The Album Review Club - Week #191 (page 1286) - Harlequin Dream - Boy & Bear

mrbelfry said:
My scoring system is:

Does it Radiohead? +3
Does it feature an old sus rock singer? -10
Is it War of the Worlds? 8
Is the nominator someone I want to become best friends with? +3
Is the album hard to like so a positive score makes me appear smarter and allows me to feel superior? +4
Can I miss apply musical jargon such as 'pedal point' and '16th notes' to appear somewhat educated and hope no one corrects me? ×2
Is it War of the Worlds? 3
Is it a genre i don't understand? 6
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I thought everyone used this method.
 
BlueHammer85 said:
The Strokes - Is This It

Was on my radar to nominate this myself so will of course score highly.
I was always a bigger fan of 'British Indie' to 'American Indie' - if that's such a thing, but this felt the most British American Indie sound to come out around that time and i think that's why it hit the spot so well in the UK - It's raw, catchy and authentic. bought back some good nostalgia.
Hardly a bad track and plenty of hits. Good pick!

9/10
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I hear what you're saying. When the drumming starts on "Is This is It" I always want to sing "mayybeeeee I don't really wanna know how your garden grows". I actually think their second album is a bit more "british" but wasn't sure if they reminded me of British bands trying to sound New York so it becomes circular.
 
LGWIO said:
What? No cowbell? Can't beat a good use of a cowbell
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Don't you mean "woodblock"? ;-)

www.nbc.com

How Christopher Walken "Truly Surprised" Will Ferrell During SNL's "More Cowbell" Sketch

Will Ferrell and Christopher Walken combined talents for SNL's iconic "More Cowbell" sketch. Here's how it came together.
www.nbc.com www.nbc.com

I highly highly recommend watching part 3 of Peacock's four-part docuseries SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night, which devotes its entire third episode to the legendary sketch, exploring all the ins and outs of how “More Cowbell,” propelled by Will Ferrell and Host Christopher Walken, went from underdog concept to instant classic.

Audiences may be surprised to learn, for example, that the Season 25 sketch (air date: April 8, 2000) didn’t feel so promising to those behind the scenes, right up until the moment it stole the show.

Spoiler: it almost aired months prior without Walken and with a different musical prop, and thank goodness it didn't then or with that.
 
Black&White&BlueMoon Town said:
Don't you mean "woodblock"? ;-)

www.nbc.com

How Christopher Walken "Truly Surprised" Will Ferrell During SNL's "More Cowbell" Sketch

Will Ferrell and Christopher Walken combined talents for SNL's iconic "More Cowbell" sketch. Here's how it came together.
www.nbc.com www.nbc.com

I highly highly recommend watching part 3 of Peacock's four-part docuseries SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night, which devotes its entire third episode to the legendary sketch, exploring all the ins and outs of how “More Cowbell,” propelled by Will Ferrell and Host Christopher Walken, went from underdog concept to instant classic.

Audiences may be surprised to learn, for example, that the Season 25 sketch (air date: April 8, 2000) didn’t feel so promising to those behind the scenes, right up until the moment it stole the show.

Spoiler: it almost aired months prior without Walken and with a different musical prop, and thank goodness it didn't then or with that.
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It helped a lot having two national treasures in the sketch between Farrell and Walken. Not to mention that both of them almost lost it (along with Fallon, who always did).

My favo(u)rite SNL sketch is still probably either The Sinatra Group ("I got chunks of guys like you in my stool!") or Bill Clinton's visit to McDonald's during his "jog" ("intercepted by warlords."). Phil Hartman RIP -- talk about national treasures. But there are a couple of dozen minimum I still watch on YouTube repeat -- Celebrity Jeopardy, Bag O' Glass, Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood, Matt Foley, an editorial by a "New Jersey resident" (Tony Soprano), Adam Sandler's cheap Halloween costumes, etc.
 
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A lot of what needed saying about this weeks pick has already been well documented.
The only disappointing thing about The Strokes for me have been the two live shows I’ve seen. They just didn’t seem to have much of a stage presence.
On to the album… as we say in my part of the world, it’s a boster!! Not sure when I first heard it, but whether it’s the tempo that hooked me in or maybe the twin guitars I loved it. Big shout out for Nick Valensi who seems to live in AH Jr’s shadow but gives as good as he gets. Bass lines in some of the tunes is epic. Great vocals and percussion tie it up nicely.
Never thought about the ‘production’ quality but I only listen to wax 78s on a wind up gramophone so I’ll ignore the naysayers.
Quality from start to finish - Last Nite, New York City Cops epic. Solid 9/10 for me. The follow up album is a boster as well.
Chapeau Foggy!!!
 
mrbelfry said:
It's probably a little reductive and took about 5 minutes of thought so please apply a large pinch of salt. I'm not sure how triggering the Ramones comment will be for @FogBlueInSanFran
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The Ramones are one of the ten most influential bands of all time, IMO. Arguably more than the Sex Pistols (or The New York Dolls), and a lot of Americans who fell into punk in the 70s would make that argument -- they were certainly more prolific, and a lot funnier. Not as influential as The Velvets, though, since their influence has been so long-lasting.

Do I like The Ramones? I do -- at least three of their records are great. But I don't play them much any more. And I like NMTBHTSP better than any Ramones record, so make of that what you will.
 
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BlueHammer85 said:
I was always a bigger fan of 'British Indie' to 'American Indie' - if that's such a thing, but this felt the most British American Indie sound to come out around that time and i think that's why it hit the spot so well in the UK - It's raw, catchy and authentic. bought back some good nostalgia.
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That was certainly backed up by the band's initial popularity by sold out shows in the UK over how they initially did in the US too. When I first heard them, I had to do a double take on where they were from, as their sound reminded me more of UK indie than US, so I too related to what you were describing above. All that said, onto my review...

Is This It - The Strokes

I remember hearing this at the time and seeing the band on SNL, but I didn't buy the album, it just didn't register enough on my radar over other bands I was listening to. I do agree with some others that the bass on this sounds the best as they go for the early Ramones and Velvet Underground sound on this.

My biggest complaint on this is the songs for that reason and the recording process all sound too much alike, and after a while, nothing really stood out, save for what got overplayed.

Favourite tracks for me included "The Modern Age", "Soma", "Someday", "Alone, Together", "Hard To Explain", "When It Started" (great bass), and "Trying Your Luck" with its great guitar sound. But again, there is a bit of sameness to all of them, and I do agree the low-fi recording process contributes to this mostly vocally and with the percussion of sounding too samey and ultimately flat at times.

The first song in particular is one that I just didn't really enjoy. The closer was good, but not as good as the others mentioned.

Their latest 2020 album didn't sell nearly as well, but I liked it for more of the new wave indie rock sound and influences over the punk sound mostly heard here. An enjoyable start for this band, but one I've not latched onto as much.
It's a 7/10 for the enjoyable tracks I've noted and the overall bass sound there.
 
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