III (studio album) by Sebadoh

From buzzdainer 07/21/2020 18:43

I'm glad that Lou Barlow, Jason Loewenstein, and Eric Gaffney were able to coexist in Sebadoh long enough to make a couple of great albums, this one and Bakesale. What makes III unlike any other Sebadoh album is Gaffney’s work. In the liner notes, Gaffney insists that he was “band leader” at this time, and it certainly sounds as though he was able to assume control of the group when they actually assembled together to play and coax cohesive performances of his songs out of them. “Violet Execution," “Scars, Four Eyes," “Holy Picture,” and “Supernatural Force” all share a similar jaunty, jangling style (achieved with an open tuning on an acoustic with the G string removed, Gaffney explains) that was superficially accessible; really it provided tonal tension for the cryptic, troubling sentiments conveyed via the fragmented lyrics: “Agony abounds in dreams so you speak / Legends of torture rock you to sleep”; “Evil pit is never snared / Figured out how to get nowhere”; “Her lilac breath reminds me I’m dead.”

From Repo 01/08/2018 03:10

III was one of the albums made me believe that anything was possible in rock n’ roll. It sounded like nothing else back at the time. Considering Slanted & Enchanted was still a year off, and Bee Thousand was like two years off, III was the first serious volley of the lo-fi sound. It was the punk rock movement of the time. That all u need was some 4 track in your bedroom and you could make an album. Some of it is like high school year book shit - it was purposeful familiar and small. It dealt with real insecurities. It dealt with insecurity and teen alienation far better than Nevermind- the other American watershed album of the year. I was a HUGE Dinosaur fan when this dropped, and I loved this every bit as much as the first three dinosaur albums.

This is one of those magical double LPs like Zen Arcade were every song matters. every bit has been memorized. Internalized. Even Especially the mistakes. But, its sort of like religion. It’s like coming across some bizarre radio station while hanging out in your bedroom as a bored middle schooler that you know was meant just for you. Bakesale and Harmacy (thanks, KD) are great as well, but they are far less left-of-the dial. Far less off the beaten path. I mean that stuff just sounds like great indie rock songs. III sounded sacred. And for some of us, it was.

I like: Freed Pig, Black Haired Girl, and their cover of Sickles And Hammers (which is a song by Minutemen).

Gimmie Indie Rock! Part of the Holy Trinity that birthed Indie Rock in the early 90s (along with Pavement & GBV), III was dropped at a time when their hanky-clutching, heart-tugging singles Brand New Love & It’s So Hard to Fall In Love were being passed around the indie kingdom like junior high class notes. On III, Sebadoh takes on all genres and smokes them through their lo-fi bong. Barlow & Gaffney pull off every stoner’s dream by making chronic completely from leftover resin & roaches. That was the genius of the lo-fi artists of this period. As symbolically replicated on their album covers & liner notes, they created fertile sound collages out of scraps, shards & slivers. No other album better captures the DIY slacker lo-fi ethos that epitomized the indie rock sound in the early 90s.

From ButterThumbz 03/30/2014 00:32

A comprehensive underground alternative indie rock almanac. You'd be forgiven for thinking it's everything you need to know.

From arthurbittencourt 02/06/2014 06:11

A whole day of philosophy in the roam of a farm kid who accidentally ingested psychedelics.Or a mirror to my soul.

From The Gollux 05/11/2012 03:12

"the freed man" is actually their debut... But this one is probably my favorite.

OK debut album.