SGTC: Mach II, Round 11

[murlough23]

Alright, getting the game underway again after a much-needed holiday break. This round runs until midnight on Monday, January 9. Here's what we're reviewing:

bdg: Rich Mullins, Here in America (Clips)
bloop: Peter, Paul and Mary, Peter, Paul, and Mary (Clips)
Brenden: Fold Zandura, Ultraforever (Clips)
Danny: The Beatles, The Beatles (The White Album) (Clips)
Josh: Little Feat, Dixie Chicken (Clips)
murlough: Sixpence None the Richer, The Best of Sixpence None the Richer (Clips)
NinjaRob: Beanbag, freesignal (Clips)
plvarona: The Normals, A Place Where You Belong (Clips)
Wildcat: Mike and the Mechanics, Mike and the Mechanics (Clips)
worldofcm: The Benjamin Gate, Contact (Clips)

[murlough23]

My guesses...

bdg: 4 stars
bloop: 4 stars
Brenden: 3 stars
Danny: 4 stars
Josh: 3 stars
NinjaRob: 4 stars
plvarona: 5 stars
Wildcat: 3 stars
worldofcm: 3 stars

[danny316]

My guesses...

Danny: I don't even know what it is yet, but... 1 star.
 

Erm...was the PM I sent you indecipherable? I just checked my sentbox, and I definitely sent you a PM saying I'd be going with the Beatles' White Album (aka "The White Album", but technically The Beatles self-titled).

I'm not above questioning classics...but 1 star seems a bit harsh. Then again, this round I wasn't aiming for any particular strategy, and I picked an album I hadn't yet finished forming an opinion of...so you never know....

My guesses:
bdg: Rich Mullins, Here in America: 4 stars
bloop: 4 stars, because why not?
Brenden: Fold Zandura, Ultraforever: 3 stars (I'd give it 4, but it took a few months for some of the songs to stick out to me)
Danny: The Beatles, The Beatles (White Album) 1 star, just to follow Murlough's lead and see if bloop's got anything to say about that.
Josh: Little Feat, Dixie Chicken: 3 stars, because I haven't a clue and Josh is a loose cannon.
murlough: Sixpence None the Richer, The Best of Sixpence None the Richer: 2 stars, for reasons stated a few rounds back.
NinjaRob: Beanbag, freesignal: 3 stars, but only because I had forgotten that they broke up.
plvarona: The Normals, A Place Where You Belong: 4 stars
Wildcat: Mike and the Mechanics, Mike and the Mechanics: 4 stars, partially a hunch, and partially because I'm surprised someone besides my Dad still remembers them.
worldofcm: The Benjamin Gate, Contact: 3 stars

[murlough23]

Erm...was the PM I sent you indecipherable?

No, I just didn't know I had one from you. (Sporadic Email notification strikes again.)

I've added it, but dilemma... can't find any site with sound clips for this. You'd think they'd have something up for The Beatles, of all people... but maybe they're assuming everyone in the civilized world has already heard this? (I haven't, actually, though I could probably hazard a good enough guess all the same.)

NP: "Wake Me Up When September Ends", Green Day

[Wildcatblue7]

No, I just didn't know I had one from you. (Sporadic Email notification strikes again.)

I've added it, but dilemma... can't find any site with sound clips for this. You'd think they'd have something up for The Beatles, of all people... but maybe they're assuming everyone in the civilized world has already heard this? (I haven't, actually, though I could probably hazard a good enough guess all the same.)

NP: "Wake Me Up When September Ends", Green Day

Amazon doesn't have clips for any of the Beatles' albums, which I find exceedingly annoying.  Maybe there's a copyright issue?

[danny316]

I found a few Vorbis clips on Wikipedia.

[murlough23]

I found a few Vorbis clips on Wikipedia.

That'll have to do. Hopefully everybody's cool with that.

NP: "Contact", Falling Up

[bloop]

Next round, let's do Peter, Paul, & Mary's self-titled debut album (I have it on vinyl).

^quoting myself, from what is now the Wilco thread.

[murlough23]

^quoting myself, from what is now the Wilco thread.

Ah. That's why I didn't notice it when I went back through the Round 10 thread to collect those.

[murlough23]

Just as an amusing side note, in doing some reading about some of the groups y'all chose, I've found out that Peter, Paul and Mary, Little Feat, and Mike and the Mechanics all still exist in some form, and are still touring. Not that I'm gonna make y'all pick something else, but I thought it was interesting, how a band can disappear in the public eye and actually still be around. I was certainly shocked when I found out once that Nelson and Deep Blue Something were still around.

[Wildcatblue7]

I knew about Little Feat (my dad saw them live fairly recently) and PP&M, but M&TM?  You've got to be kidding me.  That's crazy.  didn't they have like three hits and then they disappeared?  haha.  Ahh, 80s bands . . . I'm not sure they ever really die.

[Brenden]

bdg: 5 stars
bloop: 4 stars
Danny: 3 stars
Josh: 3 stars
murlough: 2 stars
NinjaRob: 4 stars
plvarona: 4 stars
Wildcat: 3 stars
worldofcm: 4 stars
 

[bdg13disciple]

Just to be clear, my score for Rich will be solely based on the AUDIO portion of the project, the DVD will not be taken into account...

bloop: Peter, Paul and Mary, Peter, Paul, and Mary (4)
Brenden: Fold Zandura, Ultraforever (4)
Danny: The Beatles, The Beatles (The White Album) (3)
Josh: Little Feat, Dixie Chicken (4)
murlough: Sixpence None the Richer, The Best of Sixpence None the Richer (2)
NinjaRob: Beanbag, freesignal (3)
plvarona: The Normals, A Place Where You Belong (4)
Wildcat: Mike and the Mechanics, Mike and the Mechanics (3)
worldofcm: The Benjamin Gate, Contact (4)

peace... love... bdg...

[murlough23]

You've got to be kidding me.  That's crazy.  didn't they have like three hits and then they disappeared?  haha.

Well, that's two hits more than most 80's bands.

You'd be surprised who's still around. Some folks just like doing it, so even if they "disappear" and are only seen at small local events and don't put anything new out that gets them widespread attention, they don't really care.

[murlough23]

Just to be clear, my score for Rich will be solely based on the AUDIO portion of the project, the DVD will not be taken into account...

Is there a helpful intro to tell you that you're now listening to the audio portion of the album?

Oh wait, that was Mae. Never mind.

[Wildcatblue7]

bdg: 4
bloop: 3
Brenden: 3
Danny: 4
Josh: 3
murlough: 2
NinjaRob: 3
plvarona: 4
worldofcm: 3

maybe I should go listen to my selection now.    

[worldofcm]

bdg: Rich Mullins, Here in America - 4 stars
bloop: Peter, Paul and Mary, Peter, Paul, and Mary - 4 stars
Brenden: Fold Zandura, Ultraforever - 4 stars
Danny: The Beatles, The Beatles (The White Album) - 5 stars
Josh: Little Feat, Dixie Chicken - 4 stars
murlough: Sixpence None the Richer, The Best of Sixpence None the Richer - 3 stars
NinjaRob: Beanbag, freesignal - 4 stars
plvarona: The Normals, A Place Where You Belong - 4 stars
Wildcat: Mike and the Mechanics, Mike and the Mechanics - 3 stars

[Josh]

bdg: 4
bloop: 4
Brenden: 4
Danny: 4
murlough: 2
NinjaRob: 4
plvarona: 4
Wildcat: 4
worldofcm: 3
 

[eatahouse]

bdg: Rich Mullins, Here in America (Clips)    5
bloop: Peter, Paul and Mary, Peter, Paul, and Mary (Clips)      3
Brenden: Fold Zandura, Ultraforever (Clips)     3
Danny: The Beatles, The Beatles (The White Album) (Clips)     4
Josh: Little Feat, Dixie Chicken (Clips)     3
murlough: Sixpence None the Richer, The Best of Sixpence None the Richer (Clips)     3
NinjaRob: Beanbag, freesignal (Clips)     4
plvarona: The Normals, A Place Where You Belong (Clips)     3
Wildcat: Mike and the Mechanics, Mike and the Mechanics (Clips)     2
worldofcm: The Benjamin Gate, Contact (Clips)     4

[plvarona]

bdg: 4 stars
bloop: 5 stars
Brenden: 4 stars
Danny: 4 stars
Josh: 4 stars
murlough: 2 stars
NinjaRob: 3 stars
Wildcat: 3 stars
worldofcm: 3 stars

[NinjaRob17]

bdg: Rich Mullins, Here in America - 4 Stars
bloop: Peter, Paul and Mary, Peter, Paul, and Mary - 4 Stars
Brenden: Fold Zandura, Ultraforever - 5 Stars
Danny: The Beatles, The Beatles (The White Album) - 5 Stars
Josh: Little Feat, Dixie Chicken - 3 Stars
murlough: Sixpence None the Richer, The Best of Sixpence None the Richer - 3 Stars
plvarona: The Normals, A Place Where You Belong - 4 Stars
Wildcat: Mike and the Mechanics, Mike and the Mechanics - 3 Stars
worldofcm: The Benjamin Gate, Contact - 4 Stars
 

[bloop]

4 for all.

[plvarona]

According to my watch, it's past the deadline, so I guess I'm leading off this week.

Album Reviewed: The Normals - A Place Where You Belong

Pros: Musically, this is a fairly creative album as The Normals mix folk-rock with electronic elements.  Even though this is definitely a slow-burner, a lot of these songs will grow on you if you let them, with "Innocence", "Less Than Love" and "Romeo On The Radio" among those that have especially done so for me.  Andy Osenga's good storytelling skills are showcased prominently throughout the album, and for the most part the lyrics are quite thoughtful.

Cons: The CD is mixed a little awkwardly, as the drums and the bass seem to partially drown out the other instruments.  There are a few tracks I just can't get into, most notably "Happiness" because it doesn't seem to go anywhere musically, and "King" which is a bit dull musically and unimpressive lyrically.

The Bottom Line: This was a very good final effort for The Normals.  Once I gave the CD enough listens for it to truly "sink in", it was very enjoyable.

My Rating: There are a few too many flaws for me to rate this album in the "A" range, so I'll give this CD a grade of "B+", which translates to a strong 4 stars.

On Deck For Next Week: Jeni Varnadeau - No Hesitation (Clips available on amazon.com.)

[murlough23]

Cons: The CD is mixed a little awkwardly, as the drums and the bass seem to partially drown out the other instruments.  There are a few tracks I just can't get into, most notably "Happiness" because it doesn't seem to go anywhere musically, and "King" which is a bit dull musically and unimpressive lyrically.

Dang! You actually had the same complaints as I did (though "Happiness" is one of my favorite tracks; I think the tweaked percussion works really well on that one, and was intended to be a stream-of-consciousness song); I just didn't think those things would bug you as much as me. I can appreciate Malcolm Burn for not lending a typical CCM sound to this album and Coming to Life, but he did seem to mush things up a bit, didn't he?

OK, on with my review...

So, you all knew how pissed off I was when I first saw the tracklisting for Sixpence's Best-Of collection. The way that pretty much all 4 of their albums got the shaft in favor of covers and compilation tracks was really upsetting. That's not to say that Sixpence wasn't excellent at recording cover songs and contributing good original works to various compilations (heck, that's the only way we got to hear new music from them for a while), and it's exciting to see that songs like "Breathe" and "Brighten My Heart", which show a more devotional side of a band that most of the public assumed only sang about kissing, made the cut. Still, it's erroneous to label a collection as a band's "Best" when it starts off with three "new" tracks that are really B-sides, and then throws in a rather obscure compilation track before even getting to any of their album material. The crown jewel of idiocy was including the Japanese version of "Kiss Me" instead of another deserving album track.. it's cute to hear it in a foreign language, but really unnecessary when we already have the English version earlier on the disc.

This collection was all about luring in fans who wanted to get a lot of their non-album tracks all in one place... and that's not a bad thing, if what's being sold is labeled in such a way... "Hits and Rarities" would have been a more apprropriate title. I think an even better approach would have been to release two versions of this - one version being a single album with only the hits and fan favorites primarily drawn from their albums (i.e. the more traditional GH collection), and one version being a double album with that same hits disc first, and a disc of other rarities and non-album tracks second (maybe with the rarities disc being available separately too). That way, new fans could easily get the hits in one place without being so egregiously misled about what was truly Sixpence's best work, and existing fans could get the hard-to-find stuff, and everybody would be happy.

Having said all that, it's not like any of the music on this CD is bad. I've enjoyed almost everything that I've ever heard from Sixpence, and while listening to this CD is a lot like dumping my Sixpence folder from my hard drive into WinAmp and hitting "random", nothing here tempts me to hit "skip". So, while I'd give the people who made this compilation 2 stars for doing such a lousy job, Sixpence still gets 4 stars for the music that they made. That averages out to a rating of 3 stars.

NP: "Judas' Kiss", The Walter Eugenes

[Wildcatblue7]

Mike and the Mechanics were a pretty fluffy, harmless band.  They're purely ear candy for me.  Their self-titled is very spotty (oh my word were those 80s ballads bad) but a few songs strike a lasting chord--Hanging by a Thread and Silent Running in particular.

The rest is pretty meh.  So a low 3 stars.

Next round . . . Bill Withers--Greatest Hits

[bdg13disciple]

So, while I'd give the people who made this compilation 2 stars for doing such a lousy job, Sixpence still gets 4 stars for the music that they made. That averages out to a rating of 3 stars.
 

GAH!... oh well...

my turn...

Rich Mullins - Here In America

About two posts into this thread i realized that i had a bomb to drop with this album.  Sure, i really enjoy Rich and i think he was a great writer and quite influential.  However, listening to this album, you can picture Rich up on stage with a little cheap cassette recorder about 15 feet in front of him recording the whole thing.  The sound is absolutely horrible for most of it.  I mean, there's hissing of trying to catch sounds that are too quiet, there's a few squeaks and what not, it's just tough to listen to.  The positives though are that the album is pretty lengthy and of course the songs are worth listening to.

So, my score falls at a 2.5 which i'll graciously round up to a 3 stars for the following reasons:

1. it is what it is, it's not like the album doesn't say that all the songs are live and/or demo versions.
2. Part of what made Rich so special is his vulnerability and i think this album actually captures that quite well, scars, miscues, and all...
3. This is just a game and i suppose i would look suspect at the top of the list dropping a big wrench at the end of the game...

peace... love... bdg...  

[murlough23]

3. This is just a game and i suppose i would look suspect at the top of the list dropping a big wrench at the end of the game...

Sure. Because none of the rest of us would do that.    

[bdg13disciple]

i know... that's what makes us all so special...

oh, btw... the DVD is spectacular for Here in America and was recorded about 3 months after i saw Rich in concert and about 3-6 months before he died...  

peace... love... bdg...

[plvarona]

Dang! You actually had the same complaints as I did (though "Happiness" is one of my favorite tracks; I think the tweaked percussion works really well on that one, and was intended to be a stream-of-consciousness song); I just didn't think those things would bug you as much as me. I can appreciate Malcolm Burn for not lending a typical CCM sound to this album and Coming to Life, but he did seem to mush things up a bit, didn't he?

I can understand why you'd think that way (about those things not bothering me as much.)  After all, I've overlooked not-so-stellar production before in the past.  However, if something really sticks out like a sore thumb, as the mixing on APWYB did for me, then I can't help but notice.  So yes, I do think Malcom mushed thinks up a bit on this album.  Coming To Life is the only Normals album I don't own yet but the next time I raid the FCS bargain bin, there's a good chance I'll pick it up.

Honestly, though, the 2 or 3 songs I just couldn't get into hurt the album more than the awkward mixing.  It came very close to getting an "A-" with me, and if I liked all of those songs a little better, that probably would have been enough to push it over the hump.

[Brenden]

Ok, I don't have a ton to say about this album. I really like it, the sound is different, the lyrics are interesting, the vocal work is great. There are moments on the album where I could swear they're doing the same thing they did in another song, or at least something that sounds very similar. Towards the end of the album my interest starts to wane as the band slows down more and more, which seems to make them less interesting, but they keep from losing me entirely.

I'll go with 4 stars.

Next round I'll do Enjoy Your Rabbit - Sufjan Stevens

[danny316]

Ok, I don't have a ton to say about this album. I really like it, the sound is different, the lyrics are interesting, the vocal work is great. There are moments on the album where I could swear they're doing the same thing they did in another song, or at least something that sounds very similar. Towards the end of the album my interest starts to wane as the band slows down more and more, which seems to make them less interesting, but they keep from losing me entirely.

I'll go with 4 stars.

Next round I'll do Enjoy Your Rabbit - Sufjan Stevens

Yeah, they do roughly the same thing they did in one song in most of the other songs. They knew guitar-bass-drums pop-rock with a few electronic tweaks worked well and they ran with it for the whole disc. If not for Jyro's "I want to rip-off the Beatles" phase leading to some great songs and melodies (Stormy Hill in particular has a great melody and guest vocal), that album would have had a hard time growing on me. Trust me though, the more time you give that album, the more subtleties you notice in the electronic work that keep it interesting. I don't get the slowing down issue you and Murlough notice there, but I do think it would have been nice if it were a little more diverse.

Then again, maybe Beatlesque melodies and diverse songs aren't always a good thing. Which brings me to my pick: the bloated "White album" by The Beatles. It's a legend, I guess, but that seems to be more because of the embarassing Paul is dead thing, the embarassing Charles Manson thing, and the embarassment of U2 trying to fix the Charles Manson thing (trust me, the Sgt Pepper/Live 8 thing is proof that William really is where Paul used to be) than because the album's actually consistent. Frankly, some of the worst material in the Beatles catalog is here - the ridiculous "Wild Honey Pie", the silly "Why Don't We Do It In The Road", the irritating earworm "Ob-la-di Ob-la-da", and the silly "Piggies" probably should have been cut. Then there are other songs that could be parodies, tributes, or examples of how high the band members were, like "Back in the USSR", "Yer Blues" "Revolution 9", and "Glass Onion". The thing though, is that not all of those songs are complete duds, and when the album is good, it's really good. "Helter Skelter", "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", "Dear Prudence", and "Blackbird" are among the band's best material.

All of that tempts me to say "this should have only been one CD, and the rest should have been cut", but that would be stupid, because it was 1968 IIRC and they didn't have CDs back then. Ultimately, even the less-than-stellar songs I mentioned have their charm, and the great songs on here are enough to carry the album even if it is woefully inconsistent. This gets 4 stars because half of these songs just beg "turn me on, dead man".

For next round, I'll do Grey Ghost Stories by Linford Detweiler, which is absolutely terrible. There are some real audio clips of that on the Over the Rhine site if that's not on Amazon.

Oh, and for some potshots at other comments here: Murlough, I could never consider giving a greatest hits album points for starting with a band that didn't suck in the first place. Why bother rating the hits album anyway if your ratings for the material will be weighted in anyway?

BDG, you're rather funny when you see who's in second place. Just because this is a game of luck doesn't mean strategy can't come into play. Trust me, if you think I'm bad here, then you'd be a truly irritating opponent in a good game of monopoly (Yes, you can bluff in monopoly as part of a strategy too...)

[murlough23]

Oh, and for some potshots at other comments here: Murlough, I could never consider giving a greatest hits album points for starting with a band that didn't suck in the first place. Why bother rating the hits album anyway if your ratings for the material will be weighted in anyway?

It the hits truly weren't among the band's best work, I might be more harsh about it. I do feel that most of Sixpence's hits (not that they've had that many) are among their best work - they're just not wholly representative of their best work. I don't think it's fair to give a rating of 1 or 2 stars to a collection of mostly very good recordings of very good songs. If it were a totally cheap repackaging with little attention given to it and offering absolutely nothing new, I might be a bit harder on it. As it is, they did a middling job with something that they really should've done a great job with, so they get a middling rating for it. Nothing more, nothing less. Rating a best-of/GH album means that I have to take into consideration the strength of the material included, and the strength of the material excluded as well. A few non-album tracks and rarities exchanged for album tracks, and a slight rearrangement of the track order to put more well-known songs and/or fan favorites upfront, and I'd have been fine with it.

[bloop]

PP&M's debut is worth a C, 3 stars.  The easy-going nature of PP&M's music in general veers far too close on just being easy listening on at least half the cuts.  Folk music should be more confrontational than that.

But, musicianship and vocals are nice.  I'll keep it around mostly for the kids.

[NinjaRob17]

In case you didn't know, Beanbag was the band that sang "JESUS WILL NEVER LET YOU GO!!!!!". Over and over. Too bad that encompased the band as a whole, as their music was so much more than that. On freesignal, which starts off with the aforementioned song, "Whiplash", you can hear influences from Rage Against the Machine and Limp Bizkit. However, many songs go beyond that and show their true diversity. Songs such as "Desire of the Son of Morning", "Disturbed", and the title track display this well, with their ominous, dark tones and non-trite subject matter. Some Christian bands try to encrypt their message so much that the meaning is lost within the cryptic lyrics. Other bands just rely on Christian cliches and want to see how many times they can mention Jesus in a song. Beanbag sits comfortably in the middle, with meaningful lyrics that aren't cliche or too cryptic. However, some songs border on mediocre ("Bite the Hand", "Why?"), and I blame "Whiplash" for giving them a reputation as "Jesus' Rage". So, I'll give freesignal a healthy 4 Stars.
Oh yeah, um, next week...I'll do one I got for Christmas - John Reuben's "Professional Rapper".

NP: "Taste Test" -Beanbag

[Wildcatblue7]

In case you didn't know, Beanbag was the band that sang "JESUS WILL NEVER LET YOU GO!!!!!". Over and over.

I always hated that song.  There was always too much RATM in beanbag for me to like them.  I always found them really abrasive, actually . . . which I guess is weird coming from me.

[Josh]

No time for explanations right now, but I'll give Little Feat 3 stars.

Next round: Alicia Keyes-- Songs in a Minor

[NinjaRob17]

I always hated that song.  There was always too much RATM in beanbag for me to like them.  I always found them really abrasive, actually . . . which I guess is weird coming from me.

More abrasive than "O' God, the Aftermath"? (Which, if I recall correctly, you enjoy)

[murlough23]

Beanbag could be rather dissonant at times. Some people find that more abrasive than screaming and overall loudness. I rather liked that aspect of their music, though.

[NinjaRob17]

Beanbag could be rather dissonant at times. Some people find that more abrasive than screaming and overall loudness. I rather liked that aspect of their music, though.

That's true, but I found the Norma Jean CD I referred to a lot more dissonant and abrasive than anything Beanbag's ever done. Of course, that's just my opinion and tastes.

[bloop]

Oh yeah, next week - Deerhoof's The Runners Four.