The best record by
Amherst-based hardcore band
Orchid, originally released as a
10" by
Ebullition Records in 2001. The record is the most fully realized statement of the band's intriguing synthesis of German and Canadian hardcore with
critical theory.
Orchid's music was,
in the final analysis, not really that original: they took several pages from the gloomy,
octave chord-saturated books of
Uranus,
One Eyed God Prophecy,
Acme, et al. However, they executed the style at least as well as any other band and often with more memorable songs. What really put them
over the top was their lyrics and aesthetic sense, which blended elements from
Situationism (admittedly an overused influence for many punk bands) and the leftist ferment of the 1960s as well as
Continental philosophy.
One of the best songs on
Dance Tonight! Revolution Tomorrow! is the fifth number, "I Am Nietzsche." In many ways it connects all the band's passions: philosophy,
sex, punk as subversive critique, etc. Musically, the song goes from a bleak guitar figure into hyperactive hardcore, building up to a seismic mosh break and the repeated scream of the title phrase. The song ends with the lines: "1886 was a very good year - and you know this to be true. Thus spake me." (1886 was the year that
Nietzsche published
Beyond Good and Evil, independently and at his own expense - solid evidence that the
DIY spirit is much older than
Ian MacKaye.)
The final song, "...And The Cat Turned To Smoke", is often noted for its effective use of violin, a rarity in hardcore (although more so five years ago than now). What's maybe more interesting are the lyrics, which break from the clever, academic mold to deliver a romantic lament in the classic
San Diego emo mold - however, every
text permits multiple readings. They also delivered one of their cutest song titles on this record with "Snow Delay at the Frankfurt School."
Track listing:
1)
Destination: Blood!
2)
To Praise Prosthesis
3)
Lights Out
4)
Anna Karina
5)
I Am Nietzsche
6)
Victory Is Ours
7)
Don't Rat Out Your Friends
8)
Black Hills
9)
Snow Delay At The Frankfurt School
10)
...And The Cat Turned To Smoke