2008 Woodie Awards
Great bands, disappointing summer
Joe McCormack '07 writes about three summer music releases that did not live up to the hype
Joe McCormack '07
Issue date: 9/15/06 Section: Arts & Entertainment
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Sufjan Stevens
The Avalanche: Outtakes & Extras from the Illinois Album
Asthmatic Kitty
No one, including Sufjan Stevens, seems to think that the outtakes from his 2005 masterpiece, Illinois, are able to stand on their own. The front of the album, in fact, reads in child-bubble letters, "Shamelessly compiled by Sufjan Stevens." It is as if Stevens, who co-owns his record company, has preempted the inevitable reissues and "legacy editions" that Illinois will engender once enough time has passed for it to be considered a classic. It may, however, seem a little ostentatious to do so exactly one year and six days after the original release.
I have to admit, the thing that convinced me to buy The Avalanche was the promise of three alternate versions of the thrilling and multi-layered "Chicago," the song that acted as a centerpiece for Illinois. Those three tracks turned out to be some of the least interesting material on the album: a testament to the fickle and precise art of arranging.
Songs such as the title track, "Springfield, or Bobby Got a Shadfly Caught in his Hair," and "Pittsfield" would have fit seamlessly on Illinois. Others, however, clearly do not belong. Several songs, such as "Dear Mr. Supercomputer" use electronic arrangements over real instruments, showing that Stevens is willing to explore and expand his trademark aesthetic, though not necessarily always for the better. As could be expected, this "shamelessly compiled" collection does not amaze, nor attempts to. Oh well, let's continue waiting for Rhode Island!
Grade: C+
Tool
10,000 Days
Volcano
Tool is innovative. The group is unable to be pigeon-holed. It always pushes the musical and artistic envelope. That is until this album. Though a good album in its own right, 10,000 Days halts the progress that Tool has been making since the early '90s dead in its tracks. Once unable to be pinned down, Tool has now landed squarely between Prog Rock, Mainstream Rock, and Metal. The polyrhythms and atmospheres that, on Lateralus, seemed as ancient as mathematics seem here to be, at times, unaffecting and even trite.
The Avalanche: Outtakes & Extras from the Illinois Album
Asthmatic Kitty
No one, including Sufjan Stevens, seems to think that the outtakes from his 2005 masterpiece, Illinois, are able to stand on their own. The front of the album, in fact, reads in child-bubble letters, "Shamelessly compiled by Sufjan Stevens." It is as if Stevens, who co-owns his record company, has preempted the inevitable reissues and "legacy editions" that Illinois will engender once enough time has passed for it to be considered a classic. It may, however, seem a little ostentatious to do so exactly one year and six days after the original release.
I have to admit, the thing that convinced me to buy The Avalanche was the promise of three alternate versions of the thrilling and multi-layered "Chicago," the song that acted as a centerpiece for Illinois. Those three tracks turned out to be some of the least interesting material on the album: a testament to the fickle and precise art of arranging.
Songs such as the title track, "Springfield, or Bobby Got a Shadfly Caught in his Hair," and "Pittsfield" would have fit seamlessly on Illinois. Others, however, clearly do not belong. Several songs, such as "Dear Mr. Supercomputer" use electronic arrangements over real instruments, showing that Stevens is willing to explore and expand his trademark aesthetic, though not necessarily always for the better. As could be expected, this "shamelessly compiled" collection does not amaze, nor attempts to. Oh well, let's continue waiting for Rhode Island!
Grade: C+
Tool
10,000 Days
Volcano
Tool is innovative. The group is unable to be pigeon-holed. It always pushes the musical and artistic envelope. That is until this album. Though a good album in its own right, 10,000 Days halts the progress that Tool has been making since the early '90s dead in its tracks. Once unable to be pinned down, Tool has now landed squarely between Prog Rock, Mainstream Rock, and Metal. The polyrhythms and atmospheres that, on Lateralus, seemed as ancient as mathematics seem here to be, at times, unaffecting and even trite.