THURSDAY,FEBRUARY 13,2003
MUSIC
2
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 13
All-American Rejects (self-titled debut)
Reviewed by Nate Harold
nharold@kansan.com
Here is a money-saving tip. If, for some unknown reason, you feel compelled to purchase the All-American Rejects' album after hearing the hit song "Swing," opt for the single instead. Take the compact disc home, put the song on repeat for 12 times and you basically have the full-length debut from these Oklahoma rockers.
On their
self-titled Dreamworks release, The All-American Rejects regurgitate mid- '90s pop rock, power pop and adult contemporary in an all
Contributed art
too derivative sound. Overuse of the drum machine, over the top production and a general repetitious feel to every song hampers what should be a promising debut from a young Midwest band. Vocalist Blub Blub croons sweetly and emotionally about love lost and other trials and tribulations of being a 20-year-old underground heartthrob on MTV.
Clichéd lyrics and repetitious chord progressions are standard fare on every track. Bored? Try the excitement of guessing the next line, it's easy!
Pilar Pena/Kansan
Robert Flynn, Kansas City, Mo., senior, shoots images of different buildings on campus for an independent study project. Flynn is currently working on creating an intro for a new KUJH program.
Vocalist/lyricist Blub Blub makes use of every overused and cliched line in the love song book, making listeners feel like they bought a listeners' guide to corny lyrics.
Track four begins with an electronic drum beat and acoustic guitar riff reminiscent of current adult contemporary. As the song progresses, the listener begins to realize the familiarity to other popular songs, like hits by Michelle Branch and Barenaked Ladies. I'm not kidding, it's that bad. What was Doghouse, the indie label that discovered the band, thinking?
GRADE:F+
From Music in High Places Unwritten Law Reviewed by Steve Vockrodt svockrodt@kansan.com
Rarely has a live-recorded acoustic
Opening credits
a l b u m sounded as good as Unwritten Law's latest release From Music In High Places.
The fact Unwritten Law recorded
Contributed art
the album in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming without the acoustic, artificial luxuries of a recording studio makes the album all the more impressive.
Other notable live-recorded acoustic albums exist, but none so flawless as From Music In High Places. Nirvana's Unplugged In New York set the standard in many ways as the premiere acoustic live album for alternative rock, but many flaws appeared on the record.
Live and Alice In Chains put forth worthy efforts, thanks to the former MTV Unplugged series that has since fallen off the planet along with the rest of MTV's programming. With the technological advantages those bands had in a studio setting over Unwritten Law in a natural setting, the surprising aspect of Unwritten Law's album was the smooth and perfected sound of every instrument, even Scott Russo's vocals.
Originally a punk rock band, Unwritten Law has gradually taken the edge off much of its music over the years. Its previous album Elva was a step down from its previous self-titled album with its sentimental first single "Seein' Red."
"Seein' Red," along with the other single from Elva "Up All Night" are the true gems on this album featuring an otherwise solid but not stellar tracklisting.
Taking a punk rock band and all its three-chord musical sophistication into an acoustic setting generally would produce a pretty bland result. Unwritten Law's tweaking and manipulation of its arrangements create some much-needed variance to its set on the album.
Enough treatment to its sound, along with the outstanding nature of the recorded sound, results in a generally listenable and likable record, although still not quite on the level of Nirvana or Alice In Chains on their respective live acoustic albums in terms of emotional exigency and musical refinement.
Unwritten Law, however, does offer a very competent album in its place with solid arrangements of old fan-favorites that should treat longtime followers not already disoriented by their gradual change in musical approach.
GRADE:B
Read all about it on www.kansan.com
PJ/AYKN (VWB3B72CP2) (C0F0D0)