John's Black Dirt - Perpetual Optimism Is a Force Multiplier (1994, Grass)

Throughout the '80s and '90s, Minneapolis/St. Paul was the collective gift that kept on giving, seemingly producing more bands than California and New York combined.  Not an entirely accurate analogy but it sure felt like it, and John's Black Dirt were part of the Twin Cities mix.  Snatched up in the Grass Records signing frenzy of '94, JBD played a relatively traditional stripe of indie rock that was way more Chapel Hill than Seattle.  I could easily envision these three lads sharing a bill with Polvo and/or Archers of Loaf.  Heavy goes it on the dynamics too, adopting a similar modus operandi to Seam.  Unfortunately, JBD weren't quite as consistent as their aforementioned contemps, but Perpetual's good 'uns shine like a zillion bucks, with the tuneful soft/loud surge of "Lights Flashing," and "Buicks" bittersweet tinge floating my boat just fine.  Props to "Pugilist" as well. Per a couple of blurbs on Amazon's page for this disk, an unreleased follow-up to Perpetual... is sitting in a vault or closet somewhere. 

01. Congliptious
02. Saltines
03. Movements
04. Buick
05. Fog
06. Happy Apple
07. White Sale
08. Crazy Goddamn Mad
09. Pugilist
10. Falling
11. Wide Load
12. Cloud in Pants
13. Lights Flashing
14. Who Wears the Jerk Hat?

Now on Amazon, or on ltd ed. vinyl courtesy of Bandcamp.