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SUMMARY When The End burst onto the DC music scene in 1981, they came out with loads of youthful exuberance and a hard-hitting repertoire of songs by The Doors to go with their own catchy original songs. Guitarist Dave Siebenheller, drummer Ray Pettis, and singer/keyboard player F. Scott played their music rough and hard - they called it "industrial strength rock and roll." The recorded legacy they left from this boisterous time was the home-recorded album BEGINNINGS, which contained music a shade more tame than their live shows but still captured the band's raw, high-energy sound. The End then went several months without a guitar player, causing Scott to switch from organ to clavinet and changing The End's sound completely. This phase was captured in a more reflective recording titled CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN ACID, full of dark, moody, and softer material. Finally, in late 1982 guitarist Ben Pape joined The End, bringing the band a full and professional sound, diversifying the material, and producing a recording titled STRIKE THREE. Three frenetic years of party-hardy music earned them a collection of loyal fans, until the band burned out (but did not fade away!) and disappeared for two decades. FINAL JUDGMENT captures all three phases of The End's early career by assembling the best material from the band's three home-recorded albums. The real treat here is that all but three of these tracks have all been digitally remastered for CD from the original source tapes. So fans of The End from the early eighties - when the band's popularity was highest - no longer need to listen to worn-out cassette tapes; with FINAL JUDGMENT they will hear the band's vintage recordings sounding as crisp and clear as the day they were made. The organ-heavy tracks from 1981 include some of The End's most popular original songs; they still rock as hard as ever. The clavinet-oriented tracks from the band's two-man phase in 1982 come alive with a richer sound than they had before. And while STRIKE THREE was never as well-known as the band's first two albums, FINAL JUDGMENT contains three tracks from this final vintage recording that highlight Ben's guitar work and reveal a depth and professionalism that hint at what The End would become when they reunited twenty years later. One small flaw with FINAL JUDGMENT is that it doesn't contain many songs by The Doors, whose material was always the bread-and-butter of The End's live shows and something they did very well. But there's plenty of similar material here to give the listener a good flavor of what The End sounded like in the early eighties. Anyone who was a fan of The End at that time will instantly recognize most of the songs and will enjoy having this CD in their collection. Those who never heard or saw The End will almost certainly enjoy FINAL JUDGMENT as well. It has a simpler and less polished sound than the CDs recorded by the reunited band, reflecting both the primitive analog recording techniques of the time and the band's relative inexperience. But what always shines through is energy and enthusiasm, and these songs are very accessible - it's lean and mean rock and roll. |
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SONGS Suburban Life - The CD opens with one of The End's signature songs, a hard rocker with a fast driving bass line, a strong Doors-like organ sound, and furious guitar licks. A brawny vocal presents humorous lyrics about life in the suburbs. Voted the most popular The End song by fans visiting the band's web site. In The Night - Another featured song from The End 's early repertoire, this mid-tempo song is highlighted by a resolute organ part, supported by dynamic drums. These sounds mirror vocals that range from bold to silky, with lyrics that hint at seduction. This is Scott's favorite The End song. Coming Through - A straightforward, high-energy rocker that sounds sort of like The Doors playing late 70's southern rock. Organ, guitar, and drums all hit it fast and hard, to make this song a staple of The End's early live shows. Ray says this is his favorite The End song. Talkin' Bout You - This is a radical re-working of an old Chuck Berry song, but hardly recognizable as such. It features Dave Siebenheller's wah-wah guitar over a mid-tempo rock beat with a very heavy bass line. It's easy to see why this song was always popular during the band's live shows, and the studio recording doesn't lose much. Back Door Man - The only Doors song on the CD is covered here by The End with a very chunky beat. Scott tries to grunt and shriek like Jim Morrison with limited success, but otherwise the song holds up well as a primal blues track. Love Toy - Another perennial favorite of fans from The End's early years, this somewhat bombastic song features an operatic vocal part (slightly off key at times) with some vivid lyrical imagery. A pulsing, rhythmic beat and very strong organ sound recall Iron Butterfly. Unfortunately, this was one of the three tracks that was not recovered from original masters, so the sound quality is below average. Businessman - The End announces its rejection of traditional occupations in this blisteringly fast punk anthem, another very popular song from BEGINNINGS. Anarchy! If you never heard punk played on an organ, you need to hear this. Unfortunately, this is another track that wasn't remastered from the original, so sound quality is poor. I'd Rather Be With You Tonight - This saccharine-sweet pop song - very popular with The End's teenaged female audience back in the day - is pretty far from the psychedelic sound. It's still a good song in its own right, but played too fast and suffering from poor sound quality here. The new version on FLASHBACK restores the song to its original luster. Adam & Eve - The opening track from CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN ACID is a hard rocker, with smooth vocals and a basic sound drawn from clavinet rather than organ. Lyrics recount a stylized version of the bible story over a driving beat. Raise Your Eyes - A highly reflective song that opens with a clavinet sounding like a harpsichord and becomes a catchy anthem. Complex lyrics deride beliefs of the past and offer encouragement for the future. It's one of The End's best songs, and this is a case where the studio recording sounds better than the live version. Would You Love Me - This dark and moody recounting of failed love has a surprisingly complex and interesting structure. Tempo changes and frequent breaks build up to an interesting instrumental climax. Scott proclaims this to be his favorite song from CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN ACID. Discarding A Paradise - A soft mood piece, this sad song about lost love features a full organ sound, lush vocals, and gentle drums. While it isn't the kind of music that the average fan might normally associate with The End, this is a truly beautiful song. Saturday - A slow southern-rock-influenced ballad, this song showcases the clavinet as a highly versatile instrument that can sound like guitar when played softly and layered. Silky vocals sing of falling in love with a photograph. It makes for an interesting package. Let Me Be Your Slave - This song opened STRIKE THREE and announced the arrival of Ben Pape as The End's guitarist, bringing a full sound and raising the technical skill level of the band. "Slave" is a well-crafted song, musically rich in guitar and layered vocals, and with lyrics that profess obsession. The band has been regularly including this song in their live shows of the new millenium. Taste A Little Love - Three chords and a guitar riff alternately played hard and soft propel this medium-slow song along for six minutes. The double-entendre lyrics aren't very subtle. It's a good recording, but this is one of the weaker songs on the CD. Memory's Destruction - The CD closes with this very interesting, well-written, and well-recorded mid-tempo track about former lovers breaking up. Layers of clavinet and guitar are arranged over appealing chord changes, culminating in an extraordinary fadeout that eventually leaves only the drums playing. |
Other The End CD reviews: Final Judgment | Flashback | Psychedelicious
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