Genre: American pop/rock
Places I remember: An MNAC selection by Mr Lewis Kirkham
Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: This (Is What I Wanted To Tell You)
Gear costume: Crossroads, Or What This Says About You
Active compensatory factors: I'm new to Lambchop. Although I have heard their songs on compilations over the years, this is the first time I've listened to a whole album.
This means, unlike Lew who has grown up with this music since pre teenagerhood, I don't have a real context to appreciate their music. An important distinction to keep in mind: my music appreciation began in the late sixties and I rate the 1971 t0 1977 period as my formative years. the time when it's MY music!
As a 60something I now have a lot of musical baggage. I know what I like, in other words.
That said, I'm happy that Lew suggested this album. It was about time I listened to an album released in 2019.
It must be said that this 2019 version of Lambchop is a long way from their early Alt Country style which must have initially hooked Lew back in the mid nineties. As he's grown and matured, so have Lambchop.
Lambchop now sounds very grown up! For me, the often sparse/ floaty instrumentation is cool, as are the sophisticated rhythms, but the electronica... I'm not a huge fan of this aspect: the urban doh/veet's in Everything For You grated and the vocoder treatment on the vocals did nothing for me I'm afraid.
In fact, it's the vocal embellishments that progressively annoyed me. I found myself really aching to hear the songs in a rawer state.
For that reason the title song is my favourite track. The hint of some muted trumpet (a 'real' instrument, rather than the electronic drums and blips and beeps) was also a welcome point of difference.
Where do they all belong? Definitely a worthwhile experience but without the history (this isn't MY music), it left me wanting to listen to my Golden Smog CDs!
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