Today's song is sort of a sequel to yesterday's Jawbox selection, continuing my '90s rock nostalgia weekend. As I'm sure many do, I closely associate Shudder to Think and Jawbox. After all, they were the only two bands to have ever left Dischord Records for a major label. Plus, original Jawbox drummer Adam Wade wound up with Shudder to Think after leaving the former.While Jawbox's bombastic and fairly straight-forward sound easily appealed to my teenage sensibilities, though, Shudder to Think was a real challenge. I bought their albums because I bought everything that was on Dischord, and because I had some influential older friends who sang their praises. Their abstract post-rock riffs combined with frontman Craig Wedren's eccentric and theatrical vocals were jarring, to say the least.
I tried very hard to convince myself of their greatness, but I don't think I bought it until I finally saw them live. That was about 15 years ago. Wedren had a shaved-head, black goatee, and leather pants, and was singing this music to a pretty masculine crowd. I bought a t-shirt there, that I still have and occasionally wear. Shudder to Think was a gateway for my acceptance and eventual love of a lot of music that leaned on the adventurous side of the rock pendulum. While they certainly had their share of rabid fans, it's unfortunate that their name rarely seems to surface these days.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shudder_to_Think
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