Haha.

Back to the album. I don't like it at all, and will go down in my book as one of this year's biggest letdowns for me. I would much rather listen to one of the weakest songs from Apologies over and over again than to listen to this album.

It's not that it's bad, because it's not. Fans of Sunset Rubdown will love it. Fans of Wolf Parade will probably be dissapointed.

I don't know. I agree with anyone who likes Dan's songs more. This is his album for me, and many of his contribution are sublime, as least for now.

Being the Sunset Rubdown fanboy that I am, I've been enjoying this album so far. Although I haven't given it quite the listen that I would like to yet.

Oh my...I HATE the cover art...

Ya, ya, Pitchfork's putting it into the 2008 cover art HOF, but I don't like it one bit.

Ugly. Stupid. And I hate the album title more and more every minute.

Love the songs, however.

Okay, now I'm warming up to Krug's material. This is sounding very good to my ears. It would easily make it onto a top 10 update for me. It's missing a little of the drama of the debut, but there's progression here, maturity.

I'm also disapointed by the cover art, but I don't think it's awful.

Apologies to the Queen Mary didn't have very awesome cover art either, and now I kindof love the blue and white lines on the the CD that has sat in my case all these years.

Anyone else think There is something very Pavement about this cut and paste artistic style?

quote:

Originally posted by Shadrach:

Anyone else think There is something very Pavement about this cut and paste artistic style?

Hmmm, maybe a bit. None of Pavement's album covers are nearly that ugly though. I mean the Slanted and Enchanted cover is pretty twisted, but it's appropriate for the music.

It looks pretty cool to me, but it doesn't exactly fit with the band's streamlined sound.

I like the cover art quite a bit

You're gonna like it even more after you hear it. To me it's a comparable attempt at evolution to The New Pornographers', but this one plays to the strengths of the band, whereas the Pornos should never have admitted how old they were getting in a musical document that everyone would hear, duh.

EDIT: Here's a link to an early review http://jtmsoitgoes.blogspot.com/2008/04/capsule-review-at-mount-zoomer.html

This message has been edited. Last edited by: goathouse's enlarging prostate,

The P4k album covers hall of fame was completely tongue-in-cheek because they had previously ripped on the new Weezer album cover (which does look like the Village People indeed)and the others as well.

That said, the artwork on this is especially heinous, but does that really detract some people from the music? I'm not suggesting anyone said that, i'm kind of curious. I guess if people just browse the racks looking for something that looks cool, they may stumble upon this and think, "wow, this has got to be shit," but they would also be wrong.

Art shmart. Who cares when this album is this good.

quote:

Originally posted by CleverName84:
That said, the artwork on this is especially heinous, but does that really detract some people from the music? I'm not suggesting anyone said that, i'm kind of curious.

Unfortunately for me, it is a factor. I'm an album art-snob I guess.

It's not like if the album art sucks I won't buy it, it just decreases the chances. (And vice-versa for good album art.)

I buy all the CDs of my favorite bands, but when it comes to bands like Wolf Parade, where I don't care either way for them, the art is a factor. (And I wish it wasn't...)

Art also factors into how much I play certain albums that I own. When I'm in the mood for music, the thought process that goes through my head: album covers, because that's what I visualize...picking up the CD and playing it.
If I visualize Apologies... I'm most likely going to play it, because I, for one, love the art...a lot. (The cardboard CD case has something to do with it too...I LOOOVE those, and buying albums just for the sake of having the cardboard case is another story.)

The music has to be good for me to buy it, and if I really like it, regardless, I'll buy it, but when the art sucks, and the music is good, but not great, the chances of me buying the album decrease a lot.

Again, I'm not really happy that's how my brain works, but I can't really control that pyschological part of it...
If the album art for this album was good, I'd be buying it, but now...I'm not so sure...it might come down to whether it's a cardboard CD case again...

I think it's very good - the first five songs are particularly strong.

Nothing on it has blown me away or really impressed me that much. But it is highly listenable.

Album Art factoring into buying albums... Really makes no sense at all to me. I can't express it in words.

I'm going to agree that album art plays a factor in how well the album really is from times I've gone to bands I've never listened to before on allmusic and been able to pick out which one of their albums got the AMG album pick based purely on how the art was.

quote:

Originally posted by Liberalkid:
Album Art factoring into buying albums... Really makes no sense at all to me. I can't express it in words.

Obviously you are in a minority of sorts. Or else there wouldn't be album art in the first place? Just an observation.

It probably relates to me not buying a lot of music and making my decisions based on recommendations and a band's sound.

For those people who are saying that Dan's songs are stronger, what songs are you referring to? I feel like "The Grey Estates" and "Fine Young Cannibals" are just good while "An Animal In Your Care" is the only Spencer-penned song that I don't think is brilliant.

"Soldier's Grin" and "Language City" are probably the best songs he's ever written, though.

quote:

Originally posted by L. R. William Spencer:
For those people who are saying that Dan's songs are stronger, what songs are you referring to? I feel like "The Grey Estates" and "Fine Young Cannibals" are just good while "An Animal In Your Care" is the only Spencer-penned song that I don't think is brilliant.

"Soldier's Grin" and "Language City" are probably the best songs he's ever written, though.

First of all, I'd like to say I enjoyed every song on the album, this is top-to-bottom a fine rock record. I usually prefer Krug over Boeckner, but on this record, the best tracks are Boeckner tracks.

"Soldier's Grin", "Language City" And "The Grey Estates" are the 3 best tracks, with "Call It a Ritual" and "An Animal in Your Care" following. So by my count, that would make the Boeckner tracks better than Krug's.

"Bang Your Drum" is the weakest song on the album, if I had to pick, followed by "California Dreamer" both of which were written by Krug.

But even the weakest songs are great, so heck, we could just call it even.

quote:

Originally posted by anbc:

quote:

Originally posted by L. R. William Spencer:
For those people who are saying that Dan's songs are stronger, what songs are you referring to? I feel like "The Grey Estates" and "Fine Young Cannibals" are just good while "An Animal In Your Care" is the only Spencer-penned song that I don't think is brilliant.

"Soldier's Grin" and "Language City" are probably the best songs he's ever written, though.

First of all, I'd like to say I enjoyed every song on the album, this is top-to-bottom a fine rock record. I usually prefer Krug over Boeckner, but on this record, the best tracks are Boeckner tracks.

"Soldier's Grin", "Language City" And "The Grey Estates" are the 3 best tracks, with "Call It a Ritual" and "An Animal in Your Care" following. So by my count, that would make the Boeckner tracks better than Krug's.

"Bang Your Drum" is the weakest song on the album, if I had to pick, followed by "California Dreamer" both of which were written by Krug.

But even the weakest songs are great, so heck, we could just call it even.

I take it you're not a Sunset Rubdown fan?