Mike Watt – Contemplating The Engine Room (1997/2017) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Mike Watt – Contemplating The Engine Room (1997/2017)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 53:37 minutes | 1,13 GB | Genre: Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Columbia

“Contemplating the Engine Room” is a punk rock opera by Minutemen veteran Mike Watt. Released in 1997, the album is a punk rock song cycle that uses navy life as an extended metaphor for both Watt’s family history and his first band, the Minutemen. The album was critically well-received, though not universally. The cover art features a picture of Watt’s father in his Navy uniform.

Mike Watt, recovering from his all-star alterna-rock debut solo album, returned in 1997 with what is perhaps the strongest album he has ever made. Of course, his earlier Minutemen albums will forever go down as landmarks, but in retrospect, many of the band’s SST releases were brilliant but uneven affairs that put polemics (and great song titles) over consistent songwriting. Unfortunately, much of fIREHOSE’s oeuvre is rife with inconsistency, and on Watt’s first solo project, he and his songs were overshadowed by a boatload of high-profile musicians who contributed to the album. Contemplating the Engine Room is Watt’s masterpiece, what he calls “a punk rock opera.” This is a concept album that works on every level: musically, lyrically, and (most importantly) conceptually. Watt (who sings and plays his trusty bass guitar), drummer Steve Hodges, and guitarist Nels Cline form a psychic bond that allows them to dexterously maneuver the complex terrain Watt has laid out in his songs, which celebrate three guys playing together, punk rock, life, and his relationship with his dad.

Tracklist:
01. Mike Watt – In the Engine Room (04:53)
02. Mike Watt – Red Bluff (03:29)
03. Mike Watt – The Bluejacket’s Manual (02:15)
04. Mike Watt – Pedro Bound! (03:22)
05. Mike Watt – The Boilerman (05:02)
06. Mike Watt – Black Gang Coffee (03:27)
07. Mike Watt – Topsiders (02:24)
08. Mike Watt – No One Says Old Man (To the Old Man) (04:11)
09. Mike Watt – Fireman Hurley (02:18)
10. Mike Watt – Liberty Calls! (04:39)
11. Mike Watt – In the Bunk Room / Navy Wife (02:00)
12. Mike Watt – Crossing the Equator (04:19)
13. Mike Watt – Breaking the Choke Hold (03:43)
14. Mike Watt – Wrapped Around the Screw (02:38)
15. Mike Watt – Shore Duty (04:50)

Personnel:
Mike Watt – vocals, bass
Nels Cline – guitar
Stephen Hodges – drums

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