The Killers- Hot Fuss

Ahhh, this is much easier! You may have noticed my procrastination with the review of The Police's CD. It took me quite a while to get into it, and in the back of my mind was the idea that if I didn't like such a highly respected band's Greatest Hits, then I'd better have a damn good reason for it!

Anyway, this is the debut album from the American synth-rock band The Killers. Has it really been almost 10 years since I saw the video clip for Somebody Told Me on Video Hits (similar to MTV) and was instantly hooked on the band? Yikes!

Sooo... how does it stack up these days?

Firstly, there's some gripes to get out of the way. Firstly, the "retro sound vocals" curse strikes again... Since this fad has long passed, it just sounds really thin these days. While the stories and imagery is often fantastic, the vocal delivery itself (distorted and often monotone) is something I need to turn a blind ear to, in order to enjoy the songs. Secondly, in general the recording quality is a dog's breakfast, with the variety of styles across the album translating into a frustrating variety of flaws. It's like each song was mixed by a different person, and means that trying to compensate for it via EQ settings is a fruitless task. On a brighter note, Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll is really well recorded (aside from overly processed vocals, but that seems like a necessity to compensate for the weak lead vocals), with great balance, punch and sizzly cymbals.

The big "power synth" sound is used to great effect on Somebody Told Me and Midnight Show, which both remind me a bit of Franz Ferdinand, perhaps due to the disco influences. Even after hearing it so many times, Somebody Told Me remains a fantastically infectious song, with many pleasing elements. From the cheeky lyrics to the interesting background fill in the verses to the great power chorus, it is a super-slick combination of many great ideas. Midnight Show is also superbly executed, with the synth elements leading to a great sci-fi feel.

... But even though the band was best known for this style, these songs are actually in the minority. The majority of the album is slower and more introspective, like Jenny Was a Friend of Mine, Smile Like You Mean It, All These Things That I've Done, Andy You're a Star, On Top and Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll. I find it strange that Jenny Was a Friend of Mine is the first song, to me it somehow feels more like a mid-album track. Smile Like You Mean It and On Top are solid executions of this style, but without any real highlights for me. Similarly, the verses of Andy You're a Star are a bit ho-hum, but things improve dramatically with the cracking chorus.

I started writing gushing praise for All These Things That I've Done, but eventually I realised that the first half of the song is merely passable, similar to the songs described above. Much of the enjoyment is anticipation of the bridge. It feels the whole song is leading up to the fantastic refrain of
I've got soul,
But I'm not a soldier
which is truly uplifting. This leads into a massive final chorus and outro, which maintain the energy and bring the song home.

Similarly inspiring is the rock ballad Glamerous Indie Rock & Roll. With some nice variety thanks to the piano, it contains many great ingredients: intricate verses, a great singalone chorus and the epic sense of scale throughout. In my opinion, there is a heavy influence of Oasis in this song. The icing on the cake for me is the wonderful layering of vocals in final chorus. Wow.

Everything Will Be Alright sounds to me like the 1980s "new romantics" style. Not my cup of tea.

Mr Brightside is somehow a hybrid of the band's power synth and rock ballad styles. Ignoring the terrible recording quality of the bass guitar, the swirling synth sounds throughout the song are very interesting. Finally, the story of the lyrics is also told with great illustration, making for a great song.

Favourite songs

Mr Brightside, Somebody Told Me, All These Things That I've Done, Glamerous Indie Rock & Roll, Midnight Show

Worthwhile?

Yeah, I totally dig it. A quirky pop-rock gem with great substance.

The Police- Greatest Hits

With their debut album in 1978 containing the massive hits Roxanne, Can't Stand Losing You and So Lonely, The Police burst onto the scene in a massive way. Far from being a one-album wonder, their career continued with many further hits right up until they disbanded in 1984.

This compilation album was released in 1992 and features most of their singles in chronological order.

Due to this track order, it is interesting to see the band's development over the years. Throughout their career, they seemed to alternate between trying new approaches and pandering to the masses with songs very similar to their early hits.

As far as recording quality goes, the band's signature sound consists of high-pitched vocals, light-touch bass guitar and sparse lead guitar in the verses. While it may be sacrilegious to criticise this characteristic sound, many of the songs off the first two albums (eg Roxanne, Can't Stand Losing You, Message in a Bottle, Walking on the Moon) do suffer due to the lack of a punchy bottom end. I wouldn't normally describe myself as a "bass head" but I found these songs much more enjoyable after a clockwise twist of the bass knob.

Roxanne is a timeless classic classic in my book. The sparse verses with twangy reggae guitar perfectly contrast the catchy upbeat chorus. And while the upbeat mood of the music doesn't really suit the sad tale of the lyrics, they work together brilliantly to create an artwork which is both enjoyably and poignant.

This fantastic recipe is repeated, with just enough variation to keep things interesting, for Can't Stand Losing You, So Lonely (adding some punch to the bass guitar and kick drum- hallelujah!) and Walking on the Moon.

Don't Stand Too Close to Me would have been on the above list, if it weren't for the very creepy Lolita-esque lyrics. While I'm whingeing, De Do Do Do is spoiled by woefully inane lyrics for the chorus and Spirits in the Material World smells strongly like a cynical crowd-pleasing rehash of their early style.

Message in a Bottle is one of my favourite Police songs, due to the stronger "pulse" in the verses. I get the feeling the chorus is a bit tacked on, although perhaps it's more that the song jumps around a bit in general.

Every Little Thing She Does is Magic is also a highlight of this album for me. In isolation, it's probably a bit twee, but within this brooding album its chirpy nature provides some great feelgood contrast.

Invisible Sun and Tea in the Sahara show a sparse, industrial sound used towards the end of their career. These songs are a bit dark for me, but on the other hand, Synchronicity II is brilliant. I find it has a great balance of pop accessibility and interesting experimental bits. Also, the lyrics have great imagery yet remain nicely obscure. For example, the following leitmotif scattered throughout the song:
Many miles away
Something crawls from the slime
At the bottom of a dark
Scottish loch
I have no idea how this relates to the other scenes described in the song, but this tale of Scottish evolution certainly brings a grand scale to the song!

At 16 songs long, there's certainly plenty of material here. Still, it's interesting to note the omissions of the title tracks Synchonicity (with it's interestingly upbeat tempo) and the instrumental Reggatta de Blanc. But these are no great loss, in my opinion.

Finally, Every Breathe You Take is absolutely brilliant. Where other Police songs venture into creepy territory with the lyrics, somehow they made the stalker-esque lyrics not seem creepy at all, rather a beautiful tale! A classic rock ballad.

Favourite songs

Roxanne, Can't Stand Losing You, So Lonely, Message in a Bottle, Walking on the Moon, Synchronicity II, Every Breathe You Take

Worthwhile?

I can appreciate the band in a historical context, and their unique style is definitely a great counterpoint to the saccharine pop charts. But, on the other hand, I don't think I've ever thought "I'd really like to listen to The Police right now".

The Living End- Modern Artillery

Welcome to my favourite band's worst album! This third album- released in 2003- is a bit of a black sheep, perhaps due to a perception that it was dumbed-down in an attempt to crack the US market. Its cause isn't helped that it followed the richly layered and highly complicated Roll On.

Firstly, some gripes. The recording quality isn't great, often sounding a bit muddy and without any punch to the kick-drum or vocals. On the plus side, the grunty guitar sound is great and the sound is wonderfully enveloping at times.

However, the big gripe is often the lyrics; despite telling interesting stories, the rhyming can be simplistic and lazy. A particularly cringeworthy example is in So What: "You're really somethin' /  I'm nearly jumpin' ". Urgh. Also afflicted by this problem are Who's Gonna Save Us, Jimmy, One Said to the Other and Maitland Street. In the End is ruined for me by poor rhymes, which is a shame because it's quite interesting musically.

Speaking of musically, despite the album's reputation as dumbed-down, songs like Jimmy, In the End and The Room wouldn't be out of place on Roll On! At the other end of the complexity scale, What Would You Do is a pop-punk ditty opener with great energy but not a lot of substance. Who's Gonna Save Us is a favourite for me, thanks to its description of Australian political situation at the time (lack of a credible opposition to the conservative government). But without those rose-tinted glasses it turns out to be an awkward stew of a song with some weak sections. However, it has a great singalong chorus.  

One Said to the Other also has a great chorus, catchy verses and my favourite element is the pre-chorus. It is quite "radio-friendly" and formulaic, but I like it. Similarly, the distorted opening to Short Notice is a bit contrived, but overall I find it an enjoyable pop-rock ditty with a nice bite to the lyrics. Hold Up cranks up the silliness to Guttermouth levels. The simple rhyming lyrics suit this song well, making it a bit of a throwback to the simpler Prisoner of Society days.

The Eagles-esque easy-listening style of Maitland Street, Putting You Down and So What was a shock to many fans, but I think they're interesting and well-executed songs. Maitland Street would make a great theme song for a TV show. And if you drop the notion that The Living End are meant to be an angry punk bank, Putting You Down is an interesting ride, especially the subtle guitar parts in the background. So What adds a relatively rebellious chorus to remind us they haven't completely abandoned the punk style...

I've saved the best till last: my three favourite songs on the album. Tabloid Magazine has a fantastic grunty guitar opening and chorus. Some might say its at odds with the pop-friendly verses, but I prefer to focus on the brilliant build-up to the final chorus. In the punk tradition, it highlights an important social issue but in a more sophisticated musical style.

End of the World. Wow. Brilliant. From the guitar frantically scratching in the background, to the contrasting smooth and snarling lyrics, this is an all-time favourite song of mine. The guitar solo and instrumental breakdown are also brilliant. The very notion of the end of the world is a pretty epic concept, and if you listen to this song in the dark at maximum volume, you'll find the song lives up to this promise and makes you feel like you're actually there!

Like Bohemian Rhapsody, 8 minutes disappears very quickly when listening to The Room. Some of the transitions are as subtle as a sledgehammer, but the sections themselves are brilliant. Like The Godfather movies, sometimes it is slow moving with very little happening, but the genius is that you never feel this is the case and are happy to be along for the ride. The lyrics beautifully tell the tale, a particular highlight of mine is:
If I lent my arms to you-
Would you hold me and embrace me?
Or replace me?

Favourite songs

Tabloid Magazine, Who's Gonna Save Us, End of the World, One Said to the Other, Maitland Street, Putting You Down, Short Novice, So What, Hold Up, The Room

Worthwhile?

From the perspective of a wannabe pretentious music critic, it must be noted that Modern Artillery is a pretty simple album. So should we appreciate that there is beauty in simplicity? Or is it just dumbed-down? Actually, I really don't care either way! Because, despite a few flaws, over 70% of Modern Artillery's songs appear in my favourites list below. This makes it an excellent album in my book.

Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals- Live From Mars (disc 2)

This is the second disc of Ben Harper's massive double-album. (disc 1 review here)

Regular readers of this blog (hi, Mum!) might have noticed my procrastination posting a review of this 2nd disc. So maybe it isn't a surprise announcement that it's not to my taste at all. Best not read on if you're a Ben Harper fan...

The instrumental elements work well, but I'm not a fan of the vocal style. To me, it feels weak and defeatist, both in the words and their delivery. For example, Please Bleed sounds like a castrated Nirvana- curling up and crying in the corner rather than thrashing around in anger. Maybe this is more of a reflection of my preferred mode of misery than anything else!

The Drugs Don't Work is my most favoured song on this disc, but it's still faint praise. The Verve's original is such a fantastic song that this version is still enjoyable, despite Ben's vocal style.

Favourite songs

None, sorry.

Worthwhile?

Nope.