Big Black - Passing Complexion

[rohlinginn]

About a black person who can pass as a white person due to his pale complexion as far as I understand.

[imliterallyacat]

crack music ^^

[kingofcrunk1010]

This song has the greatest guitar sound ever, hands down. The sort of sound that's incomprehensible before you hear it, and even after that you have trouble believing what you heard was actually real and not an auditory hallucination.

[Monkeyhead75]

what a fuking blindin track...nuff said

[6Goat6Skrote6]

definitely one of my fav-v-v-z

[bacoffee]

one of my all-time favorite songs

[MusicTheCurve]

that bass is a killer!

[kelloggcerealxoxo]

i found this band by searching for big black dildo in amazon

[Nkerklaan]

I can't even comprehend that hook, or how the fuck those sounds are being made. Inimitable and brilliant.

[lollipola]

@Nkerklaan I'm pretty sure they are natural harmonics played through a heap of distortion. I think it's 7th, 9th and 12th frets... (can't get my guitar to check). But even still; pretty inimitable! :)

[leeharveyosmosis]

@lollipola

I was able to cop at least a bit of the "big black tone" with a digital delay pedal. I turned the delay button almost off....just to the point where your guitar comes out sounding like a 1950's sci-fi robot....the Colonel's secret recipe ain't shit.

[scandza]

Genius!



[yuckmud87]

wow cool song guiz

[youknowyourrite1]

can't even imagine how intense the tour they did with swans was..

[lirannine]

Because of this band i started my own one! Thanks Albini and Big Black!

[jsl840314]

@lirannine Me too! Steve Albini is my spirit animal.

[guwest1]

part of the soundtrack of my late teenage years.

[aberrantorange]

I love this!

[klumsygod]

The only bad thing about this band: Google searches quickly can go horribly wrong.

[nikagandofacho]

@klumsygod That's the most intelligent comment of this video... Hahaha very funny man, very funny!

[kowtpr187]

@klumsygod why cause you get all that crap from Rob and Big.....I hate that

[youknowyourrite1]

@kowtpr187 got what from rob and big?? i'm gunna hate it too from the sound of it

[slicknicknirvana]

@klumsygod it sent me to big black meat #17

[ourorboros2]

i've seen some of their live vids...i think they sound better live than on cd...

[Ailleacht]

Another great song from Big Black. If any of you would like to check out some other similar bands you may not have heard of, check out the dream syndicate. they were pre Big Black and had some great sounds, the album the days of wine and roses is one of the best of the 80's. And for something just as influencial from the end of the 80's early 90's try My Bloody Valentine and their album loveless.

Pleasant listening!!!

....PB

[fahckincant]

@Ailleacht or just listen to The Fall. UK styleeee

[KevinHeaven9]

did my comment about cd's annoy you?

[LeesburgFLAtheist]

I fucking love this group, I canmt believe I found them on here. Thanks for sharing, oh how this totally brings back memories.

[jazzmanEE]

the total greatness of Steve Albini!! that's what i m talking about baby!!!

[redsuxh8r]

Waaay ahead of its time. Incredible

[nickgash]

Steve Albini at his finest and most fierce. What amazing abilities that man has.

[number7gracestreet]

yeah, i know "lyrics were an after thought"... don't bare analysis. but..., anybody else thought this song might be about ...Jelly Roll Morton?

could be anybody, i suppose...

[GrungeAtlanta]

It's depressing that most people will never discover bands like Big Black, Flipper, and Scratch Acid. Oh well. Their loss.

[ZRN959]

@GrungeAtlanta

If you a Nirvana fan, Kurt loved those bands.

[logiconmywrist]

FUCK EM Grunge, if they don't have the will to bother looking for good music, I don't have the will to care. (I've tried.)

[topless1975scout]

Thats goood stuff down there, yo

[MrNalfgar]

perfect.

[ModeONvalencia]

probably open tuned and then harmonics

[jrperson100]

This is the theme new song of Cincinnati, OH The only city where I have seen black people with Blue eyes. I suspect its because its all German and Irish people mixing with blacks.

[SteveAFCLondon]

Love it.

[MFFilms815]

Steve's the Dr. Dre of alt rock lol. My favorite Big Black song.

[glomarockstar]

Albini has done so much for music in the last 30 years. Too much to understand.

[virusbell]

heavymetaldude091 sAYs IT neARLY RIgHT FFFFF * eveRYTHIng

[heavymetaldude091]

this just MELTED MY BRAIN this is the greatest form of music i have ever heard this is the opionon of every pissed off teenagerin america in music form

[SaintHierophant]

@heavymetaldude091

yes, i have often felt like i've been subject to the subtle racism of suburban life.

[nikagandofacho]

For me it's a metal box!

[slctdmbntwrx]

THAAAANK YOU!! Had a sudden craving.

[killertofujomo]

beautiful yet ugly as fuck

[Abortive]

powerdrill to the guitar!

[Khimkharmakan]

That djang djang riff sounds like a steel drum. How do you do that with a guitar? Great lyrics too. Nice little vignettes, stupidities of racism.

[TallFastLoud]

Something called harmonics, if you're a guitar player you'll know, if not....it's basically a way of making a note resonate longer. If you do it with high volume and lots of distortion, you can make the guitar sound almost completely different than playing normal chords clean. Lots of bands use harmonics to an extent but I've never heard them used in the way BB does, except some of the more experimental Sonic Youth stuff.

[TallFastLoud]

For anyone who wants to know, it's just a 5th fret harmonic on the 3rd string, then a 7th fret harmonic on the 3rd string, then a 5th fret harmonic on the 2nd string, then hammer a C chord. Also, strum tremolo

[astr0cat]

no way dude

bottom E string, harmonic on 3rd, then 5th, then 7th

[Khimkharmakan]

Sure I know about harmonics but as you say no one makes them sounds like Big Black does!

[Ranaldo20]

Also, along with the harmonics, Steve uses a Travis Bean guitar, which has an aluminum neck instead of a wooden one, which gives the guitar that screechy metallic sound.

[looshkin66]

and he plays with a metal pic.

[wordupassholes]

How can a guitar sound so good?! Fuck

[Mesarphelous]

Genius song.

[HamburgerMartyr]

I air guitar the fuck out of this everytime I hear it. Still one of my top ten favorite albums after all these years.

[JTea808]

she will take his children...

[lipshc]

this fuckin noize MAN i'm lovin it :)

flipper before them , big black and after a while Sonic Youth were pioneers of noise ..well i think they were listenig to LouReed's Metal Machine Music and try to put that "noise i normal lenght songs....

[loculi]

Big Black, fucking amazing.