MBV album worth wait

By Steve Gertz

Daily Arts Writer

Everybody knows the tale. In 1991 Kurt Cobain and Nirvana, by injecting the buzzsaw harmonies of Sonic Youth and The Pixies with a healthy dose of pop, redefined the possibilities of the electric guitar for a whole new generation.

The lesser-known half of that story is that a band called My Bloody Valentine was simultaneously doing the same thing, in a decidedly different although equally innovative fashion, on the other side of the Atlantic.

On "Loveless," MBV mastermind Kevin Shields completely deconstructed guitar music as it existed at the time. He accomplished this primarily by manipulating amplifier feedback. While artists from Jimi Hendrix to The Jesus and Mary Chain had successfully utilized feedback as a musical instrument, Shields elevated the approach to an unprecedented level of mastery. His "glide guitar" method consisted of wavering drones, the pitch of which he would control meticulously with the tremolo arm of his guitar until he was actually playing melodies with feedback.

By combining this approach with his ace production skills and the honey-drenched vocals of singer/guitarist Bilinda Butcher, Shields built sonic cathedrals. Tape loops wandered in and out, splices of feedback darted around like friendly bees, the vocals and the drums were present, but buried deeply under the layers of otherworldly guitar noise. It sounded nothing like a four-piece rock outfit with traditional instruments, but more like the London Philharmonic performing on acid at the bottom of the ocean.

The gilded cacophony of songs like "Only Shallow," "To Here Knows When" and "Soon" hit British airwaves like a splash of cold water and spawned legions of copycats eager to recreate the majesty of MBV's sound. The profound influence of "Loveless" can still be detected by similarly innovative bands such as Stereolab, Mogwai and Radiohead.

It is the year 2000 and rumors of a follow-up to "Loveless" have circulated for nine years. Although Shields has collaborated with a variety of other artists and lent production skills to many more, no new MBV material has surfaced. Perhaps we will one day be treated to another dose of Shields' heavenly noise, but until then we still have "Loveless." Thank God for that.