It's interesting that we have pretty varying opinions on what we like on Antisocial Tendencies...I'm not sure what to make of that. Has there been any unanimous agreement on what may be the standout song?
Antisocial Tendencies Once Too Often I really like this one. The guitar playing is top notch as are the vocal harmonies. It’s quite a humble song musically, in the sense that it gently grows for each time I listen to it. I also like that the lyrics give the impression of referring to itself, though I think it could also be interpreted more metaphorically about a relationship. The trumpet playing really adds a lot to the mood of the song, well done Otis! Antisocial Tendencies At first, it sounds almost like a novelty song but I think it is a lot more complex and intriguing than that. It’s very catchy and immediate and there is so much going on in the backing track. Nice sax playing that sounds a bit nonchalant and spontaneous, it really adds a lot of flavour to the song. A fabulous song to listen to in headphones and the video clip is very funny too. Shadows Again, this song really rewards focused listening, in headphones. I find it fascinating that many Dog Trumpet songs at first may give the impression that they are a bit laid-back and straightforward, but the more I listen to them I discover all the details in the backing track. It’s a very well-written song and all the musicians play with such feel and commitment for the mood of the song. Superb! Reading Comics Nice to get a song about reading comics. I think Reg’s interest in comics has influenced his visual art a lot and also the way he gets into character in so many of his songs. This track is a real grower and Heather Stratfold’s cello playing is exquisite. Overall on this album I think the guest musicians add a lot to the songs and clearly a lot of thought has gone into song arrangements and production. Bloomsbury Birds My wife and I are both very interested in all things relating to the Bloomsbury group and have read a lot of books, seen several movies and been to many exhibitions about them. This song captures a sense of the atmosphere and feel that these books, movies and exhibitions have contained. I like Bernie Hayes’ vocals and guitar playing. In one way, it seemed a bit weird at first that there was suddenly an entirely different singer on a Dog Trumpet album, but he seems right at home and the track fits in very well on the album. Lord and Lady Pumpkin When I first heard this, I got a vivid image of it being in a scene in a movie set in medieval times, perhaps at a huge gathering at a (tyrant) king’s castle and all of a sudden the court jester starts singing this song. A bit Monty Python-ish perhaps. I find myself being almost strangely drawn to this track, it’s like a quirky novelty song and yet it also a satire with anti-violence message and I’m thinking that Lord and Lady Pumpkin might refer to a mighty and nasty politician and their significant other. To me, this song is among the album highlights on an album full of gems. Impossible To Find A very solid album track with excellent guitar playing and great singing by Peter. I think the lyrics are very good, to me it sounds like the narrator is grateful for being with his significant other. The song doesn’t quite stand out on this very strong album, but in particular the second half of the song (the instrumental part) is very good. Demon Paradise This song is obviously quite different to the songs surrounding it on the album. On a lyrical level, it makes me think of previous Dog Trumpet songs “Into The Bible” and “The Jesus Song”, but musically it sounds like it’s straight from a particularly energetic party, with tuba, trombone and female backing singers. The contrast between the lyrics and the music makes the song a bit weird but it manages to keep away from novelty territory and instead gives the album further variety. Two Blue Birds A very folky song. Again I get the vivid images of a movie set in medieval times, and in this case I imagine a troubadour travelling from castle to castle singing songs in exchange for food and room for the night. I think this song might have been more effective if it had been really short and just ended before the guitar solo, to me it sounds a bit like that was how it was intended and then to make it more like a conventional song it was decided it needed to be longer. Some Time I think this one has good energy, a fairly uptempo pop song with harmonica making a welcome return to a Dog Trumpet track. A very solid album track. The Curse of the Walking Dead This was previously recorded by Mental As Anything during the Garage sessions and released in that version as a bonus track on the Calling Colin EP. I am glad Reg and Peter gave the song a second chance and that it has been included on an album. I like everything about it – the lyrics, Reg’s singing, the acoustic guitars and the laidback but also spirited performance. The Universe Goes On Forever A song that keeps growing. I like its dreamy and romantic feel, both lyrically and musically. It’s almost like a lullaby for a warm summer’s night. Great singing by Peter and again the guitar parts are top notch. To my ears, this is the real album closer and “Lili Marlene” is like a bonus track. Lili Marlene I have heard many versions of this song. It was unexpected to hear Dog Trumpet performing it. I think they succeed in putting their own band personality to it. As with many (all) of the songs on the album, it is best experienced by listening to it in headphones, there are so many details in the backing track and they definitely give the Dog Trumpet rendition its character. I think Antisocial Tendencies is the best Dog Trumpet album of the four we have discussed so far. It’s an album with so many layers that will reveal themselves more and more for each time I listen to the album. The collection of songs is very strong, with no bad tracks and with many songs making a serious case for being the best track. Both Reg and Peter brought their A game to their writing for this album and clearly they put a lot of thought into the instrumentation. It’s a superb album from start to finish.
Also in 2007 *The soundtrack album for the movie Razzle Dazzle featured various Australian artists performing classics. One of the tracks is Martin Plaza's version of Lee Dorsey's "Working In The Coalmine". Razzle Dazzle Movie Soundtrack (2007, CD) - Discogs Cover artwork by Reg Mombassa Reg Mombassa has been in demand by artists and groups wanting to have his artwork on their album covers. In 2005, one of Reg's paintings was used as the cover for Paul Kelly & The Stormwater Boys' album Foggy Highway: Paul Kelly & The Stormwater Boys - Foggy Highway | Discogs (trivia: one of the musicians on this album is James Gillard, who would later join Mental As Anything between 2015 and 2017) The Australian roots reggae/pop group Kingtide has used Reg Mombassa painting for several of their albums and EPs covers (as well as posters): No Dog War EP (2004): Kingtide – No Dog War (2004, CD) - Discogs Scared New World album (2006): Kingtide – Scared New World (2006, CD) - Discogs Roots Pop Reggae album (2009): Kingtide – Roots Pop Reggae (2009, CD) - Discogs Summertime Vibration Pack compilation (2011): King Tide – Summertime Vibration Pack (2011, CD) - Discogs
Mental As Anything - Tents Up (2009) This week’s album is Mental As Anything’s 13th album Tents Up, released in Australia in June 2009 by Warner Music Australia. 2009 turned out to be an eventful year for the group. It was 30 years since their debut album had been released and in addition to Tents Up, the compilation CD/DVD Essential As Anything was released and the group was inducted in the ARIA (Australia Recording Industry Association) Hall of Fame on August 27. In addition to all this, Murray Waldren's excellent book The Mind and Times of Reg Mombassa was published. The band self-produced Tents Up and for mixing they collaborated again with Steve James, who had produced their cover of “Rock’n’Roll Music” back in 1988 as well as several tracks on Cyclone Raymond plus the first Dog Trumpet album. On Tents Up, Steve James mixed 10 of the 12 tracks. Track listing: Blues Guys (written by Martin Plaza) Alien Abduction (Greedy Smith) Moaning Lisa (Martin Plaza) She Could've Been Mine (Greedy Smith) Bucking Hard (Martin Plaza) Lazy (Martin Plaza) Covered In Women (Greedy Smith) I Know You Will (David Barraclough) Karaoke Hostess (David Barraclough) Nirvana On Guitar (Greedy Smith) Easy (David Barraclough) Mr Munroe (Martin Plaza) Produced by Mental As Anything Line-up: Martin Plaza, Greedy Smith, David Barraclough, Mike Caen and Rob Souter plus Reg Mombassa - Slide guitar on "Blues Guys" and guitar cameo on "Alien Abduction" There were no singles released from Tents Up.
Essential As Anything - 30th Anniversary Edition In 2009, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Mental As Anything's debut album, Warner Music Australia released the CD/DVD set Essential As Anything - 30th Anniversary Edition. Or, as it says slightly tongue-in-cheek on the group's official web page about the year 2009, "Warner Music Australia discover they have Mentals on their roster and plan to relaunch the greatest hits". The CD featured 24 tracks while the DVD included both Monumental, originally released on VHS in 1985 as Monumental As Anything, and Monumental 2. I am not entirely sure if Monumental 2 had been released as a collection prior to this compilation. The original Monumental As Anything VHS featured 19 video clips, linked together by comedic and faux documentary clips. On the cover of the VHS this documentary is called "Arguably the second greatest story ever told". Even though the title of the compilation refers to the group's 30 year history, the track listing ends with two tracks from Liar Liar Pants On Fire - no songs from any of the albums released after that are included on the album. (And neither of the two "best of" albums released after this one include any songs from the '00s) The booklet features extensive liner notes by well-known music historian Glenn A. Baker. Track listing - CD: The Nips Are Getting Bigger Egypt Come Around (Just Like) Romeo and Juliet If You Leave Me, Can I Come Too? Too Many Times Berserk Warriors Let's Cook I Didn't Mean To Be Mean Close Again Spirit Got Lost Brain Brain Working For The Man Apocalypso You're So Strong Live It Up Date With Destiny Concrete and Clay Let's Go To Paradise He's Just No Good For You Rock'n Roll Music The World Seems Difficult Mr Natural Nigel Track listing - DVD: You're So Strong (Just Like) Romeo & Juliet If You Leave Me, Can I Come Too? Too Many Times The Nips Are Getting Bigger Close Again Live It Up Working For The Man I Didn't Mean To Be Mean Holiday In Auckland Egypt Berserk Warriors Spirit Got Lost Ready For You Now Let's Cook Got Hit Wouldn't Try To Explain Brain Brain Apocalypso Come Around Date With Destiny Big Wheel Hold On Let's Go To Paradise He's Just No Good For You Don't Tell Me Now Love Me Tender Rock'n Roll Music The World Seems Difficult Baby You're Wild Overwhelmed Mr Natural Nigel Whole Wide World Calling Colin Just My Luck The Nips Are Getting Bigger (live)
I am not entirely sure if Monumental 2 had been released as a collection prior to this compilation. The original Monumental As Anything VHS featured 19 video clips, linked together by comedic and faux documentary clips. On the cover of the VHS this documentary is called "Arguably the second greatest story ever told". Yes, Monumental 2 was released on VHS in 1998/99. The cover featured a shot from the Big Wheel video shoot. It was interesting to see they went with the live Recovery (Australian music TV show at the time) version of Just My Luck instead of the promotional one already filmed.
Is the filmed video for Just My Luck available anywhere? I'm curious to know what that looked like because the Recovery video is a bit underwhelming (tv studio and underwhelmed morning audience). The set is great though.
Comment by Mike Caen regarding the album title Tents Up: "Tents Up, that was something Martin used to say as a joke before we went on stage, and being The Mentals, it got turned into a pun and re-used..."
I have the Essential As Anything CD and DVD and they are indeed fantastic. It's nice to have the hits collected together but even better is having all the videos in one spot. That's some essential viewing! I particularly like the funny little interludes between the clips. There's a lot of personality on show and that's what we love about the Mentals! I could have wished for some later era songs on Essential as Anything - as I think there's some excellent songs on Garage and Beetroot Stains, not to mention Plucked. But I guess you can't have everything - well except for that super deluxe box set!
Tents Up I remember when this album was released in 2009. It had been four years since Plucked and nearly seven years since Road Case, the previous album with new material on it. At the time, I thought that Tents Up sounded like a fresh start, a great album by a great line-up of the group and I was hoping (or perhaps expecting) that it would be followed by more studio albums every two or three years or something like that. It didn’t turn out that way, but it remains an album I keep returning to and I think it still sounds as fresh and timeless today as it did when I first heard it back then. Blues Guys A superb opening track. I love the jangling guitars and the summer feel of the music. Great energy and a very catchy song. There’s a harmonious flow of the track. I like the first verse in particular about being at the festival and the line “I know we’ll be best of all”. I don’t hear that as an arrogant statement, more about the narrator being comfortable in his own skin and feeling very alive. Alien Abduction I really like the chugging guitars on this one. They give the song a level of intensity and along with Greedy’s committed singing it makes for a very special song. The lyrics are quite hilarious and by the way he sang it he sounds truly convinced he was abducted by aliens last night even though I suspect he just had a hangover… Moaning Lisa A classic Mentals pun in the title, but it’s more of a romantic song than anything else. This song could have fitted in well on the ‘90s Mentals albums as well. I like the laid-back but still passionate feel of the performance and this track is also one that is a real grower. A very strong album track. She Could’ve Been Mine To my ears, this sounds like a sequel to the track “Wrong” on Road Case. I think “She Could’ve Been Mine” is one of Greedy’s best ever songs. The melody is lovely and the backing vocals has a wonderful retro feel to them. Greedy’s singing sounds very heartfelt as he ponders how life could have been with that woman. Bucking Hard This is OK, but the melody sounds forced and doesn’t really go anywhere. I don’t skip it, but this is one of two fillers on an album full of real gems. Lazy A fabulous track. Wonderful laidback atmosphere coupled with a great melody. Martin’s singing is top notch as usual, the guitars are lovely and Rob Souter’s drumming is exquisite. A real highlight on both the album and a track that deserved bigger exposure. Covered In Women This is almost annoyingly catchy, but I think both Greedy’s singing and every musician’s performance are very good on this one. There are a lot of subtle details here and there throughout the backing track and it’s a great song to listen to in headphones. Lyrically, I am not that keen though – I feel there are already too many songs on the “so many women all over the world, why can’t I find the one” theme and these lyrics seem more generic than personal. I Know You Will After Beetroot Stains and Road Case, where Duck’s songs were so prominent, it’s a surprise that the first of his songs appear as track 8 on the album. And here he has written perhaps his most conventional Mentals song, but it’s such a fine, well-written pop song. Great guitar playing and he sang it with a lot of heart put into it. I find it very catchy and a song that keeps growing the more I listen to it. Karaoke Hostess I like the punchy energy of this track and the lyrics are quite funny as well. As with “Stretchmarks” on Beetroot Stains, Martin did a stellar job singing one of Duck’s songs with such conviction and character. Great guitar playing in this song too. Nirvana On Guitar A fun and charming track. I like the blend of defiance and self-deprecation in the lyrics and the music has a certain stomp mainly due to the piano. One thing I’d add to make it even better would be a wayward trumpet or trombone. Easy This doesn’t do much for me. To my ears it’s the second filler on an otherwise excellent album. The melody never takes off and both Duck’s singing and the music sound rather half-hearted. Mr Munroe A very nice closing track on the album. I think it bookends “Blues Guys” perfectly, possibly because of the lyrics in which the narrator observes other persons and finds them fascinating. Is this Mr Munroe a real life person that Australians would know about or is a made-up character? When I hear this it sounds a bit like mid-life blues guys attempting to get a bit of eccentric circus feel to a rock track and the way they don’t quite get there makes the song special. Overall I think this is a very good Mentals album. I thought Road Case was an uneven album on which there was over-experimenting at the expense of strong songwriting. Perhaps it could be said that on this album there isn’t much experimenting at all, but I think the strong quality of the songs here more than make up for that. There’s a very good flow on this album, the track sequencing sounds very organic and natural. When Tents Up was new, I was working as a free-lancing music journalist for the biggest newspaper in my then-hometown Uppsala, reviewing concerts and albums and doing interviews with both Swedish and international artists of all genres. I told my boss at the newspaper that I’d like to write a review of this album. It wasn’t released here (or in Europe), but I reckoned music fans aren’t restricted by such things, what with online stores being easy to order from. My review was published and I gave it 4/5. I figured the band might find it amusing to get a review of the album in Swedish, so I bought 6 copies of that day’s newspaper (one for each band member and one for the management, that was the plan). Unfortunately, I didn’t get around to sending the newspapers to Australia. I still have those newspapers in a box somewhere on the attic, but there are a lot of unpacked boxes there after we moved to our current residence (only 9 years ago, but we have lacked the necessary motivation to unbox the stuff that is filling up the attic). Oh well…
Speaking to Martin Plaza after the release of this album in 2009, he said it was his favourite album since 'Cats & Dogs'. I wonder why that was...
Tents Up is a pretty accomplished LP for a 30 year old band. It's maybe not quite as good as, say, Beetroot Stains, but it's a very good listen. Blues Guys Great song. Lovely, summertime feeling vibe with some fantastic guitar work and vocal layering. Alien Abduction This is alright. It's got some style and a fun theme, but as a song, it's not very exciting. Moaning Lisa Great melodies and guitar once again. Creative, well crafted, and just a wonderful track all around. She Could've Been Mine Nah, this sort of 70's soft rock throwback number doesn't do it for me. I really dislike that genre, personally, which makes it pretty much impossible for me to like this one. Greedy sounds good here, though. Bucking Hard This is more like it. Martin knocks it out of the park once again. It makes me wish he would do (or had done) some solo albums. I love the quick, silly "1-2-3-4" count in the middle of the song. As short as it may be, this is one of my top three tracks on the album. Lazy As strong as Martin's songs are on this LP, this is probably the weakest one. I like the lackadaisical vibe, but it's ultimately kind of uneventful and lacking in the interest department. Covered in Women This is Greedy's best song on the album, in my opinion. Clever, catchy, and nicely arranged/sung, it's just a well rounded track. I Know You Will Very good track from David. His vocal style is a little off putting for this musical style, but I still find this to be a wonderfully effective & melodic track with a fantastic backing track. Karaoke Hostess Perfect choice to have Martin sing this song written by Duck. Great guitar and bass, and just a rip roaring good time all around. Nirvana on Guitar This is a so-so kind of affair for me. I like the jaunty vibe, but I feel like Greedy's playing it very safe here. It ends up pretty uninteresting because of that. I still do, however, find it to be a nice listen; just maybe not a keeper. Easy Memorable, though a little on the annoying side of that. A decent album track. Mr. Munroe A fairly Beatle-esque number, but I actually also hear some early Split Enz in the verses. I like this one quite a bit; just another example of how good Martin was on this album. Overall we have a good Mentals album. Not quite up there with Beetroot or Garage, but besides those two, I'd say this is their best album since Mouth to Mouth. Martin's songs specifically are top notch; definitely his best collection of contributions since Beetroot Stains. A couple of Greedy's and Duck's are good, with only a few missing the mark. If this is the bands' final album (as it likely is), they ended on a pretty good note. A 3.8/5 from me. Track Picks: "Blues Guys", "Moaning Lisa", "Bucking Hard", "I Know You Will".
Tents Up Blues Guys This is a really pleasant song and I mean that in the best possible way. I really like the guitar melody of this song and I like the phonetic play of Blue Skies/Blues Guys. I assume it’s a song about playing the famous Byron Bluesfest. It’s a lovely vocal and I really like that middle break with the Reg slide guitar with the low spoken vocal by Martin. A really good opening song and sounds very distinctively like Mental As Anything. Alien Abduction I love this song….I love the dramatic, chugging rhythm established right up gront Great vocal by Greedy and the lyrics are just so funny. The idea of a big night out being similar to an alien abduction is really hilarious. So, so very true! If Tents Up were to have a single, this should have been it. Catchy chorus and great vocal. And again, it sounds very Mental as Anything. Love the guitar coupled with the keyboards washing in the background and occasionally breaking through into the open. Moaning Lisa Another play on words from Martin. A very pretty song, it is very solidly within the genre of Martin slower rock songs. I really do like that section just before the break with the high backing vocal – very effective. Lovely all round especially that wordless vocal in the outro. She Could’ve Been Mine A Greedy ballad. Now I feel like this is a genre that Greedy has explored before – and I think it is a good song although not entirely to my taste. It’s very AC and has a bit of a 70s late night vibe especially with those synth strings Which actually probably means that this song will grow on me quite a bit. Good lyrical narrative – I’m pretty invested in the sad story here. Bucking Hard This song sounds exactly like I’d expect to with that title. Kind of country’ish and it reminds me a little bit of the songs on Plaza Suite. I feel like this might have been a pretty good song live. I don’t know that it breaks any new ground, but then it doesn’t need to. Martin sounds very good singing this style of song. And it has a great guitar hook and chorus. It’s a good pick-me-up after 2 slower paced songs. I think this would be a great song to have playing while driving in your car…good road trip song. BTW I’m loving the presence of the keyboards on this album so far. Lazy Again, a nicely atmospheric song. It sounds exactly like I’d expect the song titled like this to sound. A bit of a throwback to early 60s, and I love that percussion-y sound (no idea what the instrument is called but I know what it looks like). This is another song I’d put on my tropical Mentals playlist (along with Complaining and Hararei I Akarana). It’s getting a bit repetitive but Martin really is in good voice on this album (as is Greedy). Covered in Women To me this sounds like a companion piece to Different Girls on Beetroot Stains. Not because they are so similar stylistically. It’s more that it’s such an appreciation of women. Greedy’s lyrics about women are always so obviously from the point of view of just being in awe of them. It’s such a lovely sentiment – not lecherous at all – just how they enhance his world with them just being near him. I Know You Will The first Duck song. I actually like this song for just how raw the lyrics and vocal delivery is. This is so well sung by Duck. It’s a fairly simple song and arrangement but by God, the emotional honesty in this song is golden. Terrific song. Karaoke Hostess What a great opening to this song…and I like the contrast to the opening vocal. An almost spoken word vocal. It reminds me of that song “Stolen Guitar” by Icehouse. Which is probably why I like the humor in it. Solid album song. It’s kind of funny – and seems to be a bit of a take on being in a Karaoke Bar in Asia. Nirvana on a Guitar This is pretty conventional but sung and arranged well. Pleasant and a good album track. Quietly humorous lyrics. Easy Duck has a very distinctive outlook on his song. They do seem like wry observations of everyday life – not dissimilar to Reg’s lyrics. I don’t love this song, but it’s not a song I would skip. I love how Duck’s lyrics always seem exactly like overhearing some guy’s conversation in a bar. Love the “I reckon I could do that” and the bass line Mr Munroe Love this as an album closer. This seems again a bit of a throwback to 60s style song with it’s little bright guitar sound overlaid over the top of the acoustic guitar. Solid closer. In fact I quite like it. Overall I think this is a very good album. It's not at the heights of Mental-dom, but it's pretty great for a late stage band. Fave Tracks: Alien Abduction, Blues Guys, I Know You Will, Bucking Hard
I actually think the Martin tracks are some of the strongest he has written since C&D. There's a complexity there that is quite compelling.
I'd have to agree a bit with @drewrclv9 - I think this is an album that's not quite as good as Beetroot Stains or Liar. But it's close. I was really surprised at how much I liked it. And on skimming @StefanWq 's comments I see we agree quite a bit on songs especially Lazy. By God, Marty knows how to put together a good atmospheric song! Sorry for the rushed comments and general absence. I'm just glad I got my comments in on this album!
Although it's nice to see the Mentals return to their more typical sound for the first time since Garage. Unfortunately though, I think it's probably tied with Road Case as their weakest album. Blues Guys and Alien Abduction are my favourites here - Blues Guys has a pleasant sound with quite a nice melody, while Alien Abduction is an enjoyable uptempo tune with fun lyrics. Having said that, I think they're still the weakest highlights out of every Mentals album. Most of the other songs I find to be pretty forgettable and mediocre. Tents Up definitely isn't a bad album, but it's lacking the musical variety and high quality tracks that I've come to expect from the guys.
Here is a clip of 2009 era Mental As Anything performing "Live It Up" on the 9 AM with David & Kim TV show: (Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find any clip on YouTube showing 2009 era Mental As Anything performing 2009 era Mentals tracks)
Dog Trumpet: River of Flowers (2010) This week’s album is Dog Trumpet’s fifth album River of Flowers, released on CD in Australia by Half A Cow Records on May 28, 2010. The album was re-issued digitally by UK label Demon Music Group in July 2021 and the same label will also release it on vinyl this week (on Friday, February 4). Reg and Peter had spent around three years writing and recording for the album, in between family commitments and work on their respective visual arts. An early version of the song “Great South Road” was premiered on their MySpace page in 2008. In late 2009, their mother Trudy passed away and several songs on the album relate to events in their childhood. The album also includes their cover of Northern Irish singer/songwriter Bap Kennedy’s song “On The Mighty Ocean Alcohol”, first released on his album The Big Picture in 2005. Track listing: Mr Alcohol and Mrs Marijuana (written by Reg Mombassa) Buttons Undone (Peter O’Doherty) Into The Sky (Reg Mombassa) Invisible Eyelids (Peter O’Doherty) Great South Road (Reg Mombassa) The Wilson Home For Crippled Children (Peter O’Doherty) Manana (Reg Mombassa) Wood Grows On Trees (Peter O’Doherty) Manchester (Reg Mombassa) On The Mighty Ocean Alcohol (Bap Kennedy) Strangers Like You (Peter O’Doherty) Produced and mixed by Peter O’Doherty. Line-up: Reg Mombassa – Vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, dobro Peter O’Doherty – Vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, bass, mandolin Plus Jess Ciampa – Drums (Buttons Undone, Manana), percussion (Invisible Eyelids, Great South Road) Bernie Hayes – Backing vocals (Mr Alcohol and Mrs Marijuana, Invisible Eyelids) Cameron Bruce – Organ & electric piano (Invisible Eyelids) Declan O’Doherty – Drums (On The Mighty Ocean Alcohol) Christine Wheeler – Irish whistle (Wood Grows On Trees) Otis O’Doherty – Trumpet (Strangers Like You)
Tents Up Sorry that I'm late this week. I got confused as to what computer out of many I had the music on. But, I'm up at 5:30am on Monday listening and giving my impressions now. Better late than never? It would have been except that I see that Stefan has been up early this morning and has posted next week's album already. Sorry. I've got high hopes for this album after enjoyed Beetroot Stains a great deal. Hmmm... In real life there was nine years between BS and this album? That's quite a long time. Here goes... Blues Guys This is a good Martin song. Perhaps the vocal melody isn't the best that Martin's ever written, but I really like the arpeggio guitars that form the primary recognisable part of the arrangement. The verse melody is good, perhaps the chorus melody doesn't match up. The guitar solo, presumably by Reg, is nice and the vocal touches in the solo sound very MAA to me. Alien Abduction I liked the rocky feel of Beetroot Stains, and this Greedy song takes up where the previous album left off. ;'Like Blues Guys', there are good guitar hooks here. Another interesting topic for a Mentals song. I don't have the lyrics in front of me, but this seems a fairly normal song about a slightly unusual song topic. Moaning Lisa This Martin song starts with an updated 50s feel (to my ears). The keyboards are quite subtle on this album. Again, I feel that the chorus doesn't quite live up to the promise of the verse, but this is still a good song. She Could Have Been Mine And, this Greedy song starts off even more 'updated 50s'. This is more sedated, and the chorus rises nicely. Quite a dramatic melody. Very nice arrangement including the keyboards and backing vocals. Bucking Hard By this time I've accepted that this album isn't going to rock as much as BS, but this is a welcome (to my ears) throwback to that album. Like many, this is a good song and a worthy addition to the MAA canon. Not a career standout. Lazy And a change of pace in a softer direction. This song is yet again 'good', and it's arranged, performed, and produced well. However, I'm not sure that I have anything really to say about it. It's a good quality Martin among many he's recorded during his career. The acoustic guitar and bent notes electric guitar lines work very well, and backing vocals are very good, as they tend to be on this very consistent album. Covered in Women Greedy writes a song about how many women there are in the world. I wish I had the full lyrics to this one, but I think he's talking about how it's hard to find 'the one' when there are so many women in the world. Musically this fits right in with previous MAA albums. I Know You Will Finally a Duck song. The guitar lines in this song are very nice. The song fits in well with the rest of the album. It's a strong melody, well produced. Karaoke Hostess You wait half an album for a Duck song, and then two come at once. This has more of the rocky feel from BS. Interesting choice for a song - I'm not sure I've heard a song about a Karaoke Hostess before, bu Nirvana on Guitar From the title I was wondering if MAA were going to go grunge. But, this Greedy song is another updated 50s style (to my ears) and is about how he's not going to keep up with trends - I think. If we compare this song to Greedy's career highlights, it's of a similar style but not quite as good. It's rare for bands to keep up the quality of their peak, but even compared to Greedy's classics, this isn't far behind and is a worthy song. Easy Another Duck song. This is a very catchy rock and roll song. There are many nice production/arrangement touches such as the effects on the guitar solo and the arrangement of the backing vocals near the end. This is the first song where I really noticed the bass guitar. It's good here. It's probably good everywhere, but it hasn't really stood out and I've just enjoyed it as part of the overall arrangements of other songs. Mr Munroe A nice Martin song to finish with. Quite short, and this includes a long coda. But, I think the coda is the best part of the song, with interesting arrangements and guitar lines, and keyboards. It's a good way to end their career as far as full albums are concerned (we still have 5 Track EP to come). Overall This is a very solid album and a worthy addition to the MAA canon. And a worthy album to sum up their career as far as albums of new songs is concerned. Like many bands, this late period album is solid and full of good songs but without the career standouts of previous albums. But there isn't a bad song here, every song is a very good MAA song. Every song here, quality wise, would fit onto any MAA album. Stylistically there wouldn't always be a match. This album perhaps provides a bit 'more of the same'. There's nothing here which stands out as a new direction to me. But, I'm happy with that. Not every album by every band needs to tread new ground. It's good to hear a band doing what they do, and doing it well. 4.0/5
This is very much my feeling on this album! And I really appreciated your late post with your nice analysis on why perhaps some of the songs don't quite reach the heights they could. I think that's spot on with what I thought but couldn't articulate.
