at least by 1st impression
― Zeno, Thursday, 24 July 2008 00:06 (fifteen years ago) link
i didn't like the last one very much. seemed to be trying to sound so dylan all the time. this different?
― M@tt He1ges0n, Thursday, 24 July 2008 00:07 (fifteen years ago) link
i didnt even bother for the last one... i thought theres no chance of anything good by them no more, but i was wrong.
― Zeno, Thursday, 24 July 2008 00:08 (fifteen years ago) link
ok , so basiclly it's classic singer/songwriters influence(Dylan,Cohen,Newman,r@b stuff) meets minimalist (though not lo-fi whatsoever) modern indie rock in the tradition of the loud, trebly guitars,drums and bombastic vocals. intersting,works fine, even if they lack a sense of humour.
also, "in the new year" is the new "rat".
― Zeno, Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:22 (fifteen years ago) link
(sorry for the fucked up spelling)
― Zeno, Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:24 (fifteen years ago) link
this is heartening. the stuff on the last one (that I heard) just didn't do it for me at all. it actually took me a while to come around to the first two, mostly because of the guy's voice. but they were really good-to-great in most other respects.
― will, Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:27 (fifteen years ago) link
singer/songwriter influence (Dylan,Cohen,Newman,r@b stuff) meets minimalist (though not lo-fi whatsoever) modern indie rock
Please say it's more Carl Newman than Bob Dylan. Please.
This got my attention. Looks like a lot of people on this thread -- like me -- gave up on this band after the last disc. Hopefully, we were wrong. I'd be happy to have been wrong.
― Daniel, Esq., Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:31 (fifteen years ago) link
well, You and Me looks like their most consistent effort, so it might be their best.(though it's really easy, cause even the "best" Walkmen records have too many weak moments in them imo) xpost
and it's Randy, Duh.
― Zeno, Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:36 (fifteen years ago) link
or is Zeno referring to Randy Newman? I know those dudes had a Nillson fixation there for a while, too.
too bad JF*E never really did much. I've been pretty obsessed with that stuff fore the last few months...
― will, Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:37 (fifteen years ago) link
xp,
Nilsson
― will, Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:38 (fifteen years ago) link
usually i hate those bands who "mature" into the boring seriousness of classic songwriters influence (like nick cave did for example), but i think this one would be an exception
― Zeno, Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:42 (fifteen years ago) link
"those dudes had a Nillson fixation there for a while"
they also played some Leonard Cohen covers in the dayrotter session or something
― Zeno, Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:45 (fifteen years ago) link
Randy Newman? UGGGHHHH. . .
― Daniel, Esq., Thursday, 24 July 2008 14:54 (fifteen years ago) link
usually i hate those bands who "mature" into the boring seriousness of classic songwriters influence (like nick cave did for example)
^^disagree strongly with this esp. in light of grinderman and dig lazerus dig (and actually abbatoir/lyre had some funny stuff like when he cracks up the gospel backup singers in "hiding" i love that moment")
― M@tt He1ges0n, Thursday, 24 July 2008 16:05 (fifteen years ago) link
hey, this is--unexpectedly-- pretty good!
― poortheatre, Sunday, 12 October 2008 13:54 (fifteen years ago) link
nice and autumnal
― poortheatre, Sunday, 12 October 2008 13:55 (fifteen years ago) link
Yeah, I'd given up after the last one as well. Definite return to form.
― Treblekicker, Sunday, 12 October 2008 14:06 (fifteen years ago) link
it's good, but i couldnt stand listening to it more than 2 weeks or so - maybe cause they take themselves too seriously or maybe cause the singer tends to be annoying
― Zeno, Sunday, 12 October 2008 14:52 (fifteen years ago) link
Don't know why, but I've always liked this band. Even "100 Miles" grew on me.
― slagterm, Sunday, 12 October 2008 19:17 (fifteen years ago) link
Whatever happened to Stuart Luptan?
― Pinto Basin, Monday, 13 October 2008 15:45 (fifteen years ago) link
i still think their first album is the best rock album of the decade so far... they're still fucking awesome live, too.
― winston, Tuesday, 14 October 2008 03:37 (fifteen years ago) link
Yep, this album is pretty great. My third-favorite of the year.
― Kevin Keller, Tuesday, 14 October 2008 03:49 (fifteen years ago) link
This grew on me, a lot. I like aping the strangulated vocals
― theslothproject, Sunday, 30 November 2008 04:21 (fifteen years ago) link
I dropped it into shuffle for a roadtrip and every time a track came up I'd think "oh what's this, it's a little too on-the-nose dylany"
― Passenger 57 (rogermexico.), Sunday, 30 November 2008 19:59 (fifteen years ago) link
The first Walkmen album is still the best Walkmen album. But this one's alright.
― ilxor, Monday, 1 December 2008 03:36 (fifteen years ago) link
^^^
― k3vin k., Monday, 1 December 2008 03:39 (fifteen years ago) link
though sub. "alright" for "really good" imo
― k3vin k., Monday, 1 December 2008 03:40 (fifteen years ago) link
ask kevin keller
― Cam3ron C. (wilter), Monday, 1 December 2008 03:44 (fifteen years ago) link
Everyone Who Pretended to Like Me Is Gone [Startime International, 2002]Just what we always wanted--Jonathan Fire*Eater grows up. Put some DreamWorks money into a studio, that was mature. Realized Radiohead was the greatest band in the world, brainy. Stopped playing so fast, hoo boy. And most important, switched vocalists from Nick Cave imitator to Rufus Wainwright imitator. Wainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouth, and not only that, Cave has more literary ability. New York scene or (hint hint) no New York scene, DreamWorks isn't buying. C+
In all seriousness, are there people who actually respect Robert Christgau? What does any of this even mean?
Anyway... re: Whatever happened to Stuart Luptan?
― Pinto Basin, Monday, October 13, 2008 4:45 PM (1 month ago)
He has a band called Child Ballads that has a few great songs (they released an EP on Loog records this past year), and he's been playing solo around DC... I think he has a show in the next couple weeks.
― Savannah Smiles, Wednesday, 3 December 2008 15:40 (fifteen years ago) link
"I lost you" is officially closing every mix tape i make for the rest of the year. i love that song soso much
― k3vin k., Wednesday, 3 December 2008 16:06 (fifteen years ago) link
Wainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouthWainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouthWainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouthWainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouthWainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouthWainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouthWainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouthWainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouthWainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouthWainwright makes up better melodies with a dick in his mouth
― ilxor, Thursday, 4 December 2008 07:15 (fifteen years ago) link
"i lost you" is still their best song, man, fuck
― k3vin k., Friday, 22 July 2016 05:06 (seven years ago) link
such a sad, perfect, forgotten record
― k3vin k., Sunday, 24 July 2016 02:34 (seven years ago) link
That is a great song. All their albums are pretty patchy imo, I actually thought Leithauser's album was surprisingly consistent by comparison.
― a serious and fascinating fartist (Simon H.), Sunday, 24 July 2016 02:58 (seven years ago) link
incredible live band. their set was heavy on this record (appropriately, as it’s their best)
― k3vin k., Sunday, 15 October 2023 03:56 (six months ago) link
Xgau couldn’t be more wrong about that record in particular
― The Triumphant Return of Bernard & Stubbs (Raymond Cummings), Sunday, 15 October 2023 13:19 (six months ago) link