Maybe ours is a soundtrack of the future
Nov. 27th, 2004 06:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vovatI now have an optical mouse! Hopefully this will last longer than that old one. I also went to Pep Boys to get a replacement hubcap for the one I’d lost. It was a lot cheaper and faster getting it from there than from the dealer. While I hope not to lose any more hubcaps, I’ll probably go back there if it DOES happen another time.
Okay, as promised (or suggested, anyway), here’s my review of the Future Soundtrack for America. To start with, it’s kind of depressing that the immediate purpose of the CD wasn’t fulfilled. The country DIDN’T move on, and the current soundtrack for America is still made up of the likes of Britney Spears and Toby Keith.
Anyway, going song by song:
This Will Be Our Year (OK Go)—This is pretty good. Not super-great or anything, but a solid song. I really don’t know that much about OK Go. I checked their album out from the library once, but I think I only listened to it once. It was better than I expected, really. Maybe I should give it another listen, assuming the library still has it.
Ain’t Got So Far To Go (David Byrne)—I had already heard this song, since it was on the mix CD that![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
countblastula made for me. I think it’s one of the better songs on the compilation. I like the contrast between verse and chorus.
Game Of Pricks (Jimmy Eat World)—Not that bad, but not that good, either. It has a good amount of energy to it, but isn’t anything spectacular.
This Temporary Life (Death Cab for Cutie)—I’ve been kind of prejudiced against Death Cab for a while, without having actually heard any of their songs (to the best of my knowledge, anyway). I guess I’ve heard one now. The thing is, I think this song COULD be good if it went somewhere. As it is, it kind of drags. The singer’s voice is pretty good, though.
I Miss You (Blink-182)—I don’t care for Blink-182, but apparently people connected with things I like are fans of theirs, since not only are they here, but members of the band make pointless cameo appearances in Gigantic and on that Simpsons episode where Bart gets emancipated. This particular song is all right until the overly whiny lead vocals come in. What is it with whiny vocals being popular with the young people nowadays? The only band I can think of where whiny singing actually worked was Lincoln.
Move On (Mike Doughty)—I know Doughty is the guy from Soul Coughing, but I’ve never really heard much by that band. I’m kind of interested in them, though. I did see Doughty open for They Might Be Giants back in 2000, but I can’t remember much of anything he played. And, of course, he collaborated with TMBG on “Your Mom’s Alright” (which is a cool song) and “Mr. Xcitement” (which, well, kinda sucks). Oh, and I liked that “Frog And Banjo” song that he did for McSweeney’s. “Move On” seems to be one of the most tailor-made songs on the compilation, since it’s about current events, and takes its title from the name of the organization that sponsored the CD. It’s a pretty good song, if a little on the longish side.
Jerry Falwell Destroyed Earth (Ben Kweller)—I kind of expected more from a song with that title. {g} It’s okay for what it is, which is a short, kind of punkish number.
Off With Your Head (Sleater-Kinney)—The first song on the album with female vocals. I’m not really sure what I think of this one. It doesn’t bother me, but it doesn’t stand out for me, either.
Final Straw (R.E.M.)—This is actually a good song. I’ve always been kind of not-so-thrilled by R.E.M., despite the fact that they’re connected to so many bands I DO really like (they used to open for XTC, Camper Van Beethoven opened for them, Peter Buck is a member of the Minus 5, etc.). I mean, I don’t DISLIKE them, but I’ve never been a fan, either. But yeah, I think I like this particular song. It has a good sound to it.
Going For The Gold (Bright Eyes)—Eh, I don’t really care for the guy’s voice, and there really isn’t much music to speak of. It’s more a spoken-word kind of thing. Not that that’s necessarily bad, but I don’t think it works so well here.
The Commander Thinks Aloud (Long Winters)—I think I first heard of this band when they were on tour with the Decemberists. Clever combination, huh? I didn’t know much about either band at that point. Since then, I’ve gotten to like the Decemberists, but I still don’t know much about the Long Winters. This song has an interesting sound to it, but I don’t love it or anything. The lead singer’s voice is a little on the weird side, but it’s considerably better than that of the guy from Bright Eyes.
Money (will.i.am of The Black-Eyed Peas)—A rap song about the power of money, with a heavy trumpet part. It provides some variety, which is good.
Tippecanoe And Tyler Too (TMBG)—This song is the main reason I wanted the CD, and it didn’t disappoint. Considering that it’s a cover of an old campaign song, I find it interesting that the lyric “Van is a used-up man” sounds like something the Johns would write. I’m not sure if that means they picked a song that was similar to something they would have written, or just that the Johns like to use early nineteenth-century sorts of expressions. By the way, this is the second TMBG song that mentions Martin Van Buren, isn’t it?
The Ballad Of David Icke (Clem Snide)—I think the words to this one are good, but the sound of the vocal is a little grating. I don’t think I’d ever heard of Clem before this, by the way.
Date With The Night (Yeah Yeah Yeahs)—Another song that I think is marred by poor vocals. I get the idea that the lead chick is singing that way on purpose, but I still don’t care for it. Oh, well. Seems to me I’ve heard at least one other song by this band, but I can’t remember what it sounded like.
Everything’s Ruined (Fountains of Wayne)—I like this one, but don’t have that much to say about it. Fairly typical of the band’s sound, but that’s not a bad thing at all. That reminds me that I should askbethje if I can borrow her FoW CDs.
Your Legs Grow (Nada Surf)—Another pretty good song. I could see this one growing on me.
Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (Flaming Lips)—I actually checked out the Yoshimi album from the library the same day I got the OK Go CD, and I really liked it. In fact, it might be worth adding to my wishlist. This live, piano-based version of the title song is pretty darned cool as well.
Northern Line (Old 97’s)—This is pretty catchy, if a little on the long side.
Sam Stone (Laura Cantrell)—I had heard the original version of this song on a John Prine tape that my dad had, and I didn’t care for it. I DO like this cover, though. I think the main reason for this is that Mr. Prine is kind of a lousy singer, while Ms. Cantrell is excellent in the vocal department. Maybe I’d like some of Prine’s other songs if Laura (or someone else I liked) were to sing them. By the way, I tend to really like the mandolin work on Laura’s songs. I checked the liner notes for When the Roses Bloom Again, and it says the mandolin was played by Jon Graboff. I’m not sure who that is, or whether he’s also playing the instrument on “Sam Stone.”
Day After Tomorrow (Tom Waits)—Speaking of lousy singers, Mr. Waits is someone whom other musicians seem to love, but I don’t care for his voice. The thing is, Frank Black and Moxy Früvous both covered Waits songs, and I liked the covers. I think Tori Amos also did one of his songs on Strange Little Girls. I guess maybe I like Tom all right as a writer, but not as a singer. I guess he’s in pretty much the same category as Leonard Cohen (who also had songs covered by Frank and Tori). So, anyway, I don’t care for the song, but maybe I’d like it if someone else were singing it.
A Distorted Reality Is Now A Necessity To Be Free (Elliott Smith)—This is good, although I think it might take a few more listens to get the full effect. Everyone seems to love Elliott Smith. I wonder if I should check out more of his music. Incidentally, the liner notes for this song end with “Elliott, we miss you.”
So, while I’m not that thrilled by some tracks, it’s a pretty good compilation as a whole.
Okay, as promised (or suggested, anyway), here’s my review of the Future Soundtrack for America. To start with, it’s kind of depressing that the immediate purpose of the CD wasn’t fulfilled. The country DIDN’T move on, and the current soundtrack for America is still made up of the likes of Britney Spears and Toby Keith.
Anyway, going song by song:
This Will Be Our Year (OK Go)—This is pretty good. Not super-great or anything, but a solid song. I really don’t know that much about OK Go. I checked their album out from the library once, but I think I only listened to it once. It was better than I expected, really. Maybe I should give it another listen, assuming the library still has it.
Ain’t Got So Far To Go (David Byrne)—I had already heard this song, since it was on the mix CD that
countblastula made for me. I think it’s one of the better songs on the compilation. I like the contrast between verse and chorus.Game Of Pricks (Jimmy Eat World)—Not that bad, but not that good, either. It has a good amount of energy to it, but isn’t anything spectacular.
This Temporary Life (Death Cab for Cutie)—I’ve been kind of prejudiced against Death Cab for a while, without having actually heard any of their songs (to the best of my knowledge, anyway). I guess I’ve heard one now. The thing is, I think this song COULD be good if it went somewhere. As it is, it kind of drags. The singer’s voice is pretty good, though.
I Miss You (Blink-182)—I don’t care for Blink-182, but apparently people connected with things I like are fans of theirs, since not only are they here, but members of the band make pointless cameo appearances in Gigantic and on that Simpsons episode where Bart gets emancipated. This particular song is all right until the overly whiny lead vocals come in. What is it with whiny vocals being popular with the young people nowadays? The only band I can think of where whiny singing actually worked was Lincoln.
Move On (Mike Doughty)—I know Doughty is the guy from Soul Coughing, but I’ve never really heard much by that band. I’m kind of interested in them, though. I did see Doughty open for They Might Be Giants back in 2000, but I can’t remember much of anything he played. And, of course, he collaborated with TMBG on “Your Mom’s Alright” (which is a cool song) and “Mr. Xcitement” (which, well, kinda sucks). Oh, and I liked that “Frog And Banjo” song that he did for McSweeney’s. “Move On” seems to be one of the most tailor-made songs on the compilation, since it’s about current events, and takes its title from the name of the organization that sponsored the CD. It’s a pretty good song, if a little on the longish side.
Jerry Falwell Destroyed Earth (Ben Kweller)—I kind of expected more from a song with that title. {g} It’s okay for what it is, which is a short, kind of punkish number.
Off With Your Head (Sleater-Kinney)—The first song on the album with female vocals. I’m not really sure what I think of this one. It doesn’t bother me, but it doesn’t stand out for me, either.
Final Straw (R.E.M.)—This is actually a good song. I’ve always been kind of not-so-thrilled by R.E.M., despite the fact that they’re connected to so many bands I DO really like (they used to open for XTC, Camper Van Beethoven opened for them, Peter Buck is a member of the Minus 5, etc.). I mean, I don’t DISLIKE them, but I’ve never been a fan, either. But yeah, I think I like this particular song. It has a good sound to it.
Going For The Gold (Bright Eyes)—Eh, I don’t really care for the guy’s voice, and there really isn’t much music to speak of. It’s more a spoken-word kind of thing. Not that that’s necessarily bad, but I don’t think it works so well here.
The Commander Thinks Aloud (Long Winters)—I think I first heard of this band when they were on tour with the Decemberists. Clever combination, huh? I didn’t know much about either band at that point. Since then, I’ve gotten to like the Decemberists, but I still don’t know much about the Long Winters. This song has an interesting sound to it, but I don’t love it or anything. The lead singer’s voice is a little on the weird side, but it’s considerably better than that of the guy from Bright Eyes.
Money (will.i.am of The Black-Eyed Peas)—A rap song about the power of money, with a heavy trumpet part. It provides some variety, which is good.
Tippecanoe And Tyler Too (TMBG)—This song is the main reason I wanted the CD, and it didn’t disappoint. Considering that it’s a cover of an old campaign song, I find it interesting that the lyric “Van is a used-up man” sounds like something the Johns would write. I’m not sure if that means they picked a song that was similar to something they would have written, or just that the Johns like to use early nineteenth-century sorts of expressions. By the way, this is the second TMBG song that mentions Martin Van Buren, isn’t it?
The Ballad Of David Icke (Clem Snide)—I think the words to this one are good, but the sound of the vocal is a little grating. I don’t think I’d ever heard of Clem before this, by the way.
Date With The Night (Yeah Yeah Yeahs)—Another song that I think is marred by poor vocals. I get the idea that the lead chick is singing that way on purpose, but I still don’t care for it. Oh, well. Seems to me I’ve heard at least one other song by this band, but I can’t remember what it sounded like.
Everything’s Ruined (Fountains of Wayne)—I like this one, but don’t have that much to say about it. Fairly typical of the band’s sound, but that’s not a bad thing at all. That reminds me that I should ask
bethje if I can borrow her FoW CDs.Your Legs Grow (Nada Surf)—Another pretty good song. I could see this one growing on me.
Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (Flaming Lips)—I actually checked out the Yoshimi album from the library the same day I got the OK Go CD, and I really liked it. In fact, it might be worth adding to my wishlist. This live, piano-based version of the title song is pretty darned cool as well.
Northern Line (Old 97’s)—This is pretty catchy, if a little on the long side.
Sam Stone (Laura Cantrell)—I had heard the original version of this song on a John Prine tape that my dad had, and I didn’t care for it. I DO like this cover, though. I think the main reason for this is that Mr. Prine is kind of a lousy singer, while Ms. Cantrell is excellent in the vocal department. Maybe I’d like some of Prine’s other songs if Laura (or someone else I liked) were to sing them. By the way, I tend to really like the mandolin work on Laura’s songs. I checked the liner notes for When the Roses Bloom Again, and it says the mandolin was played by Jon Graboff. I’m not sure who that is, or whether he’s also playing the instrument on “Sam Stone.”
Day After Tomorrow (Tom Waits)—Speaking of lousy singers, Mr. Waits is someone whom other musicians seem to love, but I don’t care for his voice. The thing is, Frank Black and Moxy Früvous both covered Waits songs, and I liked the covers. I think Tori Amos also did one of his songs on Strange Little Girls. I guess maybe I like Tom all right as a writer, but not as a singer. I guess he’s in pretty much the same category as Leonard Cohen (who also had songs covered by Frank and Tori). So, anyway, I don’t care for the song, but maybe I’d like it if someone else were singing it.
A Distorted Reality Is Now A Necessity To Be Free (Elliott Smith)—This is good, although I think it might take a few more listens to get the full effect. Everyone seems to love Elliott Smith. I wonder if I should check out more of his music. Incidentally, the liner notes for this song end with “Elliott, we miss you.”
So, while I’m not that thrilled by some tracks, it’s a pretty good compilation as a whole.
