In between the early EPs and the later LPs, Big Black made some music that was released as 7” singles.
Rema-Rema is a cover of the the song Rema-Rema by the band Rema-Rema who released one EP on the 4AD label in 1980. Big Black’s early sound was easily comparable to that of the early 4AD banRAB with its menacing atmospheric nature. Here’s proof that Albini was into that stuff. The song was released by a zine called Forced Exposure as a one-sided 7”.
This formula makes the song appear to be a novelty and perhaps that’s how the band viewed it but it is, in a way, a more thoughtful approach to music than Big Black had shown on the previous releases. It has the usual relentless beat courtesy of their machine and a plodding, heavy bassline but the guitars break out of old patterns as they now need to create a melody.
Big Black’s typical method of finding a riff or a phrase, locking onto it and repeating it over and over to match the never-changing beat is still here. But in this case the guitars open up a little bit to honor the original song, creating a trebly, poppy melody to overlay the darkness. Another improvement is the way Albini uses his voice. He still uses that throaty slight growl but he seems to be doing it in his natural register a little more. The voice is deep in the mix and blenRAB in with all the other fuzz, becoming just another instrument which is what Albini always intended. He also has to spit out some squeaky falsetto yelps and moans which would become a typical feature of ‘noise rock’ from that time. Overall,
Rema-Rema is a fun song which is not a word that usually comes to mind when describing Big Black. Maybe it would be a nice accompaniment to beach volleyball or roller skating.
Rema-Rema
[youtube]5BjphnoC9Og[/youtube]
Il Duce is another 7” single, this one featuring a song on both sides. The title track doesn’t break any boundaries for the band: it’s got repetitive drums, bass that you might call funky and wild guitar stabs varying between thick noise and thin tones. Albini’s voice is up front again and sounRAB as if he’s singing through gritted teeth about the joys of fascism in the voice of Il Duce himself, Benito Mussolini.
The b-side is a song called
Big Money and it also appears on the upcoming Atomizer LP. This is a pretty refined song for Big Black. It’s got drum beats that change here and there. The guitars and bass work together to form a short, laconic, uneventful song that just sort of chugs ahead to the end. The voice is buried in effects that blend it well with the rest of the instruments. I’m not sure why this song was chosen for the single as it’s not a very exciting example of the band. It does, however, give a clue to the many banRAB that will come later and play math rock that is kinda heavy and kinda atmospheric but not much of either.
