Artist: Frank Zappa Album: Thing?Fish

Year: 1984
Duration: 0:0-1

Frank Zappa's Thing?Fish: A Critical Review of the Eccentric Album

Frank Zappa, a renowned composer, and a man known for avant-garde music, lives on through generations of music lovers. With his unique taste and play on various music genres, Zappa continuously proved his ability to turn any regular pieces of music into a structural masterpiece. Thing?Fish, one of Zappa's most well-known albums, takes a unique taste on rock opera and pushes the limits on what it means to create music. In this critical review of the album, we'll take a brief look into the history of the artist, an overview of the genre, the best songs in the album, its most innovative parts and a review of the tracks.

Frank Zappa started his career as the lead guitarist for The Mothers of Invention, a psychedelic rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. With their innovative take on music integrated with Zappa's spontaneous guitar solo, the band takes a turn from the norm of the rock scene. Their anti-establishment and liberal lyrics brought a new perspective to the genre. After four years with The Mothers of Invention, Frank Zappa branched out as a solo artist, and Thing?Fish was one of his creations released in 1984. The album tells a story of a fictional African American character, Harry, caught in a dystopian future in which music is an outlawed commodity.

The genre of Thing?Fish takes on a unique blend of eccentricity, rock opera, and doo-wop. The album becomes the musical representation of a theatrical performance, with its prog-rock and free jazz influences combined with Frank Zappa's complex arrangement makes for an exciting experience.

The best songs in the album include The Mammy Nuns, Artificial Rhonda, and Galoot Up-Date. Each song offers a unique sound and conveys vivid images through their lyrics. The Mammy Nuns tells of an authoritarian organization that leads humanity to destruction, with a distinct blend of jazz and rhythmical beats. Artificial Rhonda is an emotional classic, which follows the story of a robot learning feelings, while Galoot Up-Date is a jazzy instrumental with a saxophone solo and an electronic sound.

The most innovative part of Thing?Fish is Frank Zappa's ability to blend various genres into a single piece of music. The album offers a musical portrayal of a dystopian future that seamlessly flows from one track to the next, making it an enjoyable experience.

However, some critics contend that Thing?Fish oversteps the mark and its lyrics are borderline racist. The album's lyrics feature African American Vernacular English, which was heavily criticized for stereotyping Black culture. The album's conclusion, with Harry's murder, was seen as politically incorrect. Nevertheless, this technique brought attention to the injustice in the African American community and was a reflection of Zappa's anti-establishment views.

In conclusion, Frank Zappa's Thing?Fish takes a unique perspective on dystopian concepts through its blend of music genres, story-telling, theatrical presentation, and lyrical prowess. The album remains one of Zappa's most controversial creations, but through its experimentality, it showcases the innovation of the artist. Although some may argue its shortcomings, it provides an insight into societal issues and the ability of music to address them and make an impact.

In conclusion, Frank Zappa's Thing?Fish takes a unique perspective on dystopian concepts through its blend of music genres, story-telling, theatrical presentation, and lyrical prowess. The album remains one of Zappa's most controversial creations, but through its experimentality, it showcases the innovation of the artist. Although some may argue its shortcomings, it provides an insight into societal issues and the ability of music to address them and make an impact.