Tag Archives: the walkmen

Entertainment, Music, Song Review, The Walkmen

Walkmen Song Reviews [LISBON!]

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Band: The Walkmen
Album: Lisbon
Release: Fat Possum [9/2010]

1. “Juveniles” – Known in some circles as “Tragedy,” I’m just amazed by Hamilton’s delivery on the choruses. I, too, love the laid back, Caribbean-esque feel. What a great album opener! Grade: A+

2. “Angela Surf City” – This one is marked by Matt Barrick’s drumming. At least that’s what stands out to me. I do like this song — Hamilton is as passionate as ever — and how it, like “Blue” that follows soon, has an enormous explosion of instrumentation. Grade: A-

4. “Blue As Your Blood” – Known in some circles as “The Sky Above,” this builds up pretty good. The initial guitar plucks and percussion stay constant — as a good rhythm section usually does — throughout the duration of this tune. I got a feeling pretty early on that this thing was going to explode. Indeed, it does. There are some really nice intricacies toward the end of the song — like a subtle keyboard push and twangy guitar parts. Grade: A

8. “Woe Is You” – This one is comparable to “Tragedy” in how it sounds Caribbean. I really enjoy how it flows. The left panned keyboard sequence is cool at the end. Sorry, I can’t think of anything else to say! Grade: A

10. “While I Shovel the Snow” – A tad tad slow for my liking, but I’ve got to give praise to the lyrics. This one feels old — you know like Sun Records old. Leonard Cohen inspired as well. Tentatitvely I won’t give it the benefit of the doubt, but we’ll see by the time the entire record comes out. Grade: B+

Entertainment, Music, Song Review, The Walkmen

Song Reviews! 07/12/10 Style

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These reviews are more reactions considering I need multiple days of listening before I develop a pretty accurate opinion. Even then it’s hit or miss.
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Song: “Barricade”
Band: Interpol
Album: Interpol [9/2010]
Comments: The verses are standard fare for Interpol/Julian Plenti. There’s the small guitar parts and the overwhelming bass line. The chorus is rather uplifting and dance-esque with creative strumming and outstanding drumming. After the first chorus, the song keeps up a nice pace. I have to say Banks is a characteristically depressing song-writer. I hate to stereotype, but damnit just when you try to have a little fun listening to this song, you realize this is a downer. Just think of barricades themselves. These aren’t entrance ways or revolving doors. These are cut-off points. Is there anything fun about that? I do like this track.
Grade: (A-)
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Song: Stranded
Band: The Walkmen
Album: Lisbon (9/2010)
Comments: Anyone whose been following The Walkmen for the past 10 or so months will realize that this song has been kicking around in their live repertoire for a while. Some avid fans initially dubbed it “Starry-Eyed” because Ham sings that phrase. As Ham said to NPR, this is probably more apropos on You and Me — it being horns heavy, down tempo, and vocal-centric. This comparison might be totally off — and please forgive me — but don’t the horns parts sound like the Christmas classic “Silver Bells”? At any way this is a big song. A masterpiece of a work. I prefer a lot of heavier Walkmen material, but songs like this amaze me.
Grade: (A)

Entertainment, Music, News, The Walkmen

Walkmen’s Sixth Album Titled “Lisbon”

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The Walkmen’s sixth studio album now has a name: Lisbon. Although the band has showcased at least sixteen new songs live and recorded twenty-nine in studio, Lisbon will only have eleven when it drops on September 14.

Click HERE to download a live recording of “Lisbon,” presumably the title track on the record. It’s of a pretty bad quality, but if you are really eager to hear something new then listen!

Entertainment, Music, TV, Video

Walkmen On Thee Oh See

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Sorry for the misspelling. I meant The O.C. I think I might have posted about this before, but I was never able to find footage on YouTube.

Go to 4:38 to see the first song and then 8:00 to hear the second. Side note: I’d love to kiss a chick during “What’s In It For Me.” Lucky bastard.

Little House of Savages (live version) The Walkmen At The Bait Shop, The Walkmen perform on camera as Seth works the door while Summer arrives.
What’s In It For Me (live version) The Walkmen At The Bait Shop, The Walkmen perform on camera as Seth admits to Summer why he got the job at the Bait Shop, then he kisses her.

Here is what lead singer Hamilton Leithauser had to say:

Singer Hamilton Leithauser enjoyed his experience filming the show, though he felt that the staged enthusiasm for the band was a bit much. “There were maybe two hundred extras on the set pretending to just love us, and I had to sing along with the music, and of course everyone else is fake playing — they’re not even plugged in,” Leithauser said. “So it was really an awkward scene for me, but I think you’re just supposed to stand there and look cool anyhow, so I just tried to do that.”

Leithauser, who was surprised the show allowed the Walkmen to play two songs, sees television performances as a solid, if ephemeral, means of promotion. “I don’t think we’ll gain fans,” Leithauser said. “I think people will buy the record though. I think a lot of people bought the record after we were on Dave Letterman and Conan, but I don’t think you can really gain actual fans who are going to really care about the band through such a mass-market thing.”

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Just look at the fans, nobody goes that nuts over the Walkmen at shows. It’s like they are seeing Metallica or some shit hahaha.

CD Review, Entertainment, Music

Classic CD Review: A Hundred Miles Off

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Band: The Walkmen
Release: 2006
Label: Record Collection

1. “Louisiana” – A+
2. “Danny’s At The Wedding” – A+
3. “Good For You’s Good For Me” – A+
4. “Emma Get Me A Lemon” – A
5. “All Hands & The Cook” – A+
6. “Lost in Boston” – A+
7. “Don’t Get Me Down” – A-
8. “Tenley Town” – A+
9. “This Job Is Kiling Me” – A
10. “Brandy Alexander” – A
11. “Always After You” – A
12. “Another One Goes By” – A++

Comments: Naturally, this is a fantastic Walkmen album. It’s faster and more instrumentally chaotic than say You and Me or Everyone Who Pretended; more garage rock focused, if you will. Hamilton’s delivery and style is much different than most of what is classified under that garage or post-punk revival umbrella. It’s a more vintage and structurally fascinating way of going about business. Take for example, “Tenley Town.” It’s the band’s heaviest song (can I call it a punk jam?) and might seem a little experimental on the band’s part, but it fits in so well with the softer stuff. “Another One Goes By” is a great Bob Dylan-esque album closer. You can barely hear a really catchy lead guitar part in the middle of the song. Great flow. I’d say it’s my favorite song off this album. Best for last as they say.

Grade: A (96)