Buried within All in Good Time is Barenaked Ladies' hardest-hitting record, if you take the time to find it. The messy departure of vocalist Steven Page weighed heavily on the band while writing these songs, and this is no more obvious than in those sung by former co-lead (now just lead) vocalist Ed Robertson, particularly on the ballad "You Run Away," angry rocker "I Have Learned," and jaunty "Golden Boy."
The trouble is, though, that the potent bitterness of this "breakup" album is diluted by more introspective, outside-looking-in contributions from keyboardist Kevin Hearn and bassist Jim Creegan. Undoubtedly, the remaining members made a decision to feature every vocalist in the name of band solidarity. But while their combined five songs provide a probably more accurate/complete account of Page's exodus, they divert attention from the more cohesive picture presented by Robertson.
An argument can be made that it's important to include these perspectives, but the record suffers artistically for it. While Creegan is a revelation (where have they been hiding this guy so long?), Hearn has written better songs, particularly on Barenaked Ladies Are Me/Are Men. Indeed, even Hearn's best track from these sessions (at least among those that have been released), "Let There Be Light," was inexplicably relegated to vendor-specific bonus track.
Likewise, the track order gives the impression that the record is more mid-tempo, burying Robertson's heavier tracks in the second half. For an album with so many rockers, the listener should not need to wait seven tracks to hear the first one. With that in mind, I'd like to propose an alternate track order:
1. You Run Away
2. Ordinary
3. Four Seconds
4. I Have Learned
5. On the Lookout
6. Every Subway Car
7. Summertime
8. Let There Be Light [iTunes bonus track]
9. How Long
10. Golden Boy
11. I Saw It
12. Moonstone [Amazon bonus track]
13. The Love We're In
"You Run Away" retained the leadoff track position only because there are no other songs in from these sessions that have the feel of an album-opener. Ideally, I would have like to put it as track 3 or 4, the typical location of a ballad radio single. Either way, I would have released "Every Subway Car" as the lead single, with "You Run Away" as the follow-up.
Still, this tracklisting achieves a stronger rock feel than the original All in Good Time, while retaining vocal contributions from Hearn and Creegan. For a shorter, tighter album (11 tracks), any two of "On the Lookout," "I Saw It," or "Moonstone" could be removed, but I think that pushes the album too far into Robertson-solo territory. After all, it's supposed to be a Barenaked Ladies album.
Either way, with the modified album above, reviewers could confidently call All in Good Time the hardest rocking record in the entire BNL catalog, moreso even than Stunt or Maroon. That's the review I'd like to give, and it'd be accurate with the original version if your attention is focused on the latter part of the record. It's frustrating, too, because notwithstanding a few logistical missteps, All in Good Time is the best Barenaked Ladies album in a decade.
Gold Motel is the lovechild of Greta Morgan (formerly Greta Salpeter) of The Hush Sound, members of This is Me Smiling (Dan Duszynski, Mike Minx, Adam Coldhouse), and Eric Hehr of the Yearbooks. Their debut LP was inspired by Morgan's 2009 trip to California, which is abundantly clear from the first notes of album-opener "We're on the Run," or a standout track like "Safe in L.A." The band evokes a sound similar to the Beach Boys and the Mamas and the Papas, or more contemporary acts such as She & Him, latter-day Rilo Kiley, or a happier Anna Nalick.
Safe in L.A.:
Duszynski, Minx, Coldhouse, and Hehr are a refreshingly positive influence, channeling Morgan into more upbeat arrangements than one might expect from other female-fronted summery 60s throwback bands. Imagine if Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward spent less time writing sugary sweet pop songs and more time rocking out - well, they'd sound like Gold Motel. Summer House is damn catchy, and feels like a natural progression from The Hush Sound's last album, Goodbye Blues. On that album, it seemed like the band was trying to make a statement that it was a Serious Band. Unfortunately, this played against The Hush Sound's youthful exuberance, which was always its greatest strength. It's no surprise that the best songs on Goodbye Blues (e.g. "Honey" and "Love You Much Better") wouldn't be out of place on Summer House.
Summer House:
Minor disclaimer: I don't mean to disparage Goodbye Blues. I liked that record, and if you're interested in Gold Motel, you probably will too. It's just that Summer House is so much more carefree. The poignant loneliness that occasionally emerged in The Hush Sound's music is nowhere to be found here (with the possible exception of "Who Will I Be Tonight?").
This shift is a result of what seems like a conscious decision to downplay the piano (always a beautifully melancholy instrument) in favor of sunny guitars. Piano's minor role on this record is surprising, though, considering Morgan is a classically-trained pianist, and This is Me Smiling play a style of piano-driven power pop similar to that of a more energetic Ben Folds Five. Still, when the summer of 2010 begins to fade, I'm confident we'll look back on Summer House as one of the most fun records of the season.
In the 14 years since 1996, there hasn’t been anything quite like The Verve Pipe’s Villains. It’s not the album’s swagger or its punch; other bands have very successfully emulated both. It might have something to do with that funny movement that developed in the early 2000s, when a groundswell of angry/sad, often tattooed men with high, somewhat childlike voices remarkably drowned out the adult males in rock music. (Yes, I’m talking about emo.)
Every time I listen to the title track from Villains, I’m blown away that I used to hear this song on the radio. It's the kind of song I always wish bands would release as singles but never do. A brooding rocker about the media’s elevation of criminals to celebrity-status, “Villains” is not a catchy song. The insistent refrain, “See how they twist and shout,” is more harpoon than hook. And although the song didn’t track higher than #22 on rock radio, I still find it amazing that it was released as a single at all. Only in the 90s would a major label even consider releasing it as the follow up to a smash like “The Freshmen.”
Villains:
Speaking of The Verve Pipe’s only #1 hit, it must be bittersweet for a band to write its best song so early in its career. Songs like “The Freshmen” are truly once-in-a-lifetime gems that only very, very luckiest songwriters stumble upon. The guys in TVP had to know they could never top it. “The Freshmen” first appeared on the band’s 1992 debut indie release, I’ve Suffered a Head Injury. It was strangely removed from the album’s second pressing released later that year, was left off the 1993 follow-up Pop Smear, and then got reworked for Villains. Even then, it was not released as a single for a full year after Villains hit stores, preceded by minor hits "Photograph" and "Cup of Tea." Years later, Vander Ark admitted that the story of his best friend’s callous treatment of a girlfriend who had an abortion was actually autobiographical (albeit without the suicide).
While Villains immersed itself in the distorted, heavy guitars of mid-90s post-grunge, it added subtle layers of texture, such as the keyboards in “Penny is Poison,” a pretty but somber tune about resignation to reaping what we sow. While Penny may be awful to the song's narrator, he accepts it ("Penny is poison but I don't mind), admitting that he's been just as awful to other women ("Starving the love of the marvelous / I was the Penny to previous").
Penny is Poison:
Indeed, Villains is pervaded by similar themes of numbness and disinterest. The characters are world-weary, but rather than grow bitter, they are afflicted with ennui. They have given up. The subject in "Villains" begins to lose interest in the "villain on the cover / of every major magazine" by the simple act of a dropped subscription card (perhaps also a comment on making money off the celebration of evil?). In "Drive You Mild," Vander Ark acknowledges he "should drive you wild," but settles for underwhelming. Elsewhere, he "scraped the bargain basement / bought a lover less than fantastic / Spoke to me barely, if at all." Whether in love or grander themes, the album as a whole suggests that the true villains are within us.
I've been a little slow to write about this (or anything else, really), but I think I can reasonably blame my wedding and honeymoon for that. (As an aside, my wife and I were very disappointed that The National did not show up. They didn't even respond to our e-mail invitation!)
Anyway, Arcade Fire have been releasing teasers for their new album, The Suburbs. You can check out a pretty damn cool preview of their recent 12" single of "The Suburbs"/"Month of May" on their website. My favorite part? Press pause while either song is playing. (OMG! Sounds just like vinyl! It's sad the stuff that makes me happy.) I never got into Funeral or Neon Bible, but for some reason these new tracks have me really excited for the new album. "The Suburbs" shuffles along at a carefree, easy pace, while "Month of May" hits a little harder. It's kind of a goofy punk song, but the band pulls it off well.
The actual 12" was released in limited supply at various independent record stores. (My local shop was selling it for something like $25.)
This week saw the premiere of two more tracks, "Ready to Start" and "We Used to Wait," which are available all over the Internet, such as at one of my favorite music blogs (where you can find mp3s of all four songs). I think these are rips of an Internet broadcast, so you'll have to wait until August 2 for the real thing.
Previewed earlier on GTI, Robbers on High Street have released a limited edition 7" single of "Electric Eye," possibly my new favorite song, and backed by "Face in the Fog." The vinyl will ship with an mp3 download card, and a digital-only release is set for June 22. Check out both tracks here:
The band is also on tour in the NY/Philly/DC area:
Thursday June 10th, 2010 M Room – Philadelphia, PA
w/The Bloodsugars
Friday June 11th, 2010 Velvet Lounge – Washington, DC
w/The Bloodsugars, Kaiser Cartel, Jeremy Messersmith
Saturday June 12th, 2010 Knitting Factory – Brooklyn, NY
“Electric Eye” b/w “Face in the Fog” 45 release show.
w/The Bloodsugars, Israel Darling, Spouse
Sunday June 13th, 2010 TT the Bear’s Place – Cambridge, MA
w/The Bloodsugars
Blitzen Trapper have provided the first taste of their upcoming fifth album, Destroyer of the Void, on June 8 via Sub Pop Records. "Heaven and Earth" is a departure from the bayou-tinged freakouts we've come to expect from the band. It begins with just piano and Eric Earley's vocals, before layering strings and other instruments. Of course, since this is Blitzen Trapper, expect the rest of the album to go in entirely different directions.
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