Granted that it sounds more like (the as yet unrecorded) "Uncontrollable Urge," but that was a conscious allusion to IWHYH.
Sex Master - My 2nd least favorite track on Squeeze (we'll get to number 1 in three days). I'd have preferred Cat On A Wall as the album opener. The only things I like about Sex Master are Glenn's guitar and Gilson's drums. 2/5
I don't think I've ever listened to this album - I have on occasions seen a copy, looked at the cover and the song titles and decided against it! "Sex Master" does basically sound like early XTC - I get strong "Radios In Motion" vibes about the feel of it. There is an infectious energy about it, and it certainly doesn't outstay its welcome. It's probably just as well that I'm more focused on the energy of the track rather than listening closely to the lyrics - it's a bit of an eye-opener when you actually read them! I'm hoping that some of this album will lean more towards the Squeeze sound that I know, but this one does seem more of a direct descendant of the EP, and as such I'll rate it similarly as 2/5.
I don't think it's nearly as good as "Radios In Motion" -- "Radios In Motion" has a much stronger central hook in the chorus, whereas this chorus is almost indistinguishable from the verse to me...I also feel like "Radios In Motion" captured the times better. But otherwise, the early XTC comparison is not completely un-apt. A good slice of punk energy, again, but a rather drab song with risqué lyrics that don't really work for me. I do like the opening "I Want To Hold Your Hand" style hook, but the song itself is otherwise rather disappointing for an opening track...like if this was track four or track 11 or something, that would be OK, but this is ultimately just a rather ordinary song played by a punk band with better than average musicianship. As always, it's the piano and the vocal that stand out, the rest of it is ordinary. 2.4/5
Sex Master I think Squeeze is better than its reputation would suggest. It's far from perfect, but there's a lot a variety on the album. While it's a distant bridge from where they would ultimately land, there's still some good things here. Unfortunately, "Sex Master" isn't the greatest start. It sounds like a Packet Of Three retread, a punky/pop number of no particular distinction. The band does give it their all and seems to have fun with it, and the spirit shines through in the performances. It's just so generic. I'll give it an extra point for the effort. 3/5
"Sex Master" I really like the opening but then it gets kinda generic pub/garage rock-y. It is another that was probably really fun to play live, what with the rave-up bits.
Sex Master Unfortunately this just continues where Packet Of Three left off, too much frenetic energy with too little melody. Not enough distinctive Squeeze in there. 2/5
Our votes for "Sex Master" 1-0 2-5 3-2 4-1 5-0 Average: 2.5500 Cumulative Rankings For Squeeze 1. Sex Master - 2.5500
Today's song is "Bang Bang" Squeeze Youtube Channel Squeeze - Bang Bang Lyrics | AZLyrics.com Written by Difford and Tilbrook, this was the second single released from the album in May 1978, peaking at #49 on the U.K. singles chart. It was also one of two songs from the record that was produced by the band, not by John Cale. The primary song link above is from Squeeze's Youtube channel, a similar link of which seemed to present regional access issues for "Sex Master". Given there are limited linking options for most of the album's songs, the primary daily links will likely be coming from videos at the channel. As such, I'm including the direct link to the Youtube channel for each daily song entry, as I believe all regions should have access to the channel itself (let me know if that is incorrect). For "Bang Bang", there was one alternate link I found in my search, but it was definitely a re-recorded version.
The video link says "This video is not available", but if I go to the Youtube channel I can see it, and if I type "Squeeze Bang Bang" in the search, the top result is the one on the official channel! Strange... Anyway, this one sounded a bit silly and juvenile on first listen, but improved on second listen. The best bit is the odd chord change under the words "staying younger by the day". Feels a bit more like a Squeeze track, and gets quite a bit of content into barely two minutes, with a pretty strong hook in the chorus. 3/5.
Bang Bang One of the really good songs on the album. The band marries a playful and cheeky attitude to a basic guitar riff and back beat that sounds lifted from a Ramones record. The recurring "Bang Bang" shouts seem deliberately campy but add to the irreverent feel of the song (in the live version, those shouts are sadly perfunctory, like they're just going through the motions). The song screams 70'-era standard-issue punk-lite/new wave, but that's a feature for me, as I love that genre. As much as I enjoy this, there are two '5'-rated songs still to come for me on this album, and this one doesn't quite measure up to those. 4/5
I know, it's definitely odd. How the regional access rights work escapes me. At any rate, as mentioned above, I'll post the channel link along with a direct video link for every song for the foreseeable future to cover all bases.
Sex Master A fun little raver of a track. Almost bordering onto a Cheap Trick-like song. The start-stop nature of the song reminds me of years later Stones song Hold Onto Your Hat though neither song sounds remotely like the other. 3.0
I missed “Sex Master”, which for me is no great loss, my score would have driven the rating even lower. I never cared much for “Bang Bang” until recently. The stop/start nature of the “Bang Bang, Bang Bang” bit always annoyed me, but I’ve come to enjoy the rest of it, little that there is. Plus, it does have the sound of Squeeze in the context of the time, and I appreciate it for what it is: they’re finding themselves without damaging outside interference (Cale). And I really like young Glenn’s voice. 3.8/5
Sex Master. This reminds me a little of a track or two that Queen does in this vein (Sheer Heart Attack?). Anyway a cool energetic track with really great drumming and awesome guitar solos. Bang Bang. Another fun track, you can't really miss with that killer "bang bang" hook.
Bang Bang - Being self-produced, this track has more in common with the material on the next album than the album it's on. Still, I find it relatively weak, but at barely over 2 minutes, it doesn't overstay its welcome. 2.5/5
I love John scale but he was a poor choice for them as a producer. His insistence that they write new songs rather than use the strong material already written was weird.
Bang Bang starts to sound like the Squeeze I came to know and love. My first exposure to this song however, came on the 6 song, 10” ep that was released a while later. I didn’t get that until after East Side Story. So you could say I was discovering them in reverse.
I can't hear that song without thinking of that performance. I recall being very happy to them perform. I believe at that time I was aware they we breaking up.
Bang Bang and now we're talkin'. In the same vein as the four tracks we've heard so far, but quirkier, funnier and more distinctive. Chris gets off some good one-liners at the expense of various historical figures (Van Gogh, "Some impression this would make"-- har, har). Gilson does fancy fills all over the place. Glenn starts to really sound like Glenn. And the band sounds like it's really having fun-- a crucial ingredient at this point in their history. Plus, the bang bang bits are cool. 4/5
"Bang Bang" is much better -- I don't think John Cale, who I'm not a big fan of anyway -- and Squeeze were a good mix. This song has a sense of fun, a poppy sense and, yes, a very Ramones-y backing track. The more prominent keyboards enhance the song -- the backing vocals -- kind of de rigeur for punk bands to have at least one song with vocals like that -- are actually kind of annoying but they are so sort of mixed up that maybe they were deliberately spoofing that by-now punk cliche of it all....Enjoyable, and I think even in the context of th time, wwith no knowledge of what was coming the song does stand out a bit... but ultimately a just below the great mark for me. 3.5/5
