Jazzy Blind Melon brings `Soup' to Houston in concert

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RATING: * * * *

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by Heather Smith and Jennifer Smith

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Blind Melon was born just over five years ago in Mississippi (not Seattle) with guitarist Rogers Stevens and bassist Brad Smith. Lead vocalist Shannon Hoon joined a year later, along with guitarist Christopher Thorn and drummer Glen Graham.

After Blind Melon released their first album, Blind Melon , the band went spiraling through tour after tour for a total of over 300 shows in one year. You may have seen them with Soundgarden, The Rolling Stones, Neil Young, Ozzy Ozbourne, Lenny Kravitz or Smashing Pumpkins. Gifted with the ability to put on an electrifying show, Blind Melon performed at Woodstock '94.

With this behind them, they took a hiatus and later reconvened to cook up Soup .

"On this album, we didn't really sit in a room and write the way we did last time, when we were all literally living under the same roof," Thorn said. "We went our separate ways for a while and then got together to try and put it all together. That's part of the reason we used the title; we each brought in all these really weird things that we just put together and hoped for the best."

Soup is similar to their debut album in that the songs are upbeat and heartfelt, each with its own message. Blind Melon wrote many of the songs as reactions to media-hyped, newsworthy occurences. They wrote "St. Andrews Fall" after Hoon witnessed a girl fall to her death from a Detroit building. Hoon was disgusted by South Carolina mother Susan Smith, who drowned her two children in their car seats, and thus wrote the song, "Car Seat (God's Presents)." "Skinned" is the band's attempt to understand serial killer Ed Gein's mentality, and "New Life" celebrates the birth of Hoon's child. This album contains a darker feeling than their debut, resulting from the intense lyrics which compel the listener to keep the disk on rotation.

Soup still has the groovy acoustic sound captured on Blind Melon , but with an added horn section, the album takes on a jazzier sound. The band obviously took advantage of the New Orleans atmosphere while recording there. Many of the songs have a hint of Cajun flair, which results in a down-home sound. The songs are intricately woven, musically blending the Cajun aspect with pop and grunge rock. Only after many listens can one receive the melodies' full impact, showing how much Blind Melon's writing skills have improved since the first album.

Whether the result of exemplary art or just musical talent, Soup is the cure for all your ills. If just listening to the album isn't enough, Blind Melon is coming to Houston on Oct. 20 at Numbers at 300 Westheimer. Tickets are still available for only $15.

This item appeared in the Arts & Entertainment section of the October 13, 1995 issue.

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