Davey
01-22-2008, 11:43 AM
Guess that would be a compliment for some bands, but most of you probably get the irony. Kind of like when Dylan got his groove (and audience) back and was playfully tagged the new Springsteen, or whoever else had also worn the "new Dylan" tag and moved beyond it (though I'm not sure Coldplay has aspired to move beyond it, more like a refinement I think).
Just got the CD release of In Rainbows a couple weeks ago (at $8 how can you resist, record companies should really take note, although I'm not one who normally complains about high CD cost since I tend to buy less expensive indie stuff and don't particularly mind the cheapass packaging, and I'm not really thinking of it as something I'll still be spinning 10 years from now - hmm, that's like a whole post-worthy subject just in the parenthesis :)), having not listened to the mp3 download at all except for a couple of the more popular songs that passed by my ears, and after a few listens it does seem kind of underwhelming on the whole. Based on so many best of the year lists and all of the fan hoopla, I guess my expectations were higher than they should have been, but this isn't the Radiohead that made us all such big fans. Pleasant music to be sure, but no sense of adventure until almost the end of the disc. I do like the openers, but nothing really new or exciting, and they still don't seem complete, or even show any real passion for rocking out, especially Bodysnatchers which is just a vamp, almost like a couple incomplete song fragments expanded with some connective guitar riffs. The obligatory rock tracks? Well, I won't go that far, but kind of a big letdown for a new Radiohead album as it moves into Nude (which I know is an old song that has been spiffed up for prime time, but still, doesn't work for me, they really needed an epic here, a "Lucky" to shore up the opening). The shifting dance rhythm on Weird Fishes/Arpeggi is a welcome diversion, especially when it starts building and swirling. I like that, but yikes, sounds just like Coldplay to me. I do love Reckoner, first song on the record I can say that about. Sounds like the real Radiohead is back. And Jigsaw Falling Into Place, followed by the beautiful closer is almost enough to salvage it for me. But man, a bit too little too late, talk about an under-achievement, some of this is just too nice, too bland, especially that crucial middle section of the CD that I think is not very good at all. Have a feeling that I might be in a small minority on this, though. So how's it feel for you a couple months or so down the road? Admittedly, I'm only on about the 4th listen so I'm sure the appreciation will become more with exposure, but are you really satisfied with this? All I Need? Even U2 has better filler than that lately!
:6:
Just got the CD release of In Rainbows a couple weeks ago (at $8 how can you resist, record companies should really take note, although I'm not one who normally complains about high CD cost since I tend to buy less expensive indie stuff and don't particularly mind the cheapass packaging, and I'm not really thinking of it as something I'll still be spinning 10 years from now - hmm, that's like a whole post-worthy subject just in the parenthesis :)), having not listened to the mp3 download at all except for a couple of the more popular songs that passed by my ears, and after a few listens it does seem kind of underwhelming on the whole. Based on so many best of the year lists and all of the fan hoopla, I guess my expectations were higher than they should have been, but this isn't the Radiohead that made us all such big fans. Pleasant music to be sure, but no sense of adventure until almost the end of the disc. I do like the openers, but nothing really new or exciting, and they still don't seem complete, or even show any real passion for rocking out, especially Bodysnatchers which is just a vamp, almost like a couple incomplete song fragments expanded with some connective guitar riffs. The obligatory rock tracks? Well, I won't go that far, but kind of a big letdown for a new Radiohead album as it moves into Nude (which I know is an old song that has been spiffed up for prime time, but still, doesn't work for me, they really needed an epic here, a "Lucky" to shore up the opening). The shifting dance rhythm on Weird Fishes/Arpeggi is a welcome diversion, especially when it starts building and swirling. I like that, but yikes, sounds just like Coldplay to me. I do love Reckoner, first song on the record I can say that about. Sounds like the real Radiohead is back. And Jigsaw Falling Into Place, followed by the beautiful closer is almost enough to salvage it for me. But man, a bit too little too late, talk about an under-achievement, some of this is just too nice, too bland, especially that crucial middle section of the CD that I think is not very good at all. Have a feeling that I might be in a small minority on this, though. So how's it feel for you a couple months or so down the road? Admittedly, I'm only on about the 4th listen so I'm sure the appreciation will become more with exposure, but are you really satisfied with this? All I Need? Even U2 has better filler than that lately!
:6: