Big Orange Crayonmusical thingsJets to Brazil Orange Rhyming Dictionary Jade Tree RecordsÊ (This was the first review I ever wrote. It's lame. It's embarassing. It's otherwise unaltered for posterity.) Before I start, you should know that I think that this is one of the best CDs I have ever heard.Ê The rest of this review is probably going to be gushing, but if you like that kind of thing, continue on.Ê The most surprising thing about this album is that there are no throwaway tracks:Ê I can listen to it all the way through without ever wanting to reach for the skip button.Ê Not to say there aren't highlights, though:Ê "Morning New Disease" is brilliant, the lyrical imagery in "Chinatown" is particularly vivid and "Lemon Yellow Black" sounds like Cracker when they don't suck, only more energetic.Ê Blake Schwarzenbach's voice is very punk rock (Jawbreaker, his former band, was more of a punk band), but he only shouts when necessary and on the whole the vocals are very pleasant.Ê On bass, Jeremy Chatelain got mad skillz, his bass lines are complex and melodic without taking away from the unity of the songs.Ê The three guys in the band make it absolutely clear that they know what they're doing and the result is better than almost anything else I've heard this year.Ê There probably isn't a better way to spend fourteen or so dollars than this album. (Gushing enough?) Total Score: 2740 out of 2740 Ê |