5 comments about Strange But True.

1. As other reviewers have said, "Yo La Tengo fans beware!" Half-Japanese/Jad & David Fair fans will be delighted, however, to have their favorite odd-ball lyricist (I believe David Fair wrote most of the lyrics) and lo-fi songwriting master (perhaps outside of Daniel Johnston) backed-up by some of the premier instrumentalists of the 90's. This album is a gem-- Yo La Tengo's beautiful complexity and precision juxtaposed with Fair's from-the-guts-spontaneity, which has always sounded like a teenager recording songs on a bedroom boombox. It's a long way from Yo La Tengo's usual eerily-soft and clouded vocals and with Fair taking over we're forced to see both teams from a different perspective: Yo La Tengo comes out sounding more angular and grating, Jad Fair more introspective, but only by virtue of the new contrast-- all players remain themselves, as freely and creatively as ever.
   
   But all my praises notwithstanding, the album remains a great experiment but hardly a masterpiece. Essential, maybe, to Jad Fair fans but probably a novelty to Yo La Tengo listeners who may not have the taste for beauty-in-ugliness aesthetic that appreciation for Half-Japanese has always required.



2. I edit my old review, having revalued this Fair/YLT release. After repeated listenings I hold it to be actually a pretty good Fair record. One of the better of the era in which it was recorded (1994-96). I would also agree with those seeing this album as a mainly Jad Fair production, with YLT backing up Fair in his lo-fi esse, and as such it should be recommended to his fans. And, yes, one has to appreciate the kinda "weird" aestethics to see the greatness of this album. I would upgrade my stars to four if it was possible, but it isn't.



3. . . .jad fair's cutesy contrivances are so utterly unclever and outright annoying that they make this unlistenable. would the music stand alone as instrumentals (a la the infinitely superior 'genius + love')? i really can't say because i can't get past jad's pretensions (they're not even original; they were supposedly clipped from tabloid headlines). i saw this performed live and was so upset that i couldn't listen to any yo la tengo albums for weeks afterwards. however, if you're into jad, or think live introductions like "this is a song about a circus strongman who runs for pta president. it's called circus strongman runs for pta president'" are scintillating, then go for it.



4. Yo La Tengo fans should beware; this album is not exactly what they might expect.

   I give this 2 stars for a certain curiosity factor and for the kinda wacky lyrics, but in terms of music and production, this is a far cry from other Yo La Tengo albums. "Weak" sounds like an understatement.

   Even though the music is credited to YLT, this is much more of a Jad Fair album. Their musical talents hardly shine through as the production is a devil-may-care kind of lo-fi, the songs rarely extend beyond 2 minutes and seem mere fragmented vehicles to transport Fair's jumbled vocals. A major disappointment.




5. Pop Kulcher Review: While I'm a dedicated fan of Yo La Tengo (in my opinion, the most exciting band of the 1990's), I put off buying this 1998 side-project. The album features YLT backing the vocals of Jad (David) Fair, part of the art/punk band Half-Japanese, whose nasal, semi-spoken oddities I've always found amusing but somewhat irritating. But the album is much better than it should be. Rather than tossing off some half-baked background music, YLT actually compose some tight, concise little numbers, which fully realize their wide range of styles, from quiet acoustic folkiness to upbeat power guitar rock to full-on sonic chaos. And Fair's lyrics -- essentially a series of rhyming vignettes based on what appear to be National Enquirer headlines -- are at least amusing. His little-boy spoken-word approach is somewhere between indie-icon Daniel Johnston (another YLT collaborator, of sorts) and iconoclastic bands like Ween and They Might be Giants. Sure, I would have preferred to hear YLT's vocals on top of the music, but for a novelty side-project it's relatively fun, and further confirmation of YLT's status as one of the most consistently entertaining and innovative bands around. I'd even offer up the straightforward buzzsaw guitar rocker "Texas Man Abducted By Aliens For Outer Space Joy Ride" (in which Fair comes closest to actually singing) as an essential part of the YLT catalog. On the downside, Fair's vocals do annoy over the course of an entire album, so this is best enjoyed in small bites.

5 comments about Palomine.

1. Bettie Serveet...what a great band! this danish group has rarely failed when it comes to putting out great albums stuffed with heartfelt pop rock and roll. if i had to make a comparison, i would say that, musically, they sound like Big Star or maybe the New Pornographers. lots of jangly big guitars, bittersweet ballads, hooks galore and a tight (but not too tight) rhythm section. Carol van Dijk's vocals are the real icing on the cake here. she has a great "lived-in" voice that sounds like she's been drinking whiskey and smoking cigarettes since she was age 3. it's so rough around the edges, yet so charming and adorably sweet. kim deal's got that same sort of vocal appeal. it goes a long way here to propel this band past a "yea...they're pretty good..." to "hey, this band is really good!" everyone of Bettie Serveet's albums are worth a listen and i can guarantee that if you get one, you'll want them all.
   "Palomine" has the best cover of all their cd's. but be warned, once you open the digipack and see the band photo, you may wonder what the hell is wrong with them. let's just say that it's not the most flattering of band promo shots. but that is one of the charming aspects of this band...they are geeks...real dorks (or so their band photos would have you believe) but they are geeks who make some great music. once the guitars and drums kick into "Leg" you'll be hooked. the sweet "Kid's Allright" will make you feel a lump in your throat, and they even cover "Healthy Sick" by Lou Barlow.
   i'm not sure what it is exactly about Bettie Serveet that is so great. it's just a very basic concept...guitar/bass/drums/vocals. but their songwriting is so crafty that they are able to instantly capture your attention and keep ahold of you in their pretty little web for the duration each amazing album. i'm hoping that they keep sticking around for awhile. it's getting hard to imagine getting used to them being gone.



2. As so many others, "Kids alright" first drew me to this album in the summer of '93. I picked it up used at a local record store and found that it was full of raw, grungy, but not obnoxious sounds of emotion. Palomine is a wonderful example of low tech, hi emotion recording that is so over looked in this day of "bigger and better". This stuff gets in you and stays for a long time. It has such power without being over powering. This album will take you on an emotional "tour de France" through every nook and cranny of your soul. In my opinion, it's Bettie Serveert's most "true-to-themselves" and soul touching album by far. I still rank this virtually unknown album as one of my top 25 records of all time. Being a musician myself, people often ask me who my influences are and they almost never know who I am talking about when I say Bettie Serveert. I listen to palomine all the time to this day, and no matter how long it's been since I last heard this record, I still get that same feeling every time I hear it. It, quite simply, never gets old.



3. I've been listening to this for two years and finally searched amazon (no kidding) to get the true title etc. has stood up to time since its first listen-to in Flagstaff AZ. If they had better coverage everyone would know. Have since picked up other titles by this band. Can't say enough good things.



4. I heard this album at a friends house, loved it, bought it. Brilliant vocals, great rock guitar, but not overpowering. Can't go wrong with this one.



5. The "Kid's Allright" drew me to this CD in the first place and I ended up listening to it almost endlessly one summer. It's moody, dynamic, and powerful. The only thing better is seeing these songs performed live.

5 comments about Mother of All Saints.

1. Scores of arty twentysomethings who swoon over the Animal Collective have never heard this dark surreal head trip that may some day find its due recognition. The Thinking Fellers indulge in odd harmonies, fractured rhythms, sewer guitar noise, alien melody and song structures that unpredictably veer without succumbing to math rock/prog rock cliches. Oddball instruments, at least for an American band, such as the erhu are integral to the mix without seeming like flashy attention-grabbing ornaments. Multiple male and female vocalists share duties, keeping listeners off guard and constantly offering a different distorted prismatic view of their themes of disease, ecstasy, mental illness and surreal experience. And while the lyrics of a band like Sonic Youth are often best not paid too much attention to, the Fellers deliver coups such as
   
   "Excuse me sir, I'd like to buy a spike /
   for planting hornets into the heart of my wife /
   she's had conversations with my darker side /
   and now she's left me with a poison mind."
   
   This sprawling double album runs the gamut from odd beauty to near-unlistenable moments, a true trip to outreland. I usually wince at formless indugences, but here they add fangs to the disorienting tenor of the album. The Fellers have made more accessible albums and more favorably reviewed albums, but very acts have ever made an album like this, where you just sit back, shake your head and say what the f*** was that. One of the very great, truly unique 1990s albums. [P.S. The "Brownest Hour" review is spot-on].



2. 
   That this band isn't rated more highly is criminal. They ARE my favorite band of the nineties. All of their releases should be readily available, but if you're on a budget, you should grab this one. I guess they were considered too 'eccentric' to be one of the more popular indie groups, but that's not fair. I think all of their albums are gigantic hits, at least in my house.



3. If you don't have this CD, you must have AIDS!!



4. Sonic Youth, My Bloody Valentine, Meat Puppets, early lo-fi Guided By Voices, Faust, Can, 80's Butthole Surfers, Captain Beefheart, Pixies, John Zorn, The Boredoms, Olivia Tremor Control (or other lo-fi Elephant 6 stuff), and even a little That Dog (think violins in grungy emotional alt. rock, not too many others apply)...this band sounds like all of these bands sometimes all rolled into one, othertimes seperate. Elements of shoegazer, arty post-punk, German krautrock, cowpunk, freeform noise/sound collage, and other forms of avante-garde experimentation spread out over an hour's worth of wonderful beautiful druggy messy psychadelic music. definitely give this one a listen next time mr. lysergic comes to town, and venture further into their other albums too (I know I will be). the entire album, to me, is the equivalent of some kind of mindbend out in a vast rural field inhabited by strange creatures and otherwordly shifts of color and shadow. Somebody said "Sonic Youth playing bluegrass". Sounds about right. what are you waitng for?



5. Wow, what a price for this classic! In case you DON'T know, the Thinking Fellers were among the best indie ROCK bands of the 90's and have the distinction of probably being the WEIRDEST. Among all the straightfaced cynicism and insular coolness of that era, the Fellers were quite refreshing with their electric banjos, goofy vocals and all around absurdism. Plus they were an incredible live band. Mother All Of Saints is a great introduction to the Fellers completely unique sound. Highlights include "Hive", "Hornet's Heart", "Cistern" and many more. Also, it's a very long listen; I believe it was a double LP, so it's well worth the investment for the price of one CD. It starts of with a string of great songs, and although 3/4 of the way through there's alot of goofy, home recorded filler, it picks up again with some very "heavy" space rock instrumentals towards the end. If you're curious at all, pick this oddball classic up, especially since the price is right. They've been described as "Sonic Youth playing bluegress" before, but any other stupid "Zappa meets the Pixies" tag could apply as well. It's stylistically all over the place, so even if you don't like the WHOLE thing, there's sure to be a couple songs that you'll love, trust me!

5 comments about Eight Teeth to Eat You.

1. 4 excellent Cursive songs, I've never heard the rest. Eastern Youth was fun in concert though.



2. I never really got into the Eastern Youth songs on this cd but I give it a five star rating for the cursive songs alone. These are some of the best songs in the Tim Kasher songbook, topped only by the Burst and Bloom ep.



3. absolutely the greatest split ever released. cursive and eastern youth at their best. some of the cursive tracks are easily the finest they've ever written, from any release.



4. I do not understand English. What cannot be understood Cursive therefore whether sing. (This review is lacked by

   using the Japanese-English automatic operation
   translation site. ).

   I think that the cause is in lyrics though gEastern Youth has the very unenviable-" etc. are written by the review

   which has already been published. I think that the people who had written the review published in Amazon[.com] felt

   the Eastern youth tedious because it does not understand Japanese lyrics.
   Yoshino of the Eastern youth uses an antique word for lyrics.
   Lyrics which use an antique word of the Eastern youth are criticized , saying that "Literature" etc.
   It is compared with the rock Group which says gelephant kashimashi" in respect of lyrics though the bytalk. Both

   lyrics are antique literary style.
   Please it does not care and read and look even at the translation because a very good lyrics.
   -----------
   I recommend the following band to the person to whom the interest to Japanese music was born by "8 Teeth to Eat You."

   Elephant Kashimashi , cyuu-burari , happy end , foul , yura yura teikoku , Carmen Maki&oz D




5. Okay, all I have to say is that Cursive is only a rather okay (not spectacular) band compared to Eastern Youth who are like perpetual GODS of music to me. Although all of their lyrics are in Japanese, Yoshino and co. play... well just GREAT music. I'm not good at describing or criticizing music, so just check out this page for their independent label ...

2 comments about Slow Motion Apocalypse.

1. Some stats: Grotus 'Slow Motion Apocalypse' (1993) 11 trks CD TT= 51:08
   Printed lyrics included
   
   Bruce Boyd- drums
   John Carson- bass, samples, ruler
   Lars Fox- moulthpiece, samples, percussion, tube
   Adam Tanner- Fender 6 string bass, Jupiter 8 and crew, samples
   
   Industrial rock, a bit bonzo for sure, with weird samples,Indian tablas and sitars. Innovative, sarcastic, progressive, controversial and confrontational. From San Francisco for sure.
   
   Grotus perform like Hari-Krishna's from Hell chasing down renegade Angels in some airport between Worlds. In that airport between Heaven and Hells there's a newspaper dispenser next to the escalator (which only goes down). Lucifer is the editor of that paper and the stories within are the subject matter of Grotus' songs.
   
   Not as fierce and unforgiving as 'Mass'(1996) but has a more consistant groove (dark fun).
   
   To Mega Therion



2. This blend of noise and world rhythms is a must have for any industrial enthusiast. This album is not as hard as Brown and not as harmonious as Mass.

   The lyrics and samples present a cynical and sarcastic view of modern society set to the backdrop of Indian inspired (and possibly sampled) tracks.

   And Lars has the coolest voice in the biz.

1 comments about Rosy Jack World.

1. The last recording made by the Blake Babies (befor their reunion in 2001), "Rosy Jack World" is a fine farewell, showing off the best of what the Blake Babies had to offer while pointed to where their lead singer Juliana Hatfield would end up.
   
   The five tracks-- three originals and two covers, are among the best the band ever did-- "Temptation Eyes", "Downtown" and "Severed Lips" stick with the traditional sounds of the band-- all three are exciting jangle pop (particularly "Temptation Eyes" which is downright superb) and "Downtown" is a vocal feature for John Strohm, whose enthusiasm and heartfelt delivery is clearly audible.
   
   The last two tracks show where Hatfield would end up-- "Take Me" is kind of so-so alternative, but sounds more like it would fit in on Hatfield's "Become What You Are" then here, "Nirvana" is presented as an acoustic-guitar-and-vocal demo by Hatfield, an exciting and emotional piece that she would re-record on her debug album.
   
   Bottom line, it's a nice little EP, well worth acquiring. Highly recommended.

No comments about Blood Pressure.

4 comments about Pacific Trim.

1. While other Pavement EPs have gone on to classic status, this one has been largely ignored, which is a shame since it showcases the band at their best and most experimental. 'Give It A Day", the first track, is a bit of lazy Malkmus pop made interesting by his stream of conscious, first person lyrics which gradually reveals an unfocused story culminating in the lead explaining to his girl that he got in a fight with her father. "Gangsters and Pranksters" is one of the more interesting tracks the band ever recorded; the background sounds almost like an upbeat loop of a a catchy guitar melody followed by some feedback and hissing. Again, Pavements songs have often been debased for not being about anything, but these lyrics read like an expressionistic poem about the infamous merry pranksters, it's very clever. "Saganaw" sounds like the Velvet Underground would have if they had let John Cale have more of an influence. Finally, "I Love Perth" is a throw away track, a little over a minute of lazy pop, but it's fun in that respect. Anyone who is already a Pavement fan (and has all of the full lengths) really can't go wrong with this purchase.



2. 'Give it a day', the first track, is outstanding...admittedly the rest of the EP doesn't quite live up to it, but buy it for the first three minutes anyway. It's beautiful, and it'll get in your head.



3. The 7" is a limited pressing and worth having. Vinyl is the way to go.



4. first off, let me just say that saganaw sucks. it's simply horrible, the worst pavement song i've ever heard. but, give it a day is worth the price of admission alone, so this is a must have. the second song is ok, but nothing to get hot over.

2 comments about I.A.B.F..

1. There was a time shortly after I bought this record (in '01?) when "Power Race" became my favourite song. I put the record back on the other day after a couple years sitting on the rack. Not a bad record overall... "Power Race" is still the standout track. There's some other good ones too.
   
   It's cool to hear a band from France. Not a lot of French bands make it over here in the states.



2. prolly one of the best, least known punk acts to come out about the same time as nirvana..... Mostly ignored and forgotten now les thugs carried on the punk tradition in word and spirit in the 90's. Maybe the finest moment of what could be called the "never has beens" for a band who truely lived what they sang. Like Social Distortion and X before them most who heard them formed bands........No one reads these reviews guys good bye to a time......

5 comments about The Night Before the Day the Earth Stood Still.

1. Well, the breakneck tempos, nasty distortion and Sonics drum kickin' of the first couple of records are long gone, but this is seriously their best longplayer since the second album. The Epitaph albums seemed to get progressively better from the somewhat disappointing "Scared Straight"(boring production, inconsistent songwriting)but they somehow never offered the complete NBT experience of the first two records...this one will grow on you in a hurry. Kind of Stones-y, in all the best meanings of the word, with no pouting or lame yellow football breeches on the front man thank you very much. If you really miss the early stuff the odds and sods compilation "Switchblade Tongues..." gives you a nice piece of that action and it makes a fine companion piece to this record. It flows better than a lot of bands' albums for a singles and b-sides compilation too. What are you waiting for, goose the gas on your Camaro and pick up this plastic, as stated by other reviewers it takes these "new" garage bands straight to the woodshed.



2. In short - With this new album, the NBT's prove they can still rock out with as much spunk as they did in their earlier days. Reminiscent of their very first album, Destroy-Oh-Boy(also a must buy), the band regains their aggression from that first album that I felt was missed on later CD's. Translation = Very good songs. If you enjoyed their first album, you'll be veeeeeeery pleased whence you listen to this one. I know I love it.

   It's hard to single out the songs individually, as like usual, the album flows great, but my favorites on the CD must be "Hassle St.", "Sick Sermon", and "Ditch".

   Buy the album and enjoy.




3. It really is a sad day for rock'n'roll when a great band like the mighty New Bomb Turks have to take a back seat to nerds that wear matching red and white outfits and New York rich kids with big hair. The New Bomb Turks rocked and rolled harder than all of these new "garage" dorks and did it with a lot more style and class. The Turks actually wrote garage/rock'n'roll tunes that expanded on the genre instead of copying Iggy or the Stones. This is a great record -plain and simple. When you get sick of your Von Blondies-Whipe Stipes-blah-blah kiddie bands, go buy some New Bomb Turks rock action!



4. Rock and roll is appealing to Little Poomba, but not Big Poomba! I enjoy this album. Great tunes, Big Poomba

   I would reckon-mend this to Little Poomba, but not Big Poomba, BP already listened and has no money.

   But anyone else who likes the rock and The Rock, I would definitely reckon-mend this to you. They are better than the Strokes and the White Stripes.




5. Turks have been the best band the last 10 years but this may be their best effort ever! Totally raw rock-n-roll - it'll have you bouncing around your room, your car, your job, you get the point now go get the record!