Classic Old 97s - I have been listening to this CD since I got it, and it is terrific. If you are a fan of the Old 97 s, you won t be disappointed. The DVD is a great little extra, has some live performances and a fun interview with Rhett Miller.
Older 97s - I can t help but think that the last couple of studio albums by the Old 97s have been unfortunately titled. DRAG IT UP was a bit of drag and BLAME IT ON GRAVITY finds the boys aging, not always gracefully. It s a good album, but matches neither the ramshackle spunk of their first albums or the rollicking poppiness of their peak. No longer kids, this outing feels a bit enervated. Rhett Miller seems to have invested his energy and sense of melody in his solo career, which has nonetheless missed the cohesion and idiosyncacies of this nifty little band. There are good tunes here: My Two Feet and The One hew to classic Old 97s form (not too surprising since the DVD reveals they ve been kicking around a while.) Murry Hammond s Color of a Lonely Heart Is Blue is maybe the most wistful thing they ve done. The Easy Way sounds like early Stones, and there are other mid-60s Britpop allusions sprinkled throughout. Tex-Mex and bluegrass flavorings hearken to those early albums.But these guys only get together to make an album every couple of years, and they ve got other lives now. It s a bit much to expect them to knock one out of the park again. But it s nice to hear them together, if not making magic, at least offering that comfortable chemistry that made the band so likeable in the first place.The DVD will charm fans, but the live-in-studio performances lack the fun of their actual live shows.
They just keep getting better - The latest album from the Old 97 s just proves that a band can keep getting better with age. As usual, the songs are beautifully and cleverly written. The song The One sounds like vintage 97 s and is a perfectly fitting song to finsih off this album. Murry sings two songs on this album that are just beautiful and touching. The first song by Murry This Beautiful Thing is just a very touching song that reminds you just how soulful the 97 s really are. And then there is, what in my mind is already a classic, Color of a Lonely Heart Is Blue . I think it s impossible to listen to this song and not get deeply emotional about something. I m glad that they all came together to record the album back home in Dallas and have it produced by their long time friend Salim Nourallah. You can definitely tell that they album was produced by someone who truly cares for the band and Salim has definitely left his mark on this album. It s still pure Old 97 s, but if you re familiar w/ Salim then you will know what I mean. All in all I could not be more pleased w/ this long awaited album. It s the perfect blend of 97 s energy and soul. If you don t like this album then you just don t understand real and genuine music.