them all, but from what I've heard, they all seem to have something to offer. I love Automatic, which most JAMC fans dismiss, and I love Psychocandy, but I've also enjoyed things I've heard of Honey's Dead and Darklands. They're on my wishlist.

But like Cantankerous, I too have no taste. Or maybe just not discriminating taste. I love everything, man...

Suicide seems to be an obvious influence on JAMC. It really hit me the other night when I was playing that first Suicide LP.

Suicide were an obvious influence on Jesus And Mary Chain and that partly because of a certain suffocating and motorik sound on 'Psychocandy'.One of the most bizarre influences on them was T- Rex, and it can be heard clearly when you listen to 'Sidewalking'.

Yeah, now that you mention it, I can hear the T. Rex influence. Good call.

The one thing that always bugged me about the Mary Chain was how their taste was always a bit too refined. They always cited the 'correct' influences, if you know what I mean. I would've much prefered them to have had at least a pinch of Iron Maiden or Genesis in there somewhere. Listening to them can be a bit like watching a Tarantino film, you spend half the time ticking off the cool references.

Ha! Iron Maiden or Genesis!? Or hey, why not the Osmonds or Pat Boone?

The Shangri La's is all you're getting and a band influenced by them is always good in my book.