Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
brilliant, 1 Aug 2008
brilliant. I've had this for a couple of months now and love it. My favourite album of 2008 so far. Most of the songs are loud, very frenetic, energetic and maybe a bit messy, which Johnny Foreigner are masters at. The energy is mainly due to the brilliant guitar but the drums are also brilliant and really energetic. The drummers kit actually only has a bass drum, snare, hi-hat,floor tom and 1 cymbal(crash-ride or ride-crash) so many of his fills are short fast snare fills which he's brialliant at and really add to the energy. There are also some great sounding grooves played using rims. Alexei's(frontman) voice I've heard referred to as 'squawking' and Kelly may shout often but their voices combine brialliantly with each other and the music. Johnny foreigner have the best vocals I have heard for ages (personally-it may be an acquired taste)
Although on some songs you hear them quieter and more melodic (salt, peppa + spinderella;our bipolar friends intro;eyes wide terrified at points etc) which they do brialliantly. The eyes wide terrified intro is beautiful. When quiet you can really appreciate Alexei's and Kelly's great voices.
The very best songs are at the beginning and middle of album but I still like the tracks near the end. Dj's get doubts I found rubbish at first but it's grown on me a bit. Although it feels totally out of place compared to the rest of the album as it's acoustic. I feel it was a poor song choice for the album as although it adds a bit of variety and gives your ears a bit of a break Johnny foreigner can do quiet/calm superbly unacoustically (like 'This Band Is Killing Us' on the EP). Sometimes in the bullring is good and yr all just jealous I like but does pale in comparison to some of the other great songs. Absolute Balance would be a perfect finish and makes the hidden track unnecessary even though it's decent. The first 8 songs are abosolutely fantastic. Love the lyrics to. A superbly promising new band. I would give it 4 and 1/2 stars as its not perfect but I can't so I'll have to give it 5 as it's too good to be 4
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4 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
...front loaded but promising indie art rock..., 13 May 2008
I've been in a state of flux and indecision about Johnny Furriner, ever since I first encountered their scratchy indieness, albeit one infused with some good and proper riffs. I still think they veer to far over into the world of ooh, see me, I'm an arty rocker, me, but, damn them, they do have some good tunes.
So, let's take a quick look at some of the good songs, just to make sure I'm not just making it all up. Well, there's always the single that was 'Our Bipolar Friends', which pretty much sums up Johnny Furriner in one three minute burst. Then there is 'The End And Everything Else', which is fabulously arranged and layered. They go all poppy on 'Salt, Pepa & Spinderella' to good effect, and a bonus point for the shout out to Spinderella, the sadly forgotten third member of Salt 'n' Pepa.
Things I do not like include the dull as ditchwater 'DJs Get Doubts', which is just plain boring, as is 'Yr All Just Jealous', and the smart pants 'The Hidden Song At The End Of The Album' which isn't hidden in the slightest ends the album on a downward spiral.
Actually, the album does fade away rather badly with all the really top tunes loaded at the front. However, when they get the whole male / female vocal conjoining just right, it's a treat to listen to. But, it could easily have been trimmed down to a ten track CD for greater listening pleasure. I'm still not convinced that they have fully developed, but their debut does hold out hope for greater things.
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2 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Spotty Little Oiks "do" Lo-Fi, 5 Aug 2008
Did I fall into a coma and wake up in some bizarre alternative reality where Superchunk's wonky guitar stylings rule the airwaves? In this same horrific future did Urusei Yatsura go on to make the biggest selling album of all time? And, in this same bum-stinkingly average reality, are Seafood held in such high regard that BBC Three regularly gives up its entire weekend scheduling just to pay tribute to their whimsical songsmithery? No, I didn't think so. So why, pray tell, does anyone alive in 2008 care about Johnny Foreigner? I sighed as they did the quiet-loud-quiet thing! I squealed as they yelped like a hundred puppies trapped in a rockslide! And then I groaned as they did the Lo-Fi Just Like The Good Old Days (before Indie was considered a decent career option).
You'd be better off spending your hard-earned money on a Cap N' Jazz CD (or Guided By Voices, Sebadoh, Beat Happening, Pavement, Pixies, Husker Du, Times New Viking, Manhattan Love Suicides - anything basically) before you consider this. Or you could just buy it with the Los Campesinos! CD and spend your evenings playing Where Have I Heard That Before? with both. Enjoy!
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