Rough Trade - Avoid Freud
#413
by Paul Zickler
October 13 1980
Rough Trade
Avoid Freud
Genre: Sexy/Schlocky Canadian New Wave
Allen’s Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Paul’s Rating: 3.75
Highlighted Songs:
High School Confidential
Emotional Blackmail
B Grade Movie
“High School Confidential” was a 1958 film starring Russ Tamblyn and Mamie Van Doren, featuring Jerry Lee Lewis as himself, best known for the beat poet slang and evil reefer madness of its teenage characters. I’ve never seen the film, but based on Rough Trade’s signature song of the same title, I assume there’s also a lot of sexual tension. “She’s a cool, blonde, scheming bitch. She makes my body twitch… You can hear her stilettos click. I want her so much I feel sick.” Of course, the ‘80’s twist comes from hearing these words sung by a (gasp!) lesbian lead singer, the rather breathless Ms. Carole Pope. If you close your eyes, though, it’s pretty easy to imagine Tim Curry as Dr. Frank-N-Furter singing, “What’s the principal doin’ with her? Is he screwin’ with her? What’s her perfume? Tigress by Fabregé. It makes me cream my jeans when she comes my way.” Musically, it’s actually a pretty solid tune, reminiscent of those late ‘70’s Tubes records. I’m pretty sure it’s the one Rough Trade song most likely to be on a Best of the ‘80’s collection, and rightfully so.
Your tolerance for the rest of the album depends on how you feel about Pope’s campy, over the top delivery of virtually every line of every song. Imagine a very drunk Chrissie Hynde performing in a Berlin nightclub without a mic, except instead of clever wordplay she’s singing stuff like, “You can’t manipulate me! Is it merely physical violence? I’ll be your dominatrix!” while the rest of the band yells “Physical!” over and over again. I mean, that could actually be entertaining in a kooky sort of way.
Not every song fits the new wave template. There’s a sort of bluesy rocker called “I Can’t Take It,” complete with rolled piano chords and finger snaps. Of course, the lyrics go, “Been lyin’ in my own vomit on the bathroom floor. I had a revelation! You know I can’t (shrieking) baby baby baby! Take it no more.” And “B Grade Movie,” the final track, explores even weirder territory with a soundtrack-ish vibe, spoken narration, inexplicable forays into bad British accents, and clearly tongue in cheek (I hope!) lyrics: “That white shirt unbuttoned at the collar, revealing the tanned expanse of your chest… Your swelling manhood rising in your bleached out jeans.” Um, yeah. Again, there’s entertainment value here. I can see why this band ended up in an SCTV sketch, although sadly I can’t find it online.
Lest you think she’s merely a sex maniac, there’s the album’s attempted first single, “What’s the Furor About the Fuhrer?” I say “attempted” because, according to Wikipedia, when it was released, “radio stations flipped the single over and played the B-side.” I guess Canadian Top 40 wasn’t ready for lines like “White Baptists, screaming fascists” or “Hitler’s legacy is ours, we’re under corporate control.” I gotta say their punk cred increased substantially for me when I heard this one. I mean, it’s not a very good song, but major points for trying. And “Fashion Victim” feels pretty tame and silly in comparison (“You hate my avant garde friends / They understand and appreciate me / We’re all victims of fashion.”).
There are some fairly delicious musical moments, such as the Power Pop guitar intro to “Emotional Blackmail,” which sadly fades into the background when Carole begins screaming, “What the hell do you want? I’m-uh p-paralyzed when you-uh call my name-uh.” We get it, she listened to a lot of Ziggy Stardust era Bowie. And did I mention she’s a lesbian?!
Overall, Rough Trade remains novel and entertaining in a kitschy way for approximately 19 of the album’s 35 minutes. The band’s new wave chops sometimes keep things afloat, but ultimately this is definitely a “your mileage may vary” situation. I found myself feeling some serious Carole Pope fatigue by the end. And no, I have no idea what the title means, other than it rhymes, eh?
https://open.spotify.com/album/7quqMG6qpJpYnMYK8XU12F?si=AU_eiaiqRk6Ne9S5rRCQ_Q
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