The new one by a Bloomington favorite, "My Hill", sets the tone as something way more dark than the whiskey soaking that we started at with MBD's last release. The band stays with a less-celebratory feel throughout. The old country folk storytelling is still there, but we're not getting the yarns about waking up in your own drunken piss. Instead, we get Cold Mountain descriptions of walking through the woods to find a home or a love.
And that's still fine. "Straight at the Sun" still gets the listener going with trotting bass line. And then "I Came Around" - while taking place a a funeral, still turns itself to celebration of a life that was only appreciated once it was gone.
But the remainder, while good, is still more of the same. MBD haven't transposed their spaghetti western epic into anyhing that's thematically broader. I like the sounds, but the songs still never climb out of the ditch dug by the ditch-digging protagonist. My advice is to pick up your cello and hit the city lights. (3 of 5 stars)
Ridiculous album cover aside, the Whigs step up their game to poise themselves as the new Foo Fighters. And that's a simplistic comparison, but you won't help to add two and two together to see that the timing of FF's retirement couldn't have been better for this Athens group.
I'd be hard pressed to ever say that you should start your experience to a band or an album with an eight minute song, but the fact is "Staying Alive" is a key highlight to this record. It starts with a Von-Bondies style slick-garage feel and then jams into familiar stadium rock. Except then they add a horn section. It breathes a fearless breath in what could otherwise sound formulaic.
"Summer Heat" too, while simplistic, is a memorable hooky rock jam straight from some eighties FM Top 40 rock list. I'm gonna bet that Parker Gispert owned an Everclear record when he was young. But the Whigs swing back into indie territory once in a while. "Couple of Kids" has a preciousness about it while still being a quality rock tune.
Get behind the band right before they kick over to mainstream success. When the band gets some more money behind them, it's sure to get even better. (3.5 of 5 stars)
The first strains of the 35th Bob Dylan studio album excitedly feels like something was caught in a field recording in the 1930s. But seconds later, the song kicks in and it's suddenly clear that it's 2012 again. But don't get the wrong idea, as "Duquesne Whistle" kicks the album off, you can tell that while this Dylan is the aged Dylan; the production and the musicians accompanying are top notch.
An old-timey country western feel and a room that must be a group of guys playing together. "Soon After Midnight" furthers this feel, this time in a slow romantic waltz. And it doesn't matter that Dylan's lyrics this time lean to the simple- the desire is the point. This is also true of the favorite "Long And Wasted Years", which is a quick and dirty tale of a man catching up with a lost love. You soon, though, begin to wish that Bob had kept this simplicity concept in lieu of the direction he went.
The album has a live feel of a band that are bringing classic tales from the turn of the century up to the present. It's not always my cup of tea, though. "Narrow Way" kicks off the sufferage from what is a common Dylan complaint; too many verses. Verses that are all separated by a common chorus and the result is insanely repetitive.
And that is not the only epic here. The western short stories "Tin Angel" and "Scarlet Town" average eight minutes. And the 14:00 title track is about the sinking of the Titanic... the movie version. It even says, "Leo took his sketchbook..." As good as you think a folk shanty might be executed, it still has nothing that the listener could relate to. A misstep to be sure. Another seemingly untimely tribute is "Roll On John"- which is indeed about the 25-year-passed death of John Lennon. An odd subject choice.
Dylan's latest is nowhere near the 5-star classic that Rolling Stone magazine dubbed it. And with all of that excellence that I was praising earlier about the band and production- the album fails to make itself dynamic as he has done with his previous few albums of this millennium. Once you realize this, it gets a little stagnant. It's rare to say this, but Dylan could have used an editor. (2.5 of 5 stars)
One of my favorite groups ever. A duo from the Frisco bay, their guitar/drum attack has never been much harder than aggressive folk. No kind of play on the kind of Black Keys or White Stripes blues or alt-rock scene. But not Alt.Country either. Even while Adam's guitar was amplified acoustic mostly, his vocals have a punk rasp about them. And he screams way more than he howls.
This album takes quite a turn. Maybe the Two have seen some kindred spirit in the Keys and have been disenchanted by their arena-rock turn to superstardom. But they learned a thing or two about volume, if nothing else. Tyson is pounding his drums with anger unseen before and Adam's guitar is now being pushed through some effects tube and a bigger amplifier.
But dumbing down, nor selling out is this.The Two still spin the log-winded yarns about the weary trail rode by those who need only the road. The loves lost and the green eyes of the fair maiden that haunt and comfort their dreams.
A couple tracks, "Decay" and "Broken Eyes" stay acoustic and lilting. The former a sad dirge and the latter something more akin to Pearl Jam's "Just Breathe". But the remainder of the album rocks. It strays from being perfect however. "Winter's Youth" doesn't add anything lyrically to the age old adage of aging. And "Willie", which will clearly be any inebriated audience's favorite shanty sing-along, is little more than mere silly fun.
The Two Gallants bloom more than they blight, but even their scars seem somewhat prettier in the light. (4 of 5 stars)
While not altogether the biggest fan of electronic music, I decided to give this album a spin for a number of reasons. Dan's reputation as a dynamic live performer, his description of this album as being more "rock like" and the fact that the first song on the album is called "Guilford Avenue Bridge" which I imagine is taking place down the street from my home.
And that first track does have some rock elements in it. i.e. Guitars and a driving backbeat. This is true of that first track especially, and on "Lots" which, if the vocals had not been distorted and muddled, has the pop melody chorus to make a radio staple.
The songs throughout have a dynamic construct that I don't feel like I hear with the other EDM I've ever heard. As if it were meant more to be performed than simply danced to. It's not as repetitive with the simple bass and obvious crescendos.
The last half of the album (or Side Two- if you like) is dedicated to a "USA" grouping; which is apparently a specific political message. And again, there is no descernable lyrics here. Just a soundtrack to images that you may conjure. This part lost me a little, because I'm a little ashamed to say, it was all a little too electronic for me. Those pop elements from Side One were gone in this passage.
So if Deacon is on the whole, too experimental for my tastes- it's clear to see that his intention is performance-driven and that he has the goods to express himself and get you on your feet. (3 of 5 stars)
The new one by a Bloomington favorite, "My Hill", sets the tone as something way more dark than the whiskey soaking that we started at with MBD's last release. The band stays with a less-celebratory feel throughout. The old country folk storytelling is still there, but we're not getting the yarns about waking up in your own drunken piss. Instead, we get Cold Mountain descriptions of walking through the woods to find a home or a love.
