It’s usually a good sign when the first time you hear about a band you’re eating a peanut butter burger while sitting at a bar.
It doesn’t’ hurt that the next thing you hear about them is they contributed to the Departed soundtrack.
And the trifecta is complete when a rock & roll gal from work (let’s call her Carol), who you’ve had arguments about the specific definition of “punk” with over the ears recommends them. Yes, with Dropkick Murphys all the letters of recommendation were in before I even started listening.
The Dropkick Murphys had me from the school bell on opener “Famous for Nothing,” It’s the tale of St. Mary’s school where the only common ground between cliques is basketball and alcohol. “Famous for Nothing” is messy rock just how this high school mash up would likely turn out. “It wasn’t pretty at all” the lads go on to say.
When I first held the new Dropkick Murphys’ CD The Meanest of Times, I was excited. The pleather album cover look combined with the Celtic cross on the front album art felt provocative. The Meanest of Times felt like an album college guys would lift weight to. More importantly it felt like something absent from the world right now, some good punchy punk.
The music reminds me of a college roommate I had named Sam. I think he’s a lawyer now, but back in the day no one was more fun then Sammy. He was the guy you wanted to stand and scream through the sunroof and do shots of Jameson late night with. Sammy was straight up Boston, straight up passion.
The brief description I had on Dropkick Murphys going in was “Celtic punk.” And I guess that’s about right. Dropkick Murphy sound like Green Day with bagpipes. They sound like bloody knuckles with claddagh rings on. But mostly the music sounds like a big sweaty club filled with people raising their glasses to toast. Lead singer Al Barr has plenty of memorable one-line screams like “God willing,” “sailor coming home,” and “You said we’d die alone” that add to this effect.
The Irish stuff does come through loud and clear on songs like “The State of Massachusetts” and “Johnny I Hardly Knew Ya.” There are plenty of fist pumping “heys!” throughout, and the entire record moves at a blistering pace. What I like most about The Meanest of Times are the stories. They sing about characters like Billy and Flannigan. And they sing about whiskey, war, suicide, and guns.
But it’s not the Irish thing I like best about Dropkick Murphys. While I think that’s a reason to check them out, my two favorite tracks “Echoes on ‘A’ Street” and “Surrender” have a lot more guitar than they do shamrock shake. “Echoes on ‘A’ Street” is an epic track with a vocal that sounds like Neil Diamond at the start (a good thing by the way) before turning into a cinematic stomp down the block. The “Sailor Coming Home!!” chorus is the sort of thing to have you screaming alone in your car. Great rock & roll indeed. “Surrender” is more guitar hero with monster riffs that remind me of the best of Green Day, Blink 182, and Angels and Airwaves. “Surrender’ is leaner and more of a single. The guitar is kick ass especially when James Lynch melts your mind about two minutes in. The last track on the record rounds out my medal stand, as “Never Forget” is an anthem about the importance of love and family.
“(F)lannigan’s Ball” almost sounds like a continuation of “Surrender.” While not as strong a track, I’m glad we’re still rocking. While most of Dropkick Murphy’s songs are similar to the punk of Green Day, on “I’ll Begin Again” they show they’re capable of a more straight ahead big rock sound.
Guitarist James Lynch can straight shred and he pops off for the first time on “Tomorrow’s Industry” as does drummer Matt Kelley. “Tomorrow’s Industry” is a nice little band showcase, if not a great song.
In many ways Dropkick Murphys are the opposite of the other band I reviewed this week, Radiohead. If Radiohead sounds like a synthetic, empty, urban apartment –Dropkick Murphys are more like one of those little bars on the shore where the crab fisherman drink all night after getting off the boat for the entire summer.
I can only imagine how great Dropkick Murphys would be live. I picture a crowd full of brothers swaying back and forth, arm and arm, raising their glasses. The Meanest of Times is a nice little record with a half dozen promising tracks. Now if I could only find Sammy and some Jameson.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
I paid too much for the new Radiohead
I love the innovation of Radiohead. Their pay what you want online distribution deal was killer for their new record In Rainbows. Despite the technology involved what I really loved about it was at the core it’s the exact same premise as the street musician playing with an open guitar case for people to put in what they think the music is worth. While there have been all sorts of rumors (1.2 Million sold, $10 average price) regarding the success of the new model – none have been verified. One thing is for certain, Radiohead are trailblazers. And with Madonna and Nine Inch Nails following suit and opting out of their own major label deals expect to see all sorts of creative ideas for music distribution in the near future. Frankly, I’m excited.
Here’s my deal with Radiohead. I think people want to like Radiohead and I think more people like the idea of Radiohead then actually dig the music. If you put In Rainbows to the test, it’s not really much of an album. A promising start with the up-tempo “15 Step” and “Bodysnatchers” meanders into the ether. There’s no warmth to Radiohead. The sound is all zeroes and ones. I want my Rock & Roll to be a lot more whiskey and beer – to spend some time in a barrel someplace. Instead Radiohead’s sound appears to marinate on the motherboard inside a computer.
A couple guys here at work recently did a presentation on Virtuality featuring web environments like Second Life and World of Warcraft. As people assembled for the presentation they played some tracks from In Rainbows over a loop of Second Life imagery playing on the big screen. It was the perfect soundtrack; equal parts pretty, haunting, synthetic and sterile.
Radiohead’s music purchase site www.inrainbows.com had a very retro MS DOS feel to it with text boxes seemingly in the wrong places and nearly no explanation as to how the purchase process was supposed to work. The entire time I was punching in my info I wondered if it was going to work or if I was even on the “official” site. I decided to pay 5 British Sterling (or about $10 U.S.) what I thought was a fair price for In Rainbows
Having listened to In Rainbows, I’ll say the album for me is worth less than half that. “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi,” a trippy little space coaster of a song held together with strumming and falsetto is the high point of the disc. While most of the music I review in this space is rollercoaster straight, Radiohead’s sound is more like a Tilt a Whirl . . .on morphine. But what works on “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi” is the song actually spins enough to leave the ground. It sounds like something that could have been on U2’s Pop, or maybe their side project Passengers. “Reckoner” is similar in sound but lacks the structure of “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi” and the result is forgettable.
In Rainbows just doesn’t seem to have enough blood running through its veins. It sounds like a stack of Wired magazines in an impeccable urban apartment. It sounds like a stylish place, a catalog, but without people. The main problem with In Rainbows is it sounds like no one lives there.
It’s hard for me to even talk about specific songs, as there wouldn’t appear to be a single on here. While In Rainbows may sound good blasting from the speakers of a downtown advertising agency, I’m at a loss as to where I would ever listen to this CD on my own? I can’t listen to it in my car because In Rainbows is way too moody for that. I’d have to drive around flexing my jaw muscles and sliding my sunglasses up and down my nose making faces in the rearview if In Rainbows was in the Wrangler’s 6-disc changer.
Radiohead are able to warm up their morgue table sound to room temperature on a few tracks. “15 Step” has a nice little guitar riff and intro before giving way to sound effects and drum machines. “Faust Arp” is folksy and “Videotape” starts with big promise and an actual piano intro but fails to build to anything but noises. Overall, In Rainbow sounds like an album the machines will make once they figure out how to be smarter than us humans. And I suppose that’s part of the appeal. While In Rainbows does have some nice Verve-like vocals and a few cool guitar riffs – I’m afraid I wouldn’t throw much change in the guitar case.
Here’s my deal with Radiohead. I think people want to like Radiohead and I think more people like the idea of Radiohead then actually dig the music. If you put In Rainbows to the test, it’s not really much of an album. A promising start with the up-tempo “15 Step” and “Bodysnatchers” meanders into the ether. There’s no warmth to Radiohead. The sound is all zeroes and ones. I want my Rock & Roll to be a lot more whiskey and beer – to spend some time in a barrel someplace. Instead Radiohead’s sound appears to marinate on the motherboard inside a computer.
A couple guys here at work recently did a presentation on Virtuality featuring web environments like Second Life and World of Warcraft. As people assembled for the presentation they played some tracks from In Rainbows over a loop of Second Life imagery playing on the big screen. It was the perfect soundtrack; equal parts pretty, haunting, synthetic and sterile.
Radiohead’s music purchase site www.inrainbows.com had a very retro MS DOS feel to it with text boxes seemingly in the wrong places and nearly no explanation as to how the purchase process was supposed to work. The entire time I was punching in my info I wondered if it was going to work or if I was even on the “official” site. I decided to pay 5 British Sterling (or about $10 U.S.) what I thought was a fair price for In Rainbows
Having listened to In Rainbows, I’ll say the album for me is worth less than half that. “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi,” a trippy little space coaster of a song held together with strumming and falsetto is the high point of the disc. While most of the music I review in this space is rollercoaster straight, Radiohead’s sound is more like a Tilt a Whirl . . .on morphine. But what works on “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi” is the song actually spins enough to leave the ground. It sounds like something that could have been on U2’s Pop, or maybe their side project Passengers. “Reckoner” is similar in sound but lacks the structure of “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi” and the result is forgettable.
In Rainbows just doesn’t seem to have enough blood running through its veins. It sounds like a stack of Wired magazines in an impeccable urban apartment. It sounds like a stylish place, a catalog, but without people. The main problem with In Rainbows is it sounds like no one lives there.
It’s hard for me to even talk about specific songs, as there wouldn’t appear to be a single on here. While In Rainbows may sound good blasting from the speakers of a downtown advertising agency, I’m at a loss as to where I would ever listen to this CD on my own? I can’t listen to it in my car because In Rainbows is way too moody for that. I’d have to drive around flexing my jaw muscles and sliding my sunglasses up and down my nose making faces in the rearview if In Rainbows was in the Wrangler’s 6-disc changer.
Radiohead are able to warm up their morgue table sound to room temperature on a few tracks. “15 Step” has a nice little guitar riff and intro before giving way to sound effects and drum machines. “Faust Arp” is folksy and “Videotape” starts with big promise and an actual piano intro but fails to build to anything but noises. Overall, In Rainbow sounds like an album the machines will make once they figure out how to be smarter than us humans. And I suppose that’s part of the appeal. While In Rainbows does have some nice Verve-like vocals and a few cool guitar riffs – I’m afraid I wouldn’t throw much change in the guitar case.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Let’s Make Eric Hutchinson Famous.
I’m a music scout. I love following the breadcrumbs to the next big thing. I love leaving in the morning with my spear to discover new music and bring it back to the tribe. Through the years I’ve asked plenty of baristas, bartenders, busboys, etc. “What song is this playing right now?” A question usually met with “Would you like me to go in back and check.” Of course I would.
I’m particularly excited about my latest find, Maryland singer songwriter Eric Hutchinson. I can’t take all the credit as I first noticed him when he had a cup of coffee atop the iTunes charts (thanks to a Perez Hilton mention) before returning to obscurity. I can speak firsthand that his CD Sounds Like This is not an easy find. You won’t find it at Target, Best Buy, or the bookstores. If you’re interested (and you should be) check www.awarestore.com as they have the CD for $10.
Yes, Eric Hutchinson is a major score. Sounds Like This is one of those CDs that is immediately familiar. At first listen most people will suspect they already know the songs. What is that Terence Trendt Darby? J Timberlake? Michael Jackson? New Jamiroquai?
Hutchinson emerges on the music scene like Bo Jackson did on the sports scene a few years back – with the patience of a comet. A “just because I can” attitude abounds on the album with Hutchinson playing the confident chameleon throughout the entire record. If you’re looking for Maroon 5 without the radio saturation, check “Outside Villanova.” If you want something Clive Davis can tap his wand to? Check the Gavin DeGraw like opener “OK, It’s Alright With Me.” Or maybe you want to get your Bill Cosby dance on with something that sounds like vintage Stevie Wonder –check “You Don’t Have to Believe Me” for some power pudding pop.
If that wasn’t enough range, Hutchinson dresses up a Jason Mraz-like sound in a grass skirt with a groovy little island beat in “Rock & Roll” complete with sing-a-long “nah nah nahs.” Or maybe it’s a little Jack Johnson sex wax you’re after, hit play on “Back to Where I was” just before you slide the lime down the neck of your Corona.
Simply put Eric Hutchinson’s Sounds Like This is a rock solid blue-eyed soul debut. Nearly all of the ten tracks are extremely radio friendly and completely listenable. More than that, the entire record has soulfulness you wouldn’t expect from a 27-year-old suburbanite.
Yes I dig the Hutchinson, and my sense is this is a CD that will slowly find its way into your wives and girlfriends’ cars. My favorite track on the record is the haunting “All Over Now” which sounds like something off Flight of the Concords if it was a Zach Braff show. “Rock & Roll” is also infectious. Even the stuff I didn’t specifically call out earlier like “Food Chain” are well crafted little tunes.
Buy stock in Eric Hutchinson immediately, this kid is going places. Get the disc.
I’m particularly excited about my latest find, Maryland singer songwriter Eric Hutchinson. I can’t take all the credit as I first noticed him when he had a cup of coffee atop the iTunes charts (thanks to a Perez Hilton mention) before returning to obscurity. I can speak firsthand that his CD Sounds Like This is not an easy find. You won’t find it at Target, Best Buy, or the bookstores. If you’re interested (and you should be) check www.awarestore.com as they have the CD for $10.
Yes, Eric Hutchinson is a major score. Sounds Like This is one of those CDs that is immediately familiar. At first listen most people will suspect they already know the songs. What is that Terence Trendt Darby? J Timberlake? Michael Jackson? New Jamiroquai?
Hutchinson emerges on the music scene like Bo Jackson did on the sports scene a few years back – with the patience of a comet. A “just because I can” attitude abounds on the album with Hutchinson playing the confident chameleon throughout the entire record. If you’re looking for Maroon 5 without the radio saturation, check “Outside Villanova.” If you want something Clive Davis can tap his wand to? Check the Gavin DeGraw like opener “OK, It’s Alright With Me.” Or maybe you want to get your Bill Cosby dance on with something that sounds like vintage Stevie Wonder –check “You Don’t Have to Believe Me” for some power pudding pop.
If that wasn’t enough range, Hutchinson dresses up a Jason Mraz-like sound in a grass skirt with a groovy little island beat in “Rock & Roll” complete with sing-a-long “nah nah nahs.” Or maybe it’s a little Jack Johnson sex wax you’re after, hit play on “Back to Where I was” just before you slide the lime down the neck of your Corona.
Simply put Eric Hutchinson’s Sounds Like This is a rock solid blue-eyed soul debut. Nearly all of the ten tracks are extremely radio friendly and completely listenable. More than that, the entire record has soulfulness you wouldn’t expect from a 27-year-old suburbanite.
Yes I dig the Hutchinson, and my sense is this is a CD that will slowly find its way into your wives and girlfriends’ cars. My favorite track on the record is the haunting “All Over Now” which sounds like something off Flight of the Concords if it was a Zach Braff show. “Rock & Roll” is also infectious. Even the stuff I didn’t specifically call out earlier like “Food Chain” are well crafted little tunes.
Buy stock in Eric Hutchinson immediately, this kid is going places. Get the disc.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Springsteen Turns Wine Into Beer. It's Magic!
It took me four stores to finally find Bruce Springsteen’s new one, Magic, in stock last week. When I brought it up to the counter, the woman working the register at the downtown Borders looked at the CD and marveled, “Ahh, the new Springsteen.” I felt like I was buying a cabernet.
Springsteen records tend to be a lot like a cabernet. Full bodied, complex, hints of oak (OK that’s a stretch). The problem with Magic is it goes down a lot more like a Michelob Golden Light. It’s still good but not much to taste. I’ve listened to the entire CD dozens of times and all too often I’ve forgotten it’s even playing in my car. The thoughts in my own head are drowning out the music, and that’s usually not the case with a Springsteen disc. Magic does nothing to command your attention. There are precious few songs from Magic that will stay on the E Street set list for years to come.
Make no mistake I’m a Springsteen apologist. I’ve traveled to see him play live in New Jersey. I’ve sent my in-laws to see him. And his 2002 9/11 inspired album The Rising is the only record to ever make me actually cry (the song was “You’re Missing” to be specific – check it out-crazy powerful). But it’s never a good sign when the first single is the best song on the album, and that’s precisely what “Radio Nowhere’’ is. “Radio Nowhere” is such a promising start to an album. It’s a put the top down sort of song that stretches across your hood just the same way “Thunder Road” did years ago.
But from there it’s pretty much downhill. The second track “You’ll be Coming Down” starts out in classic Bruce fashion. You’re waiting for him to yell “hep!” to start the march. It sounds like “I’m Going Down” from Born in the USA remixed for his more synth flavored Tunnel of Love record. But at best “You’ll be Coming Down” is very average background Bruce filler.
After song two we really go into the desert for a bit. “Livin’ in the Future” will sound nice with a dozen people in their 60s dancing around on stage at Springsteen’s live shows, but it feels old to listen to on CD. Sounds like the sort of thing a guy with “Sparky” for his pet name would listen to. But perhaps at 33 my body is still rejecting the saxophone.
The real low point of the record is “Girls in their Summer Clothes” which has the Boss doing a husky Thurston Howell III voice as he watches all the girls pass by undeterred in their summer dresses. Hearing a master like Springsteen this far off his game and not using his natural voice leaves no wonder why the girls aren’t bothering to stop.
Springsteen makes a modest recovery on “I’ll Work for Your Love,” one of the few songs that will stand the test of time on Magic. The second the Boss blurts out “Pour me a drink Theresa in one of those glasses you dust off” the beer is suddenly a darker color. “I’ll Work for Your Love” is just the sort of tough, honest songwriting that has made Bruce a legend. Another gem to add to your collection.
The back half of Magic is also relatively uninteresting with the exception of hidden/bonus track “Terry’s Song (not on iTunes)” where Bruce laments the loss of his one of a kind brother. Very good stuff here with great lyrics like “.Gone into that dark ether where you're still young and hard and cold.”
In between there are clearly some anti-war messages (“Devil’s Arcade,” “Last to Die”), stories, and ideas. Trouble is the music doesn’t have broad enough shoulders to carry the ideas into the world. It feels like a record Bruce rushed together because he wanted to get back on the road. I just hope Magic isn’t too big a part of the live show this Fall because he won’t get much audience involvement unless he seriously reworks the material. Bruce is too good, and has far too many songs in his head for this to be the start of Michael Jordan wearing a Wizards jersey –but Magic is clearly not his best effort.
Springsteen records tend to be a lot like a cabernet. Full bodied, complex, hints of oak (OK that’s a stretch). The problem with Magic is it goes down a lot more like a Michelob Golden Light. It’s still good but not much to taste. I’ve listened to the entire CD dozens of times and all too often I’ve forgotten it’s even playing in my car. The thoughts in my own head are drowning out the music, and that’s usually not the case with a Springsteen disc. Magic does nothing to command your attention. There are precious few songs from Magic that will stay on the E Street set list for years to come.
Make no mistake I’m a Springsteen apologist. I’ve traveled to see him play live in New Jersey. I’ve sent my in-laws to see him. And his 2002 9/11 inspired album The Rising is the only record to ever make me actually cry (the song was “You’re Missing” to be specific – check it out-crazy powerful). But it’s never a good sign when the first single is the best song on the album, and that’s precisely what “Radio Nowhere’’ is. “Radio Nowhere” is such a promising start to an album. It’s a put the top down sort of song that stretches across your hood just the same way “Thunder Road” did years ago.
But from there it’s pretty much downhill. The second track “You’ll be Coming Down” starts out in classic Bruce fashion. You’re waiting for him to yell “hep!” to start the march. It sounds like “I’m Going Down” from Born in the USA remixed for his more synth flavored Tunnel of Love record. But at best “You’ll be Coming Down” is very average background Bruce filler.
After song two we really go into the desert for a bit. “Livin’ in the Future” will sound nice with a dozen people in their 60s dancing around on stage at Springsteen’s live shows, but it feels old to listen to on CD. Sounds like the sort of thing a guy with “Sparky” for his pet name would listen to. But perhaps at 33 my body is still rejecting the saxophone.
The real low point of the record is “Girls in their Summer Clothes” which has the Boss doing a husky Thurston Howell III voice as he watches all the girls pass by undeterred in their summer dresses. Hearing a master like Springsteen this far off his game and not using his natural voice leaves no wonder why the girls aren’t bothering to stop.
Springsteen makes a modest recovery on “I’ll Work for Your Love,” one of the few songs that will stand the test of time on Magic. The second the Boss blurts out “Pour me a drink Theresa in one of those glasses you dust off” the beer is suddenly a darker color. “I’ll Work for Your Love” is just the sort of tough, honest songwriting that has made Bruce a legend. Another gem to add to your collection.
The back half of Magic is also relatively uninteresting with the exception of hidden/bonus track “Terry’s Song (not on iTunes)” where Bruce laments the loss of his one of a kind brother. Very good stuff here with great lyrics like “.Gone into that dark ether where you're still young and hard and cold.”
In between there are clearly some anti-war messages (“Devil’s Arcade,” “Last to Die”), stories, and ideas. Trouble is the music doesn’t have broad enough shoulders to carry the ideas into the world. It feels like a record Bruce rushed together because he wanted to get back on the road. I just hope Magic isn’t too big a part of the live show this Fall because he won’t get much audience involvement unless he seriously reworks the material. Bruce is too good, and has far too many songs in his head for this to be the start of Michael Jordan wearing a Wizards jersey –but Magic is clearly not his best effort.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
You Had Me At Foo Fighters . . .
It must be tough to be Dave Grohl. Can you imagine growing up in a band like Nirvana, only to have the roller coaster fly off the tracks right at the top when it’s still all clicking noises and anticipation? While Foo Fighters have had modest success, to the outsider looking in they appear to still be a band seeking an identity.
Proof of this was their indulgent 2005 double disc In Your Honor, which featured, according to iTunes, one side of “bone-crunching rock” and another of “succulent acoustic.” Strange bedfellows wouldn’t you say? Personally I don’t mix my bourbon with Sierra Mist.
The Foo Fighters new one Echoes Silence Patience & Grace remains schizophrenic in that some songs sound like The Beatles namely “Statues” while others sound like Jack Johnson including the pretty but weepy acoustic instrumental “Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners.” But the best stuff on the album sounds like (gasp) the Foo Fighters. That’s the issue I have with the Foo Fighters. I don’t understand the identity crisis when I can truly say there is such a thing as “vintage Foo Fighters.” And while the band may not reach the heights of single “Everlong,” they do have several great songs on the disc including “Erase / Replace,” “Long Road to Ruin,” “Cheer Up Boys (Your Makeup Is Running),” and “But Honestly.”
It’s interesting to remember that Dave Grohl was the drummer in Nirvana. This may be the ultimate compliment to current Foo Fighters drummer, Taylor Hawkins, who is the chassis of the band. The peak of the new album is the killer track “Erase / Replace.” It’s the sort of song you would turn on just as the skaters hit the ice for their pre-game warm-ups. It’s vintage Foo Fighters with the circular guitar alongside pulsing drums that carries us home. Taylor Hawkins is like an animal on this one taking us round and round specifically when Grohl breaks out his “Oh no don’t talk about it, No please don’t talk about it” pleas throughout the vocal. Be sure to check out “Erase / Replace” if your workout has hit a rut because from the first line “Attention. Pay Attention” it will have you doing just that. And it could be even better as a single if they give it a bit of a staccato remix to lean on Hawkins and keep up the pace a bit.
While I commend the Foo Fighters for continuing to explore new sounds and define their turf, there’s a part of me that really wants to see them just put together a rock solid Foo Fighters album. If it sounds anything like “Erase / Replace,” I think it would be a welcome relief in a world where Hannah Montana is the hottest concert of the year.
The intro to the first single “The Pretender” borrows from “Stairway to Heaven,” but overall sounds like a single and is nothing much new. “Let it Die” has glimpses of greatness but can’t overcome lyrical apathy second to only, maybe “Tequila.” Grohl seems to have some limitations in that he’ll often resort to screaming or just saying the same few words over and over and over again. The result can sound like a rock & roll brain freeze. See “Let it Die” and “But Honestly” for proof.
“Long Road to Ruin” has a little country flare mixed in and should be welcomed by the Southern rock set or at least by people who like Kid Rock more now that he’s trying to be Hank Williams. I specifically like the mid-song acoustic breakdown (the 2:15 minute mark); it’s all very Nickelback. Yes, that’s a compliment. I think. Hold up your lighters gents.
“But, Honestly” should be noted because it’s proof that bone crunching and acoustic can fit together in a right sized cocktail glass. It works here because the song builds throughout and Hawkins plays a prominent role. “Cheer Up Boys (Your Makeup Is Running)” has a fantastic guitar intro and should receive bonus points because I assume it’s a shot at the emo set.
All in all I’m a fan of the Foo Fighters. I just wish they would embrace being the Foo Fighters. Otherwise they’ll just be a recycling bin band (Audioslave, Velvet Revolver) with something missing. On Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace the band spends too much time playing ‘70s style AM radio soft rock. There’s too much WKRP, sad piano, too much emphasis on showing their range. It’s as if they’re saying, look we can make music like this and that. When all I want to hear is the Foo Fighters. Luckily, the boys did save a little time to put together at least 4 or 5 vintage Foo Fighters tracks. And by my math that’s worth the price of the album.
Proof of this was their indulgent 2005 double disc In Your Honor, which featured, according to iTunes, one side of “bone-crunching rock” and another of “succulent acoustic.” Strange bedfellows wouldn’t you say? Personally I don’t mix my bourbon with Sierra Mist.
The Foo Fighters new one Echoes Silence Patience & Grace remains schizophrenic in that some songs sound like The Beatles namely “Statues” while others sound like Jack Johnson including the pretty but weepy acoustic instrumental “Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners.” But the best stuff on the album sounds like (gasp) the Foo Fighters. That’s the issue I have with the Foo Fighters. I don’t understand the identity crisis when I can truly say there is such a thing as “vintage Foo Fighters.” And while the band may not reach the heights of single “Everlong,” they do have several great songs on the disc including “Erase / Replace,” “Long Road to Ruin,” “Cheer Up Boys (Your Makeup Is Running),” and “But Honestly.”
It’s interesting to remember that Dave Grohl was the drummer in Nirvana. This may be the ultimate compliment to current Foo Fighters drummer, Taylor Hawkins, who is the chassis of the band. The peak of the new album is the killer track “Erase / Replace.” It’s the sort of song you would turn on just as the skaters hit the ice for their pre-game warm-ups. It’s vintage Foo Fighters with the circular guitar alongside pulsing drums that carries us home. Taylor Hawkins is like an animal on this one taking us round and round specifically when Grohl breaks out his “Oh no don’t talk about it, No please don’t talk about it” pleas throughout the vocal. Be sure to check out “Erase / Replace” if your workout has hit a rut because from the first line “Attention. Pay Attention” it will have you doing just that. And it could be even better as a single if they give it a bit of a staccato remix to lean on Hawkins and keep up the pace a bit.
While I commend the Foo Fighters for continuing to explore new sounds and define their turf, there’s a part of me that really wants to see them just put together a rock solid Foo Fighters album. If it sounds anything like “Erase / Replace,” I think it would be a welcome relief in a world where Hannah Montana is the hottest concert of the year.
The intro to the first single “The Pretender” borrows from “Stairway to Heaven,” but overall sounds like a single and is nothing much new. “Let it Die” has glimpses of greatness but can’t overcome lyrical apathy second to only, maybe “Tequila.” Grohl seems to have some limitations in that he’ll often resort to screaming or just saying the same few words over and over and over again. The result can sound like a rock & roll brain freeze. See “Let it Die” and “But Honestly” for proof.
“Long Road to Ruin” has a little country flare mixed in and should be welcomed by the Southern rock set or at least by people who like Kid Rock more now that he’s trying to be Hank Williams. I specifically like the mid-song acoustic breakdown (the 2:15 minute mark); it’s all very Nickelback. Yes, that’s a compliment. I think. Hold up your lighters gents.
“But, Honestly” should be noted because it’s proof that bone crunching and acoustic can fit together in a right sized cocktail glass. It works here because the song builds throughout and Hawkins plays a prominent role. “Cheer Up Boys (Your Makeup Is Running)” has a fantastic guitar intro and should receive bonus points because I assume it’s a shot at the emo set.
All in all I’m a fan of the Foo Fighters. I just wish they would embrace being the Foo Fighters. Otherwise they’ll just be a recycling bin band (Audioslave, Velvet Revolver) with something missing. On Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace the band spends too much time playing ‘70s style AM radio soft rock. There’s too much WKRP, sad piano, too much emphasis on showing their range. It’s as if they’re saying, look we can make music like this and that. When all I want to hear is the Foo Fighters. Luckily, the boys did save a little time to put together at least 4 or 5 vintage Foo Fighters tracks. And by my math that’s worth the price of the album.
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