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Post subject: Re: Sleater Kinney / Wild Flag / Quasi / related bands
Posted: Sun June 13, 2021 8:30 am
AnalLog
Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 9:02 am Posts: 1440 Location: Netherlands
ridleybradout wrote:
As someone who really liked the first two post-hiatus albums, I’m not really feeling this one yet. ‘Favorite Neighbor’ is the only one that’s really hitting the spot so far.
Some of the Corin songs sound very reminiscent of her solo records, which I liked, but guess it’s just not what I want from a S-K record. Here’s to hoping it’s a slow burner
I agree. This new album sounds great but Im used to SK blowing my mind with new stuff. But it's a great record and I really dig the first half. It's a different beast in their catalogue
Post subject: Re: Sleater Kinney / Wild Flag / Quasi / related bands
Posted: Sun June 13, 2021 3:40 pm
AnalLog
Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 7:12 am Posts: 1642 Location: The Jungle
Taking the Wild Flag album, and Corins solo work, + the last 2 albums, I think this is the musical direction Carrie and Corin are heading, the sound, the vibe.
Which really makes No Cities To Love seem like Janet trying to keep them to the "old sound"
I think if I cherry picked my fav songs off the last 2 albums I could make a really good album, but the other songs are just so lacking.
Post subject: Re: Sleater Kinney / Wild Flag / Quasi / related bands
Posted: Sun June 13, 2021 7:52 pm
Rank This Poster
Joined: Thu January 03, 2013 1:10 am Posts: 3729
Finally had a chance to listen to it, and am still sitting with it. I like it, although it's another surprise in their discography, mainly because it's a fairly moody, even mellow album, and I think before now it would have been impossible for me to even imagine what a "mellow" Sleater-Kinney record could sound like; even something like The Hot Rock, which was probably their moodiest record, thus far, is imbued with anxious energy in every part and how they're played.
But this actually makes me more interested, rather than less; No Cities To Love was so great because that sound had been gone for ten years, and we thought it might never come back again. To hear it again in great songs was awesome, but that's probably a trick that can only work once. It's hard to imagine this band trying to write something like The Woods and outdoing it.
I don't know if I could put this above anything from the pretty much perfect Call The Doctor --> The Woods run, but that's one of the all-time stretches in indie rock. It sounds pretty great as something that adds another wrinkle to their catalog; after all, the long hiatus throws us off, but they formed this band almost 30 years ago. They've been around a very, very long time. A review likened this album to R.E.M.'s 'Up,' which I hear not necessarily in sound, but mood and in how it's acting in relation to the rest of the band's catalog (as well as the easy comparison of being the first album done without each band's longtime drummer).
Post subject: Re: Sleater Kinney / Wild Flag / Quasi / related bands
Posted: Sun June 13, 2021 7:59 pm
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Joined: Thu January 03, 2013 1:10 am Posts: 3729
I will say that one thing I'm missing, maybe even more than Janet's drumming, is Carrie has really changed her guitar playing on the last two records. Her riffs, along with Corin's voice, are probably the two most distinctive sonic parts of this band, but she's become a far more, for lack of a better term, laid back player and writer. She'll fill in around the song instead of writing a mile-a-minute guitar line to drive it. I don't know if it's a bad thing; it probably works for these particular songs, especially, but it did jump out at me when listening to this record.
Post subject: Re: Sleater Kinney / Wild Flag / Quasi / related bands
Posted: Mon June 14, 2021 12:24 am
AnalLog
Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 7:12 am Posts: 1642 Location: The Jungle
digster wrote:
I will say that one thing I'm missing, maybe even more than Janet's drumming, is Carrie has really changed her guitar playing on the last two records. Her riffs, along with Corin's voice, are probably the two most distinctive sonic parts of this band, but she's become a far more, for lack of a better term, laid back player and writer. She'll fill in around the song instead of writing a mile-a-minute guitar line to drive it. I don't know if it's a bad thing; it probably works for these particular songs, especially, but it did jump out at me when listening to this record.
Yeah this album is definitely not driven by the guitars as much as some of their others. Its got a fully sound as well with organ/piano, and even a bass guitar on some tracks! (Janet will not be happy, she hated when Sam added a bass player into Quasi)
Post subject: Re: Sleater Kinney / Wild Flag / Quasi / related bands
Posted: Tue June 15, 2021 9:09 pm
AnalLog
Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 7:12 am Posts: 1642 Location: The Jungle
VinylGuy wrote:
Gave it another listen...man, i wish this one was with Janet too. The drums are so low and bored here...and the songs kinda ask for them.
Path Of Wellness is a petty cool song...and Tomorrow's Grave too. But after those everything is kinda similar.
I dont think this album happens with Janet. Janet sounds like a real stickler for things, and I dont think she would be on board with piano/organ/bass guitars in Sleater-Kinney songs at all. Mostly because she was not okay with Quasi touring with a bass player for a couple years, and had said the Wild Flag songs would not have worked for SK (even though it was still just 2 guitars but they also had a keyboard)
The more and more I think about it, Carrie and Corin seem like they wanna make new music, new sounds, try different things out. And I think Janet was stuck in the "no, we are a 3 piece punk band or raw energy"
High in the Grass feels like a hybred of The Fox (the intro) and Glass Tambourine (from Wild Flag) during the outro, with Corin channeling her inning Joni Mitchell, and that bass groove is so good.
Post subject: Re: Sleater Kinney / Wild Flag / Quasi / related bands
Posted: Sat June 19, 2021 11:09 pm
AnalLog
Joined: Wed January 02, 2013 7:12 am Posts: 1642 Location: The Jungle
So many songs off Path of Wellness have similar vibes to songs off Center Wont Hold, so I was thinking, I wonder how this would have worked as a single disc.
Hurry On Home Future Is Here Restless Can I Go On Worry With You Down the Line Method Path of Wellness High In the Grass Reach Out Favorite Neighbor Complex Female Characters The Center Wont Hold Tomorrows Grave Ruins No Knives The Dog / The Body Shadow Town Bring Mercy Broken
You can fit Bad Dance, Love, and Animal all on a single disc with no edits required, but those 3 songs just dont fit anything else on these two discs. If I had to, I'd probably stick Bad Dance and Love between Reach Out and Favorite Neighbor.
4 - 10 play great (Can I Go On through Reach Out) 16-20 is also a solid run. I was never a huge fan of The Dog / The Body, but sticking it between No Knives and Shadow Town is so nice. Shadow Town nd Bring Mercy should have been back to back on the new album. Shadow Towns outro into the intro for Bring Mercy just flows so good. Those 13 songs in those 2 runs + Hurry On Home and Center Wont Hold make a great 50 min album IMO
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