Goat by the Jesus Lizard

Whenever I listen to the Jesus Lizard's early albums, I become convinced that David Yow is trying to kill me. He's in an elite class of homicidal rock and roll screamers, conveying pure, unhinged lunacy like no other frontman since Nick Cave released the bats upon the unsuspecting corner of the world that was willing to hear him in the early '80s. The other musicians in the Jesus Lizard--Duane Denison on guitar, David Wm. Sims on bass, and Mac McNeilly on drums--are restrained in comparison to their ridiculous drunk of a frontman, but still a hell of an abrasive rock band. The combination of Yow's mic-shoved-down-the-throat vocals, Denison's twangy, textured guitar work, and the relentless pummel of the rhythm section makes for one of the most distinctive sounds of the early 90s.

Goat is arguably their best album, with an incredibly clear mix courtesy of their friend Steve Albini. Albini--also frontman/guitarist for Shellac, Rapeman, and the legendary Big Black--has recorded other bands ranging from PJ Harvey to Cheap Trick, but in my opinion his laissez-faire style had a perfect match in tJL's insane noise rock. Similarly abrasive underground bands often have thin mixes that make it hard to hear the musical craft behind the infernal racket, but on Goat every sledgehammer bass line and drunken yelp comes through clearly.
On an album that's full of great songs (admittedly, there are only 9 on the 30-minute LP, but the consistency is still pretty impressive), it's hard to pick a favorite, but at the moment mine are the frenzied 6/8 blast "Mouth Breather" and the sinister-as-hell "Monkey Trick."

More than anything, I think I like this album so much because it represents a time when indie rock didn't have to sound like bittersweet collegiate pop music. That's always been a part of it, of course, but there were always loud, confrontational bands that weren't afraid to get drunk and rock the fuck out as well. The Jesus Lizard were an indie band; that may seem impossible to audiences who only think of indie as Death Cab for Cutie, the Decemberists, and the Shins, but...god damn it, people, just be aware that "loud" doesn't have to mean "stupid." More bands should be willing to rock so hard.