It's surprising how full their sound is without using a bass.As I've previously said I struggled to listen to this as a whole album. As a collection of songs dropped randomly into a playlist of Americana and bluesy roots music I enjoyed the vast majority of them when they appeared. I suspect the reason I didn't enjoy them as much back to back was partly not wanting to listen to the vocal delivery for prolonged periods but also next to each other it began to have a 'busy' feel to it whereas separated out the individual songs were easier to appreciate.
At times it’s easy to make something like a lazy Jack White comparison but that’s just one of myriad of different reference points or influences at play and maybe too many at times. That said it's overall rootsy, slightly punky vibe worked well for me. There's nothing on there that I would skip if it it came up on autoplay and personnally didn't have a problem with more country infused tracks like Burdens/Beale Street. Lyrically it felt like there was supposed to be a theme but it comes out more stream of consciousness for me which again might be why I liked them more individually.
If I was being picky on the production side I think I’d have like a slightly muddier production for some of the songs such as Tied, despite this as one of my favourites, but that is purely personal preference rather than a criticism of the production itself.
Often, I’m not a fan of bands who sideline the bass but their sound is successful as they commit to it. They definitely give the impression that are doing what they want they want to do, not something that someone else thinks they should be doing. It feels like they have set out to make a bit of a racket in the best sense of the word and in that I think they have succeeded.
As I finish my last listen and am deciding what to score, autoplay has flicked up Wilco and BB so it's put me in a good mood. 7/10 and will be having a listen to some of their other albums too.
It's surprising how full their sound is without using a bass.
Also, I'm still not convinced there isn't a keyboard in parts of "Kiss It" but if there genuinely isn't, then they create incredible sounds from those guitars.
I have a couple of Wilco albums but not listened to their recent output. Who's BB?
I think the 2nd side is stronger than the first.An album that practices a lot of what Rob preaches. Good use of american 'roots' in their music, and a clear sense of identity. Good mix of bluesy/rock and country, and on the rougher side of both, making it, to me, somewhat more unique.
But what lets it down for me, length in small part, but mostly, the order. Talk about a prime example of how to mess up a good album by putting together good/decent songs in a bad order. Which is maybe why others have commented on splitting the album up or getting tired of it etc.
This was my experience of it. Good opening song, a good example of what is to come, but tame enough not to burn out straight away. Good i'm in the mood. Bang, three totally average dreary dragged out songs, to put me right off. Burdens is actually in itself a good song, but sandwiched between those two, gets lost. Nice intense ending to Tied, if you can hold your breath long enough. Then Brodie, a cracking track to get you back in the mood, good we are on again! Oh no, wait, a bit of dragged out drawl again. Then 9-5, where are we now don't know what to expect any more! Is it the start of sometging, or another trick? A bit of a filler showcase of guitar slides, distortion and that the guy can wail. Ok, call it slate wiped. Then for me comes the real heart of this album, and the best part of it in the next few songs. Walter, probably my favourite song on it, Beale Street, great use of a folk element while maintaining the rock feel, and Kiss It keeps the blues and intensity. 3AM, oh ffs, not this again. Just in time to take the momentum out of it towards the end, before a decent song in Desert, but a bit of an anticlimactic ending.
Generally though, enjoyed a lot of it. A few really good songs. And will explore more. And won't mind spotify throwing it into the mix here and there. Country is just not my thing, but it, for the most part did not put me off this and was used well and mixed with other elements. There was a lot of generic basic rock stuff too, hence the comparisons to so many different bands, but overall the mix made it interesting. A solid 7 which is fair given the divided feel I got out of it.
A great line which I am bummed I didn't come up with!An album that practices a lot of what Rob preaches.
Gah! You've just knocked it out of the top 10! But of course points and positions in the table are a meaningless side effect of the discussion.Whoops… nearly missed the deadline!!
This was a bit mixed for me some tracks I quite liked and could easily listen to again. Others left me feeling a bit underwhelmed. Given that was 50/50 on the songs - Tied being a plus; Beale Street being a negative I gone for 6/10 as I found the slide really interesting.
If I’d have known that…. ;)Gah! You've just knocked it out of the top 10! But of course points and positions in the table are a meaningless side effect of the discussion.