2007-08-16: Muse - Black Holes and Revelations

With as good as Origin of Symmetry and Absolution were, a lot of people thought Muse had nowhere left to go. But that's exactly where they went: nowhere. If Absolution was a double album, Black Holes and Revelations should have been the second disc. That's not meant to be a compliment. One of the questions I always ask about an album is "Why did the band make it?" Did they have something new to say? Did they want to stretch themselves creatively? Did they need to pay for a divorce settlement? This album is obviously political, but bashing Bush and Blair is hardly noteworthy at the moment. If they don't have anything more insightful to add than "How can we win when fools can be kings?", they're better off making an album about love and registering to vote (except Bush can't be re-elected, they can't vote in America, and Blair is out which anyone could see coming in early 2006). Metallica made two of the greatest back-to-back albums ever with Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets. Most critics will say that Ride the Lightning was the true breakthrough metal album while Master of Puppets perfected that form. This is much how I see Origin of Symmetry and Absolution, which sets up Black Holes for a fall. I think this analogy holds as And Justice..., though it produced some excellent tracks, was just not as good. The problem I have with Black Holes is that it's so pretty that it's tough to hate on. I mean Starlight is a gorgeous track and Map of the Problematique, Invincible, and City of Delusion are all to easy to sing along to. Still, there haven't been this many duds since Showbiz. Soldier's Poem is just boring (Queen, they ain't!), Assassin is an unworthy remake of Stockholm Syndrome, Exo Politics' camp is bad even by sci-fi standards and Hoodoo doesn't sound nearly humble enough to be believable, probably due to Bellamy's attempt at Mariachi guitar. Supermassive Black Hole seemed new at first but upon repeated listens sounds like a mix of Hysteria and Time is Running Out, two of their biggest hits. The one song I can't decide on is the allegedly epic Knights of Cydonia. I have to respect it for the stupendous music video which makes up for Muse's consistently terrible past music videos. I just can't decide if the guitar solo is too disappointing to write off the song altogether. In the end I have to give it a thumbs up just because it just makes me want to use it to make a Firefly music video.

I readily admit that I am a sucker for special/deluxe editions and I bought the version with the bonus DVD. The Muse faithful will recognize it as the DVD version of Hullabaloo Disc 2. An entire concert on DVD is more special feature than most music fans ever hope for and this disc includes Muse's show at the Glastonbury Festival in 2004. Music hype sources like NME and Blender promote Muse as the best live band in the world, but I have been disappointed by all the footage and bootlegs I've heard. I think they do an admirable job of adapting their songs to a 3(+) person show, but they have yet to learn how to effectively construct a winning setlist. Besides being a great album opener for Absolution, it is an awe-inspiring spectacle to have over 10,000 people stomping along to "Intro"/Apocalypse Now. That would have been the way to open the show. Hysteria, as their biggest radio hit at the time is a natural closer, but would fit well anywhere but the beginning. And for the most part, they could just pipe the cd throught the amplifiers and play air instruments. The best performance here is Stockholm Syndrome. (Can any guitar players out there tell me if Bellamy is really an awesome guitar player or does he just know how to use effects well?) All the strobe lights and video screens in the world can't synthesize a stage presence and Bellamy just doesn't have it. Maybe he should let Wolstenholme—who seems to have the personality for it—run the show instead. Hey, it worked for Nirvana!

2007-05-09: My Morning Jacket - It Still Moves

I bought this record after seeing Jim James on Austin City Limits with Conor Oberst's Bright Eyes. For the first two or three spins I thought it was a 70 minute collection of drawn-out and misproduced country songs. Then, in the middle of Dancefloors, I recognized it for what it truly is: a beautiful exercise in excess. I sometimes like to describe a band as a combination of two other bands, but I can't nail My Morning Jacket down. There's definitely some Allman Brothers in there, but they never had lyrics like this. Maybe I don't give Greg enough credit, but I doubt he ever would have put "just don't make it take any longer than it has to" 3 minutes of introduction into a 9 minute song. There's also a good bit of Neil Young. Just listen to the steel guitar in Golden evoke the sparing style of Ben Keith (or listen to Xmas Curtain from At Dawn which could be a Young cover). And the lead guitar work makes it impossible to leave out Lynyrd Skynyrd (yes, I realize that's 3 bands). Fortunately, the songwriting is so strong that these influences don't taint the music. Anybody who complains that today's bands just don't rock like they used to needs to give a good hard listen to It Still Moves. Jim James has said that his songwriting usually starts with a drum beat and a vocal melody and that shows as nearly every song has a strong melodic drive. Are the songs too long? Occasionally. I suspect this is more of a reflection of their live show personality in their studio recording than a defect in songwriting (the band seems more focused on the subsequent and tightly arranged Z, as if they are saving something for the tour). But it's also nice to see a rock band who both isn't trying to pander to a Clear Channel radio audience and doesn't shy away from the spectre of the classic rock radio greats.

2007-02-16: The Strokes - First Impressions of Earth

The Strokes, contrary to anything Rolling Stone has to say, are not the second coming of the Beatles. After a brilliant debut featuring the most straightforward Rock 'n Roll I've heard in nearly a decade, they followed up with the enjoyable but disappointing Room on Fire which left me repeating the title of their first record. A long three years later, First Impressions of Earth was released to much fanfare. I have to say it was one of the most satisfying records I listened to all year. Neil Young said that an artist's reach must always exceed his grasp; FIE sounds like a band who is still reaching for something. That is not to say they were unable to grasp, only that for a band who rose so high so quickly, there is still an earnestness in the recording, Josie Scott notwithstanding.

What has always put The Strokes a level above many other bands is Fab Moretti. Juan Casablancas and Albert Hammond Jr. seem to be the bandmembers in the spotlight, but Moretti is one of the most rock solid drummers of his generation. The last album which made me forget the rest of the instruments so I could focus on air drumming was The Colour and the Shape. Smells Like Teen Spirit and Scentless Apprentice be damned. Ironically, my favorite song on the album, Ask Me Anything, doesn't have any percussion.

2006-11-07: Snow Patrol - Eyes Open

I just got the new Snow Patrol album. I resisted buying it, much like I resisted buying Final Straw, because I was afraid it would not be any good. This fear was not unfounded, though it proved incorrect. There are many instances where a band's first major release is excellent but their follow up is disturbingly mediocre. The Sophomore Syndrome is, I believe, an apt title even though the band may have released multiple previous albums on indie labels. I didn't buy Final Straw because I thought the song Run would be the only good track (truthfully, Run is so good it would still be worth purchasing if the rest of the album was boring). In the end I bought it and couldn't be happier. I was afraid that after their initial success, Snow Patrol would be hindered by too many outside forces to produce a good follow up. I am happy to say that Eyes Open is as consistently strong as Final Straw. It doesn't have anything to match Run, but few bands do. Go out and buy both. Anybody have When It's All Over We Still Have To Clear Up or Songs For Polarbears?