At some point, purely deep cuts and unreleased materials were bound to be performed. Bob Dylan finally snapped in 1985, gave in to those leftovers from his discography and offered no suggestion of recognisable music. It is the at-home listener, decades on from the performance, who benefits from these performances. After the Empire is a must-listen for those who want the weirder, wilder side of Dylan. Fans are annoyed when he plays the hits because they are not note-for-note what they were in the studio. They fume when he abandons them in search of other songs because they do not know what he is playing. A win-win for those who want to cut a little deeper with his work. After the Empire explores the gritty depths of his discography and of the songs which, to this day, influence Dylan.
Dig deep into After the Empire, into those songs written after Empire Burlesque but, like many of the great songs penned by Dylan, forgotten in lieu of another project. After the Empire collates a plentiful amount of “what could have been moments”, those songs which could have salvaged his clunky studio sound. Whether the likes of Baby Coming Back from the Dead would have survived the studio spills of the time is whataboutism. What does come clear, though, is that these songs sound exceptional on the stage. Dylan would find more success on stage than in the studio around this time, and the 1950s-infused, blues-like rock style of Baby Coming Back from the Dead highlights that disparity. What Dylan was doing on stage and in the studio sounds like two artists never destined to meet, and it makes heading into his 1980s material tricky without the support of bootlegs like After the Empire.
Four versions of Nothing Here Worth Dying For shine a light on the experimentation Dylan was undertaking, too. Each is understated in its quality, but the real high point for After the Empire is Bring it Home to Me. Repetitive, sure, but the consistency of those backing vocalists and the homeward-bound hopes keep the heart of the song beating. Some impressive harmonica pieces feature, too. Frustrating it may be to see these tracks were never officially released, having them in such good quality is a blessing. An extremely strong soundboard rip is what will have dedicated listeners returning to Right Hand Road Blues and 26 Storeys High. The latter song is stunning, a macabre moment from Dylan who details jumping pedestrians and the out-of-luck desperation to a crawling guitar groove. Sincerely, an incredible, underappreciated moment from Dylan.
After the Empire collates the songs which seemed too out-there for Dylan at the time. Songs which did not fit his image, past or present. There is a black heart at the core of some of these unreleased materials. 26 Storeys High may be an all-time great from his ever-growing backlog of written materials. Another compilation of rarities which highlights the vast difference between what Dylan could do on stage, and what he would not do in the studio. After the Empire is hit after hit, strong writing, well-performed pieces of work which is a far stretch better than most of the material he put out in the 1980s. Classic Dylan. He does not realise the strengths of this material until it is much too late. After the Empire is a shot of life, a shock to the system. One of those rare finds that make you hopeful for what more there could be, buried away on this soundboard or in that vault.
