I figured I'd do a monthly 'what I'm listening to' kind of thing. This could be viewed as a lame placeholder kind of post. And probably it is. But it's my blog! So there!
These may or may not be newly released disks. They might not even be a good disk - just what is been in heavy rotation in my car (as usually the iPod is playing anywhere else).
The first four Crowded House albums are very good to excellent affairs. So I was thrilled when I heard they were attempting a new disk - 14 years after their last one. Ok...the last part of that line had me more than a little worried.
As much as I like Neil Finn, his solo disks have been spotty. That and it really wasn't going to be Crowded House, as Paul Hester hanged himself three years ago.
Had I wrote this review three weeks ago, I would have completely panned it. But since I'm too lazy to even take it out of my car CD player, I've had lots of time to give it lots of listens. It is growing on me. Possibly it has grown as much as it is ever going to.
There is some good stuff, there is some fair stuff and quite honestly, there is some bad stuff. They open strong with "Nobody Wants To" and "Don't Stop Now". But then they plummet with "She Called Up". It starts promising enough and when they get to a bad chorus of "la la la la la" it makes the Carpenters' "Sing" sound like a frickin masterpiece. Ruckiry (not Jon's boss), they rebound immediately with "Say it Again".
After that it is kind of hit and miss. I like "Even a Child" and Heaven That I'm Making". I really like "Walked Her Way Down" (best song on the disk). But if you count-up those pros, there are six good songs, but there are 14 on the disk. Do the math.
The ones not mentioned are fair to sub par, including his take on "Silent House", which he co-wrote with the Dixie Chicks, who released it a year ago...and did a much better job of it. And "Pour Le Monde" is ok, though if you listen to it, I swear it could be a rejected song from John Lennon's Double Fantasy.
The disk is still better than most stuff out there, but I'd never say it was on the same level as a true Crowded House disk. The great thing about iTunes: you don't have to purchase the entire disk.
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