Year Zero

[Stormy]

Originally Posted by Mr Biglesworth

I'm so not. I've been listening to it since I made this post.

I only listened to the first half of the album before running off to a meeting, but I wasn't very impressed. It seemed a bit too standard.

I hate that argument, ordinarily. I remember when people said that about Beck's "Guero", and how the album didn't show any musical or artistic progression. I agreed that much--the music SOUNDED like Beck sans his usual sprinklings of musical innovation--but regardless it was a good album. The lack of a novel sound did not hinder the album; contrarily, it provided something unexpected: an album that steered fans out of the normative reinvention of Beck's sound.

But Year Zero seems too regular, too expected. It's no more harsh than it has been in the past, but it seems less raunchy and more disjointed than I would've wanted. The Beginning of the End is a really weak song to have as the second track; it slows down the plunge into YZ's riffed depths. It's like the asthmatic kid in gym class who costs you the dodge ball game because he messes up early. I'll certainly give the album more listens, but so far it comes across as fattened off the modus operandi of more than a decade of fandom.

[Artmead]

I always think that the Johnny Cash cover of Hurt is better than the NIN version, by a whole bunch...

I like some of the NIN stuff I hear, but I've never been a huge fan, and can't see myself paying for one of their albums.

[Bomer]

Anyone ever seen 'em live? I never got into them that much until I got the chance to see them. Their live show is amazing and it made me appreciate the music more. And Stormy, I can understand what you are saying about The Beginning of the End (though I still like it) however, I don't follow you on it being too ordinary. This CD has some of the craziest shit I've ever heard in alternative music. Some songs I was amazed at how he kept it cohesive. Sometimes the songs feel a bit as though they are going to fall apart while you are listening to them and yet somehow he keeps it together. I personally feel this is one of the most interesting CDs to come out in some time, especially with the whole storyline/marketing campaign behind it.

[Mr Biglesworth]

It's good, but its not a Knife Party.