As the album approaches its thirtieth anniversary this late summer, we are today dropping the needle on Viva Last Blues; a flash of raw brilliance from the early Will Oldham catalogue.
Directly before he donned the Bonnie 'Prince' Billy moniker for the first time, 1995’s Viva Last Blues was the third of four albums that Will Oldham released under the Palace name; initially Palace Brothers and then Palace Music. Utilising a crack crew of players - to include his (literal) brother Ned on bass and all sorts of other noises, Liam Hayes (Plush) bringing really unique sounds across the keys, Jason Loewenstein (Sebadoh) whipping and cracking the drums and Bryan Rich with those evocative guitar lines - it remains one of his fullest and most powerful albums to date. The other big sonic presence on the record is the presence of Steve Albini.
Recorded at Eric and Eugene Bates’ studio just outside Birmingham, Alabama, it is a crisp and distinct sounding album. The quiet moments are so unflinchingly intimate and the louder moments are so wide-eyed it’s impossible not to pound your fist along on the counter. Albini just gets it all onto the tape.
In an interview around the time of release, Will Oldham talked about working with Albini;
“It was great. I’ve known Steve for a long time because I was a fan of Big Black when they were around and he handled orders for t-shirts and things like that, so I remember sending him money for a t-shirt and then going to see him play in Newport, Kentucky in ’85. “Steve, this is Will Oldham. This is Steve Albini.” He’s like, “Will Oldham from Louisville, Kentucky? I owe you a t-shirt. Hold on just a second,” you know, and getting me a t-shirt.”
It’s a little like listening to the blue-collar house band at the roadhouse as the night gets progressively looser. Tracks like We All, Us Three, Will Ride and Tonight's Decision are sombre and sparse, just acoustic guitar and various rattles around Oldham’s voice as he sings about work and loss, and specifically life and death. He sounds like a beaten man. So much of the album is grimly dark, but his wry humour is pin sharp and invariably what you think you must have been mistaken in hearing, you very much did hear correctly.
“If I could fuck a mountain. Lord, I would fuck a mountain”
Viva Last Blues has meandering grooves on album opener More Brother Rides and especially on The Mountain Low (which, fact fans, is currently incorrectly titled “The Mountain Choir” on the digital streaming services), with bending guitar notes and slides keeping the vibes weirdly off-kilter. There are sweetly full folk numbers like The Brute Choir, with its bouncing piano lines and gorgeous Appalachian roots. New Partner is straight up one of the most sublime things that Oldham has ever recorded. Lastly, the album center point Work Hard / Play Hard slaps so hard; an evangelical end of work day, first drink drinking, Neil Young-esque rocker. Magic on the tape.
A great raconteur and a brilliantly idiosyncratic wordsmith, Will Oldham also has a beautiful voice, and over the last thirty years it has turned into a fine instrument. But, the way he sings these songs so unabashed and off the cuff is just absolutely wonderful.
Stark, rocking and totally timeless. What a record!
