| re: Another Braver Review | |
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Posted by: |
Jsteinfan 11:43 am UTC 07/07/16 |
| In reply to: | re: Another Braver Review - daveake 08:18 am UTC 07/07/16 |
| Ali, I got dave's 2 beers! & I'm hoping the steinman themed drinks will be better than the ones at the Meat Loaf concert I went to in Long Island and the Neverland we had on the rooftop. You got to admit the atmosphere was worth it....it was like we were shrinkwrapped on a roof. I should go back this summer minus the Neverland's. -J > 4 comments, in no particular order ... > > 1 - mine's a beer :-) > 2 - Great review! > 3 - SIT is my favourite new thing also > 4 - I complained a while back, after hearing some samples, > about Meat's voice. Cancel that. Where his voice is > ravaged, it works for the song. I can now hear the entire > album with thinking "arrgh wish he'd sung that years ago > instead" > 5 - mine's a beer > 6 - Obviously, I lose the ability to count after 2 beers > > Dave > > > Firstly a note of reassurance. Have you been let down by a > > Meatloaf album before? Don’t worry: this one’s good. You > > can trust it. It will be there for you. > > > > Apologies that this is so long. I got carried away and > > then kept on going… > > > > > > Who needs the young? > > Like a middle aged lady sitting in a theatre eating a > > homemade packed lunch with her legs wide open, Who Needs > > the Young is as gloriously unselfconscious as ever. After > > a rather cute little opening bridge which capers on to the > > scene like an overexcited terrier at a fairground, the > > intro gradually settles and matures into something that > > gets gradually sexier until the main melody bursts forth > > like an unexpected erection. Unleashed for the first time > > upon a new generation that has forgotten that punk ever > > happened, this is a song that is going to offend a lot of > > people. There is something rather wonderful about that. > > > > Meatloaf's voice, ravaged by years of overuse lends the > > words a special poignancy: the line “My voice just isn’t > > what it was!” suddenly sounds courageous and powerful. > > Great art does not always have to be beautiful and this > > album is very much a work of art. > > > > > > Going all the way > > There are very few rock songs that can justify a > > playlength of greater than ten minutes and to the best of > > my knowledge Jim Steinman has written all of them. Like > > some sort of musical King Midas, his production turns > > everything it touches to aural gold, and never more so > > than when he applies it to his own material. Going all the > > way is a true Steinman classic in his usual inimitable > > style. Don’t be fooled by the beginning: this is not just > > another version of “Braver than We Are”: this is so much > > more. > > > > > > Speaking in Tongues > > Speaking in Tongues is my new favourite thing: not only my > > favourite song on the album but currently my favourite > > thing. I genuinely like it more than I like, say, coffee > > or my sofa or anything else I'm fond of. > > > > This is a *perfect* song. One of Steinman's great > > strengths as a writer is, and always has been his > > willingness to ‘go there’: "There are things that we learn > > at the end of life, there are things we learned at the > > start" is a line of huge poignancy. Meanwhile the gentle > > acoustic accompaniment is the aural equivalent of lying in > > a bath full of warm honey with someone gently massaging > > your shoulders. Mmm… > > > > > > Loving you’s a dirty job: > > Justification if ever it was needed for Steinman’s policy > > of reworking songs until they reach perfection, this feels > > genuinely revitalised. The real touch of genius is the new > > backing riff, which announces its presence as soon as the > > track begins and adds something that you will never have > > realised was missing before. I’m not sure I can listen to > > Bonnie’s version again after this. > > > > > > Souvenirs > > I like this song more the more I hear it. It starts with a > > rather gorgeous saxophone intro (we’re back in the bath of > > honey again) then gradually works itself into a delightful > > frenzy of classic Steinmanian/Meatloavian excess. > > > > The line “crying icicles instead of tears” is a throwback > > to “Two out of three aint bad” and the melody echoes Left > > in the Dark in places, but nevertheless this stands alone > > as a genuinely great track and I would probably like it > > more if the first four tracks weren’t quite so > > exceptional. > > > > > > Only when I feel > > More spoken than sung at times, this does feel very much > > like what it is, part of a larger whole. I solved the > > problem that others have complained of by simply attaching > > “Break it” to it on my playlist. Problem solved. ;) > > > > > > More > > More is a true heavy rock anthem and Meatloaf growls his > > way through it like an angry tiger at a disco. The female > > vocal line begins to take over towards the end of the > > song, drifting gently out over the cacophony like candy > > floating incongruously in a vat of boiling lead. Fans of > > "Life is a Lemon" will love it... > > > > > > Godz > > A familiar classic from Tanz der Vampire, this is as > > brilliant as ever. Please set aside any worries that > > Meatloaf might not do the song justice, he really really > > does. > > > > > > Train of Love > > Very polished and Meatloaf’s vocal performance is one of > > the best on the album. If I’m going to be picky, and > > that’s after all what reviews are for, it lacks the > > emotional poignancy of the earlier tracks, but it’s still > > very enjoyable. > > > > If you haven’t already heard Braver then you’re in for a > > treat: this album is one more perfect primal scream from > > the team that changed music forever. > > > > ------ > > > > I think this may actually be my longest Rockman post ever. > > If you’re still reading this then I’m very touched: if > > you’re coming to Manchester in February I will buy you a > > drink! > > > > Now I’m going to go back to listening to Speaking in > > Tongues on repeat another 30 times… > > | |
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