Lindsey Buckingham - Go Insane
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Free Music Notes for Go Insane
Free Music Review: Musically Surreal Erotica
Hit: 4 Stars
The 1980s saw Stevie Nicks emerge as a major recording star--and in the wake of her success Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham and Christine McVie also released solo efforts. While McVie's self-titled effort was enjoyable and well executed, it broke no new ground; Lindsey Buckingham's GO INSANE, however, was unexpectedly memorable.The album is very much of its time, relying heavily on synthesizer and drawing a great deal from both late 1970s "New Wave" idioms and the slick rock-pop-dance music that dominated the airwaves of the 1980s. But even so, and although it generated an unexpected number of hits, GO INSANE is hardly the sort of recording that one would expect to make the charts: glitchy, anxious, and deliberately surreal, it merges everything from random sound to Scottish melodies to flashes of Middle Eastern guitar and snatches of South African harmonies.
Buckingham is, I think, one of the most under-recognized guitar players out there, and now and then on GO INSANE one hears that increasingly intense guitar that made many of Fleetwood Mac's recordings so memorable. But this album is less about guitar than it is about production: in general, the recording uses layered sound (including vocals) in an extremely disorienting and disconcerting fashion, bits of music that sound as if they were played in reverse, and everything from the sound of breaking glass to the sound of pouring water.
The lyrics are covertly erotic, with virtually every cut dealing in some form or fashion with sexual desire, and Buckingham's edgy voice serves the material extremely well throughout. Indeed, it is almost impossible to single out any one cut for praise above the others, but I will note that I have always been particularly fond of the jumpy "I Want You" (opening with the sound of an alarm clock ringing), the Dada-ish "Play In The Rain" parts one and two, and the intense "Loving Cup." Whatever the case, it's all good and very unusual stuff, and while it won't necessarily please Fleetwood Mac fans it's certainly a reference point for those who wondered where all the strangeness of the earlier TUSK and the later SAY YOU WILL comes from.
--GFT (Amazon reviewer)--
Free Music Review: Not for faint of heart
Hit: 4 Stars
In this, Buckingham's second solo effort, he has given us a collection that is at once playful in it's pop sensibilities and disjointed with experimentation. You know you're in for a different sounding album from say, Law and Order when you hear strains of a "musical saw" at the beginning of "I Want You" the disc's opening track. While songs like "Go Insane" and "Slow Dancing" are classic Buckingham singles, tracks like "I Must Go" can border on annoying in it's repetitiveness. Buckingham carried these techniques to the Mac album "Tango In The Night" then apparently has gone back to more "traditional" pop techniques in the excellent but underrated " Out Of The Cradle". But "Go Insane", with all of it's quirkiness for quirkiness sake, is definately worth a listen.Free Music Review: sweet insanity
Hit: 5 Stars
Here comes a CD bursting with creative power and energy. Lindsey Buckingham second solo album, and arguably his best, shimmers with a greatness, much in the way Brian Wilson's solo work does. "I Want You" opens the album and features synthesizer and cowbell. Unfortunately, Lindsey's maginificant guitar work is not as present on this disc as his previous work with Fleetwood Mac. "Go Insane" is the perfect song at capturing Lindsey's style and mood. This song was recently performed by the reunited Fleetwood Mac.Free Music Review: review
Hit: 4 Stars
Lindsey flies solo for the second time on this colorful disc. Again, he plays most of the instruments on the album and does most of the vocal tracks. This one man band release differs slightly from his previous work, Law and Order. Lindsey uses drum machines and synthesizers to greater use on Go Insane. In fact, the album relies almost entirely on these instruemts. However, the songwriting is still fairly top notch. The best tracks on the album ("Go Insane," "Slow Dancing," and the two-part "Play In the Rain") could easily have evolved into brilliant Fleetwood Mac songs. The joy of listening to a Lindsey Buckingham solo record is to hear a true artist who knows how to paint music in a unique and original way. The colors he chooses to paint his music are brilliant and truly artistic.Free Music Review: A look inside Buckingham's studio in the mid 80's
Hit: 3 Stars
Go Insane has often been referred to by fans as Lindsey's "show off" album. And I have to agree, studio wizardry aside, this is also his least realized solo effort. This is the first time Lindsey Buckingham released a project that wasn't produced by himself or his coproducer Richard Dashut (Rumours, Tusk, Out of The Cradle, etc). This time, Roy Thomas Baker is brought in to oversee things and the music certainly suffers because of it. Most of you will remember him as the producer of The Cars records. That said, the usual brillance and genius of Buckingham's guitar work and song structure still manages to shine on every song. If you can put up with the countless layers of 1980's style production tricks, then you will find a few favorites amongst all the clutter. This is the one collection of Buckingham tracks that would certainly feel out of place on a Fleetwood Mac record. Highlights include D.W. Suite, a three part tribute to Beach Boy Dennis Wilson(who at the time of his drowning death was involved with FM member Christine McVie) and the humorously self-gratifying "I Want You" complete with his signature wild electric guitar romp. One for the die hard fans. For a more focused look at Buckingham's work check out the very simple Tusk-like "Law and Order" or the utterly breathtaking "Out of The Cradle".