[Album Review] Odds | Good Weird Feeling

Odds’ third album, Good Weird Feeling, was a scorching hot release in 1995. Well, at least it was here in Canada. It spawned five singles, Truth Untold, Eat My Brain, Satisfied, Mercy To Go, and I Would Be Your Man. It earned the band three Juno Award nominations for Best Rock Album, Group of the Year, and Songwriter of the Year. Granted, they didn’t win any, as they lost out to Alanis Morissette, Blue Rodeo, and Alanis Morissette, respectively. But the hype was strong enough to push this album to certified Platinum in Canada. It is still the band’s only release to obtain the achievement.

But, as my friend Curtiss pointed out the other day, the only true test for art is THE TEST OF TIME. Is Good Weird Feeling worth listening to today? Is it still good and weird? Let’s see…

This week was the first time I spent serious time with Good Weird Feeling. I went in with only knowing Truth Untold and Eat My Brain well. I think those two songs got a little more play on the radio, and both were in heavy rotation on Much Music back in the day. Scanning the playlists of Toronto’s present-day rock stations, I noticed they seem passé as I didn’t find any recent plays. (FYI, Q107 is still playing It Falls Apart almost every day. What is wrong with those guys? Press shuffle.)

Perhaps we Canadians might collectively be burnt out on those songs. I have to admit, I found myself skipping them often this week. Not because I feel that they are bad in any way, but only because, as a Canadian whose teen years took place during the ’90s, I’ve had enough exposure to them.

What I really needed to focus on were the album tracks. Half are bright pop-rock songs such as Radios Of Heaven, Satisfied, and Anybody Else But Me. They contain the formula that got them this far, and my favourite is the cross-dressing lament-lite of Oh Sorrow, Oh Shame. Unlike that terribly transphobic Aerosmith song, this deals with the social guilt one associates with the act. Odds have always been great at balancing their humour into their music:

I cross myself and do my best “Acid Queen”
A cross between a dime-store witch
And a whirling, painted Martin Sheen

The joke isn’t at the expense of how the person looks but their self-deprecating view of what they believe they look like. Lyrically, these guys were way ahead of their time, and Steven Tyler should be taking notes.

The rest of the album has a “laid back” grunge growl on songs like Smokescreen (Come and Get Me), I Would Be Your Man, Brake The Bed, and Mercy To Go. And the slower tracks like The Last Drink and We’ll Talk are very Nirvana-chic. However, they do go against the grain with strong guitar solos and fills. I welcome this since I enjoy hearing Craig Northey play to his full potential.

But, if you know me, I tend to lean toward the heavy and faster tracks, which is probably why I enjoy Leave It There. Its lyrics about a sword in a stone are nothing to write home about, but I love how the band tears into its ’90s psychedelic groove. It reminds me of (Canadian reference alert!) I Mother Earth’s One More Astronaut. Some would say the comparison is… bang on. (What I just wrote is hilarious to every Canadian rock fan. Trust me.)

Good Weird Feeling does jump between pop-rock and trendy grunge, which some might find jarring. For me, the songs are strong enough to make it work, and it is great to hear Northey rip on the guitar. So, the answer is yes. Weird Good Feelings is still weird and good enough to pass THE TEST OF TIME.

4/5

The odds are you need more Odds/Craig Northey/Strippers Union in you:
[Album Review] Odds | Neopolitan
[Album Review] Odds | Bedbugs
[Album Review] Odds | Good Weird Feeling
[Album Review] Odds | Nest
[Album Review] Craig Northey | Giddy Up
[Album Review] Northey Valenzuela
[Album Review] Strippers Union | Stripper’s Union Local 518
[Album Review] The New Odds | Cheerleader
[Album Review] Strippers Union | The Deuce
[EP Review] Odds | The Most Beautiful Place On Earth
[EP Review] Odds | Game Face On
[EP Review] Odds | Party Party Party
[Album Review] Strippers Union | 3- The Undertaking
[Album Review] Odds | Crash The Time Machine