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Not Enough Time to Care (Much)Sep 19 '08 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line blurbs about albums that never really caught me. includes: danny!, brendan canning, black kids, the hold steady, and fleet foxes.You see, they have this thing called Rhapsody, where you can just stream stream stream music all day long. Whatever you want to hear. Whenever you want. For $13 a month you can turn your computer into your own virtually unlimited listening station. Thus, I'm sitting at my computer listening to a whole lot of hyped-up popular-styled music I hadn't gotten to due to an incredibly restricted budget. Following my enthusiastic reviews of The Dodos' "Visiter" and Animal Collective's "Strawberry Jam", I hit the wall of realization, that amongst these new gems I was picking up on, I was skimming through a lot of less-thans. In my mind, I started thinking: If I'm going back to writing on Epinions as one of many diversions (of varying substance) from the day-in/day-out, I should probably hit more of my listening than just what I fall passionately in love with. Then I hit another wall. Call it the "Not Wanting to Waste Too Many Hours of My Precious Life" wall. Whilst some people don't hit it, and indeed enjoy berating albums they find lesser-than, I'd rather just not listen to them. But instead of disregarding them as writing fodder immediately, I've made a compromise in the name of more genuinely covering everything that crosses my ears. Thus, here is my first (as in, there may be more but I promise nothing) installment of "Not Enough Time to Care (Much)". A bunch of blurbs about albums that I touched but didn't touch back (much, at least). I want to make one thing clear: Some of these albums I didn't even listen to all the way through. This is meant to reflect listening experiences, not be a piece of bonafied, culture-impacting music journalism. And well, sometimes in my experiences, I just can't stand to hear something all the way if it's boring me to death! So I announce the following labels to be applied: There's Just Something Missing Simply Mediocre Dreadful, Couldn't Finish Easy enough. You shan't be misled. On with the show. (Reluctantly pushes stop on Okkervil River's new "The Stand Ins". Starts...) "And I Love H.E.R.: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Danny!. The opening track, the boorishly titled "Intro", consists of a dude who jocks the living hell out of Kanye West's style complaining that he is compared to...Kanye West. Well, what do you expect? Sure, Danny's flow is an improvement over Kanye, his beats owe a little more to jazz than your mother's soul records, however, he's still got the same corny swagger, similar syllable patterns, and idiot defiance. Thing is, it works for Kanye (most of the time), and Danny! is just a second-ran. Dreadful, Couldn't Finish. "Partie Traumatic". Black Kids. The new production style takes the once heavy-hitting pop of Black Kids and turns it a bit more to the saccharine. I wanted to shoot somebody when I heard the new "Hit the Heartbreaks" with its twee call-and-response. Of course, the new production did a favor to "I"ve Underestimated My Charm Again", clearing up the vocals and making it single-ready. Overall, though, these folks' first full-length is a hit-or-miss affair that lacks the cohesive punch-after-punch of energetic pop that the rough-around-the-edges four-track EP of "Wizard of Ahhs" provided. Simply Mediocre. "Stay Positive". The Hold Steady. I will stay positive when The Hold Steady stops holding steady. Following the brilliant "Boys and Girls in America", we get more of the same with far diminishing returns. Recycled drug themes, recycled lyrics (OK, we effing get it, she's gonna have to go with the one that gets her the highest, got'cha, stop saying it, understood), and Craig Finn's backing which seems to have come up with zero new ideas since the last outing. Damn, I'm hating. I don't really hate this album, it's funny. OK, this blurb is going bipolar, but "Slapped Actress" is a tweak of what The Hold Steady has been doing, and is one of the more memorable cuts of the year with the life-giving harmony at the end, and vivid metaphorical lyrics, "we're dust in the spotlights, we're just kind of floating." And despite the lack of originality in the title track, I can't help but sing along to the chorus of "whoa oh oh"s and "we gotta stay positive!" There are plenty of visceral moments The Hold Steady is known for. Yet, I've got to go back to why I don't have enough time to care about this album. It's that The Hold Steady haven't gone anywhere. This album is full of potential b-sides, but is definitely not a monument to the kind of band The Hold Steady is. Perhaps Craig Finn would consider shaking up the lineup. This is a marquee band that could use it. There's Just Something Missing. "Fleet Foxes". Fleet Foxes. Much beauty in this album. Fleet Foxes specialize in lush pop harmonies, sweet sunset arrangements of folk guitar, some banjo, strumming along forever excellently. So why is this not in the heavy rotation, why am I not obsessed? This is supposed to be something Eric'd like! I think it's lack of personality. Maybe so. I gravitate more toward outstanding personalities presenting ideas in their own far-out way. Even if a band like The Dodos -- who are in a way bending sounds similar to those Fleet Foxes are fleshing-out -- don't have the amazing center lyric, I respect them for their progressive vision and the energy they bring. It hits me more than this lush, harmonious way that, as a personality, lies ambiguous. Yet, there is always time to listen more, and possibly have a change of heart. I leave the door open. But for now...There's Just Something Missing. "Hit the Wall". Brendan Canning. One of the founding fathers of Broken Social Scene gives a rockin'er album in contrast to recent BSS multi-instrumental decadence. Yet, I can hardly listen to a track at a time without drifting off. It's as hollow as a jack-o-lantern, as run-of-the-mill as the goddamn mill itself. Going back to the element of voice I previously discussed, Brendan Canning has none, and he's doing his best to hide his ordinary vocals behind the competent but far from inspiring (and thus so far from Broken Social Scene) instrumentation. Accompany it with Kevin Drew's disposable "Spirit If...", and then listen to the self-titled BSS album, and tell me you don't think they're wasting their time and talent. Dreadful, Couldn't Finish. (Goes back to Will Sheff...hits up "Starry Stairs"...tells everyone to get on Rhapsody, iTunes, to the local indie shop or Best Buy, and get them some Okkervil...)  |
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