« It was all a dream | Main | Millen Done » I know what you want24 Sep 2008 10:00 am
You want to talk about TV On The Radio's new joint. It's a bad idea for me to render a verdict, given I've only had the album a day. I tend to not get things the first time I hear them. I hate virtually every Outkast album the first time a hear it. A month later I'm claiming genius. That's real talk. When Bombs Over Baghdad hit, I hated it--for about a week. Now I think it's one of the greatest hip-hop songs ever. Off the top I can say I like "Crying"--like, a lot. The rest I need to meditate on.
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I still hate Bombs Over Baghdad. I agree that Outkast is generally genius, but that song is one that I'll never sign on to.
The new TVotR album is less sonically weird than the previous two, which dissapoints me. BOB is genius, straight up.
I know what I want -
I agree it might be less sonically weird. But I try to make a point not to be disappointed about the direction a band as good as TVOTR wants to go. Crying, Stork and Owl, and Shout Me Out are the tracks that really stand out for me.
Their albums are definitely ones you have to listen to a few times through before it clicks, I think.
I got it yesterday and I already think it's great. I'm not sure if I will end up liking it as much as Return to Cookie Mountain--for all of Dear Science's beauty, I think it is a bit more conventional, and I like weird music--but their new album will, at a minimum, be my most-played album over the next few weeks.
B.O.B. remains one of the most brilliant hip-hop songs of all time. But the greatest Outkast song ever is Spottieottiedopalicious (the namesake of one of the posters here I believe).
TVoTR albums always take a few weeks. Similiarly, I need a minimum of 7 days of heavy listening for every Radiohead album, and they're my favorite band in teh world.
THC,
Props for my new favorite blog.
btw... Crying was the track that grabbed me the most on my first listen too.
I've listened to it about 4 or 5 times now and love it. Ever since I bought the first EP through this album, I think they are progressing, growing morphing and getting stronger. This, for me is always the sign of a strong band. I think this album really solidifies TVotR as one of a handful of really great bands around right now. My favorite is Dancing Choose, and that string of Dancing Choose, Stork&Owl, Golden Age and Family Tree is devastating. I can't wait to see them later this month. Last saw them rock Lollapalooza 2007, where they were shorted to only 45 minutes before Pearl Jam came on. At the end they played the hell out of "Staring at the Sun." We danced our faces off and when it was over we turned around flipped off Pearl Jam and left.
Dustin,
I'm with you on that one. We were able to get really close to the stage because everyone was already inching over to the Pearl Jam stage. Their set was WAY too short, but it was sweet. Staring at the Sun is unbelievable live.
Back to a previous album, is "I was a Lover" about the dl?
The great albums usually take a couple of spins before the take root in your brain. Especially when the artists have pushed themselves into new territory, like Outkast does just about every time. It's not what you expect, so you need to process. Paul's Boutique is my classic example. As a Beasties freak I hated it the first time I heard it. Now I consider it a classic of western civilization on par with Sgt. Peppers.
"Back to a previous album, is "I was a Lover" about the dl?"
If its not, question, it sure does seem like its about someone dealing with their sexuality.
Or their drug problem.
But definitely one of those two.
Family Tree is the greatest Coldplay song that Coldplay could never write. One of the most beautiful songs of the year.
Stacey,
I have always felt that to be the case, but never could get a definitive answer.
I don't think there's anything as good as "Staring at the Sun" or "Wolf in Me", but overall, it's a very strong album. More consistent. More accessible. A lot of the songs had me thinking "I don't know about this" until about one minute in or so. They all grow, shift, change and build.
"Back to a previous album, is "I was a Lover" about the dl?"
If its not, question, it sure does seem like its about someone dealing with their sexuality.
IIRC, Kyp Malone (bass, vocals) has made a few cryptic references to his own...well, non-heternormality. Too lazy to look them up right now, but if you get obsessed with TVotR and spend a couple months looking up every interview the band members have ever done, it shouldn't be too hard to find. ;)
But I don't think that's what I Was a Lover is about.
The fact that it often takes you several times through to appreciate an album or a song means - at least in my meager opinion - is a character strength.
When Kwame' first dropped The Rhythm, I was quick to anoint that tune a classic. But as it passes my ears 15 years late, it's stale.
With that said, I never appreciated Brand Nubian's In God We Trust when it arrived in '92.
Now, that album sits alongside Cuban Links, Ready to Die, Illmatic, the Infamous, and Dah Shinin'as bona fide classics!
And sorry, Nick I trust it's against the law in at least 40 states to use greatest and Coldplay in the same sentence.
so this is what it takes for me to de-lurk.
i listened to the album all of yesterday. 'crying', 'family tree' & 'shout me out' make my heart sing but 'golden age' is my favorite..hits me lower...so funky, so dirty, so sexy.
'dancing choose' is a mess so i'll just pretend it's not there.
not sure if dear science is as lifeshattering as going up cookie mountain though. the first time i listened to cookie i couldn't make it past 'wolf like me'...i was scared...thought i'd explode and turn into light (or something like that).
bombs over baghdad is wondrous but atliens will always be number one on my outkast chart.
and congrats on all the official acclamation you've been receiving lately ta-nehisi...well-deserved.
tcole, I wouldn't call myself a Kwame fan, but The Rhythm is a hot little tune, even now.
Well I can't really offer too much, because I'm too old (old school?) to buy this on iTunes (some music I've gotta have on CD) and too cheap to pay for fast shipping at amazon, but saw them on Friday and they rocked the house, and the new songs were great live. But it was definitely not an environment where I could sit back and meditate on their (the new songs that is) greatness. Watching my tracking # so I can dig in...
I'd say in general that quick accessibility and long-term love of an album are kind of mutually exclusive. Something like Fountains of Wayne's Welcome Interstate Managers is GREAT the first dozen or two plays through, then gets a bit stale. But something like Joe Henry's Fuse, that really takes a few times through to sink in, will still sound great years and a hundred listens later.
Not feeling it.
Also floating around the interwebs
- Kings of Leon - ehh
- Cold War Kids - not bad
- Young Jeezy - political, kinda
- TI - a bit too personal
tcole- The Rhythm...good god, visions of polka dots and rayon instantly in my head.
I thought it was a great song at the time, but "Is it Christmas-'cause everybody's rapping...", hasn't exactly held up over time. The beats still nice though.