Skipping the twee San Francisco Days, let's get straight into Somebody's Crying. The story of how this song was written is very touching: shortly after a break-up, Isaak was at a party. Still emotionally raw and in no mood to party, he hid himself in a closet and wrote the song. Musically, I really dig the Roy Orbison style of Somebody's Crying, which is interesting in its own right and perfectly suits the mood of the song.
Wicked Game is a superb song- tortured yet beautiful. Nick Cave's style is rarely my cup of tea, so it is a huge credit that I rate this song so highly. The backing instrumentals are perfect- setting a strong mood yet restrained enough to sit nicely behind the vocals. And what brilliant vocals they are, sung beautifully and poetic from the very first word:
The world was on fire
And no one could save me but you.
It's strange what desire
Will make foolish people do.
Isaak's other signature song, Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing, does not fare so well in my book. The instrumentals are very enjoyable, but the vocal delivery feels cheesy to me. The way the vocals jump all over the place feels more like an over-acting rather than a wide array of geniune emotions.
Let Me Down Easy is generic saccharine pop-country, despite the sorrowful lyrics. Perhaps even Dixie Chicks just with a male vocalist. Similarly, Two Hearts reeks of Elvis in his easy-listening era of churning out an endless supply of teenage heart-throb movies. Yuk.
Blue Spanish Sky and Forever Blue are also letdowns for me. I think I would have preferred them as instrumentals, rather than aimlessly wandering ballads. Wolfgang Parker's Blood Red Water shows Blue Spanish Sky, in particular, how it should be done. Dancin' is another that misses the mark, but at least the bad 1980s cliches make it amusing! And the song Please somehow sounds like Nirvana to me... if they chilled out a lot...
On a brighter note, the recording quality is fantastic. Starting with the gentle thud of the kick-drum, then the bass guitar nicely sitting in the background. The guitar work is excellent, my only criticism is that it is often drowned out by the vocals. Speaking of vocals, Isaak has an incredible voice, which is a highlight of every single song.
Unfortunately, by the middle of this CD, I'm starting to lose interest. This, I believe, is the fault of the lyrics being about the same topic. While every other aspect of the songs are nicely varied and ironically often with great upbeat energy, hearing song after song about heartbreak eventually wears thin. So King Without a Castle and Speak of the Devil get a raw deal because I'm a bit "over it" by the time they appear. Which is a shame, because I actually find Speak of the Devil of similar standard to Somebody's Crying.
Let's Have a Party and Blue Hotel also suffer the same fate, sadly. Again, this is despite wonderful instrumental work and a stunning voice. If the rest of the album's lyrics weren't the same heartbroken whining as Blue Hotel, I'd be praising Blue Hotel for its wonderful combination of upbeat music with sorrowful lyrics.
(Although by this stage, you're probably sick of me whining about the whiney lyrics?!)
The twangy guitar part of You Owe Me Some Kind of Love is a wonderful highlight, as is the understated yet powerful chorus.
Finishing the CD with I Want You To Want Me is a master-stroke. The silly energetic beat is a much needed injection of fun. The lyrics are flogging the same dead horse, but the energy of the song easily overpowers this to get you bouncing.
No comments:
Post a Comment