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| From | "Dan McKenzie" <dangie_1@msn.com> |
| Subject | Cheap Trick : The Latest |
| Date | Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:34:41 -0000 |
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I've had this disc for a full week now, and I must say I'm really enjoying it more & more with each listen.
The record as a whole does really seem to lean towards a mid-tempo pace, track for track I find it to be incredibly Beatlesque: the "Mind Games" nod on "Miracle", Bun's drumming on "Everybody Knows", etc. Also the fragmentary structures & short run times of many of the tunes gives the whole thing a "White Album" feel to me overall.
The entire disc is very layered with sound, lush, almost hazy at times, some of the tracks have a real lysergic vibe to me. Rick Nielsen's guitar work is the most understated it's ever been.
The guys did a fair amount of song recycling this time around: "Miss Tomorrow" was a b-side for one of the cd singles on Robin's solo disc from the early 90's. "California Girl" is a re-working of "Bad Little Girl" from the Scotty Moore/ DJ Fontana tribute disc, "Every Day You Make Me Crazy" was originally submitted (with different lyrics) to Pepsi for a commercial spot, and of course "When The Lights Are Out" is a Slade composition arranged with ELO Kiddies in mind. As far as I'm concerned, all of these tracks work well here, and the general public will be none the wiser in regards to these guys "cleaning out their closets".
I wonder if Geoff Emerick will be able to get George Martin to take a listen, cause this really seems to have his stamp on it in regards to arrangements, etc. In my eyes, Cheap Trick has released a 2009 version of a mid/late-period Beatles album here.
Glad to see Julian Raymond get a full production credit here after helping the group with songwriting, etc. these past few projects.
I don't really like "The Latest" in the same way I liked "Rockford" (a perfect power pop collection) , but I do like it equally as well. As far as I'm concerned, these guys are on a heck of a creative run lately, very proud to be a longtime fan!
Happy 4th of July to everyone.
- Dan McKenzie
http://www.myspace.com/thegilliganspop
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