Brad Paisley - 5th Gear

I hate to say it, but I think my love for this album has waned over the years. Brad Paisley can still play like crazy and his lyrics are spot-on, clever, touching... but while the highlights are still quite good here, the lowlights don't seem to hold up as well.

As I'd written previously on my other blog, having seen Brad in concert was quite something... but it felt more like a pop music concert -- pre-rehearsed, filled with special effects and timed music videos on large screens, etc. -- than what I expected a country show to be.

Lyrically, songs like Ticks and Online are gold. They're funny, they flow well and tell great stories. These are songs that you can listen to a few times before you get all the little jokes tucked away in there. On top of that, however, are some good guitar licks and general production. Better Than This is another example of this that makes the latter half of the album for me.

My copy of the album has a few seemingly extra tracks at the end of it, some quasi-comedy outakes or something. I think the album would be a tiny bit better if it wrapped up after the first twelve songs; at 51 minutes it still makes for an average length album that people wouldn't complain about... but this is a pretty small complaint about the disc (and, again, this could be some sort of special edition or Canadian release of the disc, although I don't see anything on the disc that would indicate as much).

So, in short, the good songs are very good and certainly worth a listen; but I think the album does have a bit of filler that, after a few years, doesn't seem to hold up as well as it did initially.

Recommended track(s):	Ticks; Online; I'm Still a Guy
Worth another listen?	Yes!
Overall rating:	Three Stars

treble charger - NC17

I can't believe that treble charger released this album more than fifteen years ago. Wow. Hearing the song Red, clearly the centre piece of the album, still takes me back to that time. There is something about that song that still really impresses me, resonates with me... it was (and still is) a great song that was released at the right time. Even all these years later, I can still remember the music video for it... and I probably haven't seen that clip in over ten years.

Generally speaking, the album is a lo-fi, garage rock effort by a band starting out. The production is fuzzy and the lyrics are often unintelligible, all with the exception of one track: Red. When this song starts -- track seven; another fact which I, for whatever reason, still remembered all these years later -- you can tell that they spent 80% of the album's budget getting this one song right. And, they did. From the opening notes, all the way through five minutes and ten seconds of heartbreak, they nailed it.

I've spent almost this entire review talking about one song, and that's because it's certainly the focus of this whole disc; there are other good songs, and some that might be considered filler, but this song makes the album. It was redone for the band's third studio album, with (I believe) a new intro and a slightly different guitar solo, but this will always be the definitive version of the song for me. The album as a whole is probably a two-and-a-half; the inclusion of this song single-handedly bumps it up to three stars.

Recommended track(s):	10th Grade Love; Trinity Bellwoods; Red
Worth another listen?	Yes!
Overall rating:	Three Stars

Sheryl Crow - Tuesday Night Music Club

To use a word that we were throwing around at the dinner table last night, re-listening to Sheryl Crow's debut CD left me feeling underwhelmed. I remembered this album as being upbeat and really strong from front to back, but that's not how it sounded on this spin.

The album opens with a really, really slow track that is nearly five minutes long.  The song (Run, Baby, Run) is a good song, but such an odd choice for a starting track. Over all, I found the track order to be a bit of a jumble and the album as a whole seems much slower and less guitar-y than I remembered it.  Crow's vocals are strong throughout the album, as is the instrumentation.

Tuesday Night Music Club still ranks as one of my favourite album titles of all time, but listening to the album now, after not having heard it for so long, makes me realize just how much of a 'songs some friends recorded over a bunch of Tuesday nights' -kinda album this is. The Na-Na Song sticks out like a sore thumb and most of the songs are over four (or even five) minutes long; over all, the album as a whole just feels like it could perhaps have used some editing... I'm never a fan of filler material on albums.

But, the good songs are very good. Strong Enough and All I Wanna Do were both well received radio singles for a reason; the closer, I Shall Believe, is as strong and emotional a track as I remember it being. Crow has gone on to release six more (studio) albums since this one, has worked with a number of other artists and even dabbled in acting; she's certainly a artist worth taking notice of, but unfortunately her debut album doesn't seem to have stood up for me.

Recommended track(s):	Strong Enough; All I Wanna Do; I Shall Believe
Worth another listen?	~Maybe
Overall rating:	Three Stars

Hayden - Everything I Long For

Wow... this album really takes me back. I thought that I'd first heard it on cassette tape, but I don't think I ever owned Hayden's first album in that format, so either I'm wrong or I'd borrowed it from a friend. Whatever the case, I'm glad that I heard it.

Looking over the whole of the artist's catalog, this isn't my favourite album; however, it's an essential piece of work as it really sets the stage for what's to come. This is an honest-to-goodness recorded-in-my-bedroom album, or at least that's the feeling it gives off, which is perfect for this sort of gut-wrenching honesty and expression.

I chose to revisit this album tonight after submitting Bad As They Seem as my lead track in a CBC Radio 3 "themed playlist" contest earlier today. Not only is this track the start of this album, but also of my playlist. The song (and album) starts with Hayden clearing his throat and then starting to strum his acoustic guitar with a low-E string that has been tuned way down. This open, trembling, throaty bass note really works with the artist's deep, over-emphasized delivery of the phrases ("Girl of myyyyy dreaaamms, things are as bad as theyyy seeeem..."). It might seem like a bit of a creepy song now (as he talks about being interested in a sixteen year old girl), but at the time Hayden was only 23 himself, so keep that in mind.

This was just the first of what is now seven, full LP, studio recordings that he's released; he's also put out a great double-live album which includes some fun between-song banter. However I heard this album originally, I'm glad I did.

Recommended track(s):	Bad As They Seem; We Don't Mind; Driveway
Worth another listen?	Yes!
Overall rating:	Three Stars

Nine Inch Nails - With Teeth

I've been a fan of NIN since The Downward Spiral was release many, many years ago. With Teeth is not my favourite LP from the band, but it certainly has its high points. Coming off the epic The Fragile and landing before the more impressive Year Zero, this record manages to bridge, or perhaps 'preview' where Trent Reznor was taking the NIN -sound... nay, the whole NIN Empire.

This isn't a band who releases a new album every two- or two-and-a-bit years as most are 'encouraged' to do by their record labels. Nails will release a new album when Trent is good and ready to do so, often five or six years after his previous effort. Many reviews of this album note that these songs were inspired (or influenced) by Trent's battle with, and success over, substance abuse and alcoholism, although you don't really need a review to tell you this. NIN's lyrics have never really been uplifting and inspiring, more cathartic and dark... but that's what you want from the band; you're not putting this stuff on for a sunny walk in the park.

It's loud and driving; the drums in particular seem to be up-front in the mix for this album and are usually quite fast and intense. From the slow yet steady beat in Only to the machine gun -like attack in You Know What You Are? to the cymbal crashes at the start of the chorus in The Hand That Feeds... it's an important element in the mix, but always new and powerful.

The DVD that was released following the tour for this album, Beside You in Time, is quite impressive as I remember it. I haven't watched the video in awhile, but I am always so impressed by how the NIN sound can be recreated on-stage by a live band. The light show that accompanies the band is also something to behold. Of course, this DVD also features such classic tracks as Terrible Lie, March of the Pigs, Closer and Hurt, so be sure to check it out even if you're not a huge fan of this album.

Recommended track(s):	You Know What You Are?; Only; Beside You in Time
Worth another listen?	Yes!
Overall rating:	Three Stars

K's Choice - Almost Happy

Remember back in the summer of '96 there was a song called Not An Addict that was played on seemingly every radio station? Do you remember the name of the band that performed the song? Can you name the album the track appeared on? Does any of this sound familiar to you?

Probably not... in Canada, K's Choice were something of a one-hit wonder, however, in Europe this brother-sister duo went on to release a total of five albums including their 2010 reunion release, Echo Mountain. Almost Happy was the band's fourth album which, in North America, was released as a two-CD set: a studio album plus a live album.

The studio album is a bit more laid-back than their previous two LPs, but still has it's more rockin' moments. I've always been a fan of Sarah Bettens' vocals and they're just as strong on this album as they were on the other albums. The lyrics are personal and emotional, talking about love and loss, regret and hope, making "Almost Happy" a very appropriate title for the album. As a studio album, it's perhaps not their best, but it's a solid three-stars.

The live album shows them as more upbeat, featuring most (if not all) of their singles/big hits from their previous albums: Cocoon Crash, Not an Addict, Mr. Freeze, Everything for Free, Butterflies Instead, etc.  It's quite a good live album on the whole, even if you're not a long-time fan of the band.

Recommended track(s):	Almost Happy; Live for Real; Always Everywhere
Worth another listen?	Yes!
Overall rating:	Three Stars

Super Furry Animals - Rings Around the World

How to describe the sound of the Super Furry Animals... that's a tough on. The best description I could dare to give of these Welsh rockers would be "like Beck, but instead of his latin-funk stylings, think space-prog or psychedelic jams... or both... or neither". Are we clear now?

This album is all over the place, but in a really good way. It's certainly a trip, but one worth taking. Rings is only one of two SFA albums that I own and am familar with; the other one being Phantom Power which followed this release. It's also one of the reasons that I started this project. Too often this is the sort of album that I'd put on (or dig up in iTunes) just to listen to one or two tracks that really stand out in my mind, but it's certainly worth hearing from start to finish again.

When, is perhaps the question... I haven't a clue when I should be putting this album on; maybe in the car, with the roof down, in the summer, on the way to a party somewhere? It's certainly a 'feel good' album that can really get you going, but there is also so much going on at times that it screams "listen to me with headphones, dammit!". Multiple vocal melodies, distorted vocals, simple guitar lines which become over-powered by layers of techno wizardy... this album seems to have it all, but in a way that doesn't feel thrown together or forced.

Juxtapozed With U was the single that introduced me to the band (and this album). It's playful, bouncy and almost jazz-like in tone. The distorted verse vocal fits perfectly over the light-techno beat, contrasted with the strong chorus vocal, gives off that great 'call and response' feel.  This is going to be a love-hate kinda polarizing album for people I'd imagine, but I'm quite happy that I've just re-discovered it through this project.

Recommended track(s):	It's Not the End of the World?; (A) Touch Sensitive; Juxtapozed With U
Worth another listen?	Yes!
Overall rating:	Three-and-a-Half Stars

The Dears - Thank You Good Night Sold Out

Live albums are always, at least somewhat, tailored to the "true fans" of a band. It's unlikely that anyone would start listening to a band by picking up their live album (except for, perhaps, the Dave Matthews Band or the Grateful Dead). For The Dears, who at this point had a variety of LPs and EPs released, a live album seemed like a good idea. I caught the band way, way back in 2001 or 2002 as an opening act for, I believe, The Weakerthans and Billy Bragg.  I haven't had the chance to see them since, but I hear their live show is quite good and this album seems to bring that home to reflect that.

The album starts strong and carries this energy through to the double-shot of Who Are You... and 22: The Death... quite well.  Including mostly songs from their (then) recently released LP, No Cities Left, the album takes a bit of a breather at track 6 before getting ready for the big finale.  This is, for me at least on this listen, what kept the album from being a four-star selection: while I'm usually a fan of 10+ minute proggy- spacey- guitar jams, the 14-minute intro to (what is otherwise) a stellar version of Pinned Together, Falling Apart, seems both out of place and overly long for me.  It was probably quite impressive to have seen live, but it didn't translate well to the CD for me; at least if it was a separate track, the listener could skip it when they weren't in the mood for it.

Overall, it's still a great live album. It's got that live feel, with just a bit of crowd noise at certain places to remind you that this isn't a studio album. I could always nit-pick about the track selections, especially since I believe the whole concert was longer than this, but that's always the case with live releases. If you're a fan of the band, this is certainly worth a listen; if you're new to them, then you'd be better off starting with either No Cities Left or Gang of Losers.

Recommended track(s):	Atonomy; End of a Hollywood Bedtime Story; 22: The Death of All the Romance
Worth another listen?	Yes!
Overall rating:	Three-and-a-Half Stars

Our Lady Peace - Happiness...

Ever since I first heard the song Naveed on Much Music, I loved these guys. Our Lady Peace were an important band while I was growing up. I loved that they were Canadian and I loved that whole scene (OLP, IME, the Tea Party, etc.) that was going on at the time. This album, Happiness... Is Not a Fish That You Can Catch, the band's third studio release, probably came out as that era in Canadian rock was fading out, but it was still a solid effort.

This album finds lead singer, Raine Madia, as cryptic as ever. There are very few OLP songs that I probably understand (fully), although I'm sure I know almost all the words to them. Yet, this was a signature of their sound at the time so you kinda have to let it pass. A few too many of the songs start out slowly and then become heavy by the first chorus, but as an album, this ebb and flow seems to work out not too badly. Perhaps it was the opportunity to work with jazz drummer Elvin Jones (who guests on the album's last, and somewhat over-done, track), but I found Jeremy Taggert's drumming to be quite good on this disc.

Overall, the singles released from the album are great; the stuff in between is also quite good. The album might be two tracks too long -- it gets kinda spacey and forced at that point -- but it still rocks like it should. Oh, and they get points for (prominently) featuring their signature 'cover model', Saul Fox on the artwork a'la Naveed.

Recommended track(s):	One Man Army; Potato Girl; Thief
Worth another listen?	Yes!
Overall rating:	Three-and-a-Half Stars

Sam Roberts - We Were Born in a Flame

While I think I'll always prefer the Inhuman Condition (EP) versions of my recommended tracks (below), they do stand up well here in the full-album context. Sam Roberts hasn't really held my attention, and in the seven years since this disc came out, I can't say I've heard anything from him that's made me take notice, but in this debut LP, he does manage to put out a decent straight-ahead (Juno Award winning) rock record.

I can't think of too much to say specifically about this album right now; it was a good Monday morning drive-in disc to listen to, and I didn't feel like skipping any tracks, but apart from the two big singles, nothing stood out for me. There are some nice little guitar solo's on the album which I was in the mood for, so that was a plus.

A good backyard BBQ, summer day, out on the deck kinda album. Upbeat, guitar-driven, solid vocals.

Recommended track(s):	Where Have All the Good People Gone; Don't Walk Away Eileen
Worth another listen?	~Maybe
Overall rating:	Three Stars