Published on Aug 12, 1997
Yesterday we talked about how fickle the finger of popularity
can be. There are a thousand stories like this in the ruthless
world of music – and we’re going to look at another one today, that
of Suzanne Vega.
Had it not been for the runaway success of “Luka” from her
second album
Solitude Standing, Vega may have been relegated to the folk
world permanently. However, her ability to tell a story of child
abuse from the eyes of a child captivated top 40 radio and made the
album a surprise success. Unfortunately, her followup
Days Of Open Hand left many people unimpressed, and some
wondered if Vega was a one-hit wonder.
The scene shifts to 1992, and Vega’s return to the public with
her fourth effort
99.9 F°, an album that had folkies running for cover
with the industrial beats of the lead-off single “Blood Makes
Noise.” I don’t remember how well the album sold, but I don’t think
it did as well as Vega or her record label would have wanted. Pity
– it’s a stark picture of beauty, and is easily Vega’s best
work.
“Blood Makes Noise” should have been a scream for help. Not
knowing any private details of Vega’s life, one could immediately
rush to the judgment that the song tells the tale of a victim of
some kind of abuse. Our hero is clming to grips – albeit slowly –
with the horror that has been inflicted on them, but they are not
mentally ready to talk about it. One lyric says it best: “I think
that you might want to know / The details and the facts / But
there’s something in my blood / Denies the memory of the acts.”
Ka-pow.
In fact,
99.9 F° often tells the story of blood and doctors.
“Blood Sings” is a slightly more controlled picture, though it
seems to talk about the estrangement of a parent and their child
and the desire to regain lost time in trade for the loss of youth
and experience. One listen will not convey the mood; a serious
reading of the lyrics will. “Bad Wisdom” also tries to explore the
scars of horrors in a young life, though blame seems to be put on
the mother for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time.
Slowly, a very scary portrait is being painted by Vega. For me
to speculate on such personal issues in such a public place would
not be responsible, so I will allow the listener to reach their own
conclusions. However, if you travel the same road my reasoning has,
you may see this album as an autobiography of a private hell lived
by Vega. For her sake, I hope I’m wrong in my conclusions.
But still other songs seem to support my theory. The lyrics
speak volumes, such as the innocence of a child tarnished (“As A
Child”), a subtle cry for your attention (“If it’s the last thing I
do / I’ll make you see” from “Rock In This Pocket”) and the loss of
idealism in someone you look up to (“When heroes go down / They go
down fast / So don’t expect any time to / Equivocate the past” from
“When Heroes Go Down”).
No question about it – Vega is pissed at someone, and uses
99.9 F° as her case against them. If I were the person
she was painting this picture of, I’d get the hell out of Dodge
City
real
quick.
Of course, there are one or two songs which don’t seem to follow
this pattern, as the hauntingly beautiful “In Liverpool” is an
example. Lost in all the subtext I’ve gotten into is the undeniable
fact: Vega proves herself to be as good a songwriter and musician –
if not better – than she was on “Luka.” That, kids, is an
accomplishment. And, no, I haven’t forgotten that she enlisted the
assistance of folk legend Richard Thompson and Los Lobos’s David
Hidalgo on this one, but they admirably take a back seat to Vega,
as well they should with music as strong as this.
Maybe that’s why
99.9 F° wasn’t the blockbuster it should have been: such
personal albums tend to scare the hell out of the listener. In this
case, everyone should walk away with some fear – and if the
listener is similar to Vega’s antagonist, they damn well better
feel some regret for screwing with someone’s life. (Again, I’m just
speculating – unless Ms. Vega is reading and wishes to rush to my
defense.)
Fortunately, it’s not too late to discover this one – I loved it
for the album it was back in 1992. I love it for the messages it
conveys – and I fear it for the images it portrays – today. It’s
just too bad an artist has to go through their greatest suffering
to make their masterpiece.