Performer Notes
- Pavement: Stephen Malkmus, Robert Nastanovich, Spiral Stairs, Steve West, Mark Ibold.
- Additional personnel: Doug Easley (pedal steel); Sibel Firat (cello); A. Firat.
- Engineers: Doug Easley, Davis McCain, Mark Venezia.
- Recorded at Easley Studios, Memphis, Tennessee in November 1994 and in Random Falls, New York in February 1995.
- Pavement's third full-length, WOWEE ZOWEE, split the difference between the wry lo-fi art-pop of their 1992 debut, SLANTED AND ENCHANTED, and that album's more polished follow-up, CROOKED RAIN CROOKED RAIN. In 2006, Matador Records gave WOWEE ZOWEE the deluxe treatment, adding an additional 30 tracks--including an entire second CD of b-sides, radio sessions, compilation tracks, and live cuts--and an extensive booklet with photos and liner notes. The deluxe "Sordid Sentinels" edition captures Pavement in their prime as players and at their most progressive as artists, making this reissue a must-have for fans and a nice bonus for those who missed the album the first time around.
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (p.110) - Ranked #3 in Rolling Stone's "The Top 10 Reissues Of 2006" -- "[T]here is a striking, psychedelic glow to the grind and wobble of 'Grounded' and 'Motion Suggests Itself'..."
Rolling Stone (4/11/02, p.106) - Ranked #12 in Rolling Stone's "50 Coolest Records" - "...Warm, spaced-out guitar doodles; Malkmus murmurs like a surfer-dude Buddy Holly..."
Spin (p.102) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "Slanted and tortured slow-dissolve rockers about generational angst plus tunes that cuddle your brain."
Spin (p.58) - Ranked #1 in Spin's "The 10 Best Reissues of 2006" -- "The word games were never so hermetic, the guitar tangle never so dire."
Spin (5/95, p.93) - 7 (out of 10) - "...Pavement crafts the everything aesthetic into real songs....[Stephen] Malkmus, the eternal sophisticate...[is] the sexiest word-mangler in the business....Occasionally--the lyric-drunk `Rattled By The Rush,' the stuttered chorus of `AT&T'...--the results rank with Pavement's hallowed best..."
Q (p.150) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "Pavement's third album found them branching out stylistically....The one constant is Stephen Malkmus's pop nous, which underpins 'AT&T' to impressive effect."
Q (5/95, p.110) - 3 Stars (out of 5) - "...Over-packed, sometimes too oblique for its own good and occasionally not that great, but it's pure Pavement."
Uncut (3/03, p.117) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...Songs derail into unexpected territories....Adventurous..."
Option (7-8/95, p.127) - "...With WOWEE ZOWEE, Pavement has proven unequivocally that they will never be superstars. Not because this record isn't worthwhile, but because they are uncompromising..."
Melody Maker (12/23-30/95, pp.66-67) - Ranked #39 on Melody Maker's list of 1995's `Albums Of The Year' - "...inspired near nonsense, berserk tempo changes, wilfully obtuse hipster references and poignant, hooky, pure pop..."
Musician (7/95, p.105) - "...Pavement spent 1994 touring, and WOWEE ZOWEE benefits as a result. The rhythm section...has cohered, and plays on the album like bandmembers rather than hired hands. The group has also continued expanding their sonic repetoire....delivers on all counts..."
Village Voice (2/20/96) - Ranked #17 in the Village Voice's 1995 Pazz & Jop Critics' Poll.
Mojo (Publisher) (7/95, p.114) - "...Stephen Malkmus' decision to spurn the enticing, flippant pop classic path...in favour of a nettly rummage through the sonic undergrowth, bespeaks the depth of his loyalty to the voices in his head....Heartfelt..."
NME (Magazine) (12/23-30/95, pp.22-23) - Ranked #16 in NME's `Top 50 Albums Of The Year' for 1995 - "...the wilful, askew guitar dissidence of Pavement's distant past meets their surprising melodic eloquence of CROOKED RAIN and carves out their most rewarding album yet."
