Customer Reviews

Everything to Everyone

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Having waited desperately for this album since the BNL tour of the UK (despite a slight sating of my appetite thanks to the Greatest Hits CD) this was everything I was expecting and more than enough to keep my total BNL-craze alive. Definately worth buying, for obsessed fans in the 'I-saw-them-first' category, to the 'I-liked-One-Week' types. Buy it. Today.

I am tired that, on those rare occasions when the Barenaked Ladies are acknowledged by the music press, they are dismissed as shallow producers of zany pop music. These critics have failed to scratch beneath the surface and recognise the Ladies as some of the most talented song writers and performers of the last ten years. Forget chart pop ‘music’, these five Canadian guys write the catchiest tunes of any band around today. This sixth album of new material, whilst not breaking out in any new direction, is a worthy addition to their canon. All the elements BNL fans are used to are all present and correct, the thoughtful (War on Drugs, Testing 123), the weird (Shopping, Another Postcard), the hummable (Aluminum, Maybe Katie). This is actually their most mellow album since ‘Maybe You Should Drive’ and as with that album no one should assume they have the measure of it after the first couple of plays. Existing fans will already know what pleasure a new BNL album can bring. If you’ve never heard them then I urge you to change that soon!

There's a large moan coming so prepare yourselves. In practice I have given this album a three but for the music I actually give it a four to four and a half. I do love what Barenaked Ladies do in general and can certainly appreciate their weaker songs as they are so prolific. BUT.........the sound quality!!! Yikes!! Guys what happened after Maybe You Should Drive? Their previous albums to this one delivered in all departments and I still play them often and at length. The later albums though, and this one was probably the first to offend, sound so absolutely awful I cannot sit through more than a few minutes. Such a shame as I really like the majority of the songs. It's just the studio tricks that have been pulled to deliver maximum perceived volume have for me rendered them nigh on unplayable. They are harsh, compressed synthetic sounding and just plain awful. Yes I have a decent hifi and I do enjoy this aspect of the replay chain but it's more than me being a sound tweaking geek. Even in my car which has a low to middling system (big sub in the boot though :-) the albums sound only serve to irritate me and increase my chances of having an accident. WHY WHY WHY GUYS?!!! I record a bit and I own a decent 24 track multitracker. I'm no professional sound engineer at all (professional engineers do know what they are doing but they have to conform to the norm) but I have some idea of what to do to get a basic ok sound. It's got so bad though now that I no longer buy Barenaked Ladies albums. I like the songs and I like the group and their brand of humour and penmanship but there is no point in me buying an album, playing it through a couple of times and then only managing to sit through two songs at other times before I feel my sense of equilibrium has gone. Oh well I pull out the first few albums and revel in them. They really do sound glorious and I love the way they are recorded. Such a treat. All the new ones though? Sorry lads (Ladies?) but no. Here's my wish. The record companies will do what the film companies do. Release the first piece of material cut in anyway they see fit. Later they can do a 'directors cut' with all the sonics intact. They could even do it at the same time in fact. Two versions of the same disc. The engineers could do their best mix first and then spend 20mins hacking it to bits for the second. I would NEVER buy the compressed one (would you?). In fact I guess the majority of folk would never buy the compressed ones. Use the compression by all means on the singles but why adulterate the whole album? So my big moan but hey I offered a solution too so I think I will be able to sleep easy!! Maybe I will just email the guys and see what they think. They do seem to always think outside the box n'est pas?

Although very popular in Canada and the USA, the Barenaked Ladies have never achieved a huge following here in the UK, which is a shame, as they produce brilliantly written lyrics with catchy tunes, have gorgeous voices and are a force to be reckoned with when seen live. This album, their sixth, is not my favourite of theirs, but it is very good nonetheless and has a few absolutely superb songs.

Everything to Everyone is perhaps their most experimental album and has a huge variety of tracks. 'Maybe Katie' is a catchy pop-rock ode to dating older women that makes you want to get up and dance; 'Another Postcard' is a comical punky song about postcards with chimpanzees on them; 'Shopping' is an almost techno rapid-fire assault on the values of materialism...the style and subject switches go on and on. And yet this album seems to fit together surprisingly well with a nice mix of fast and slow songs.

The highlights for me are 'Next Time', an attempt at self-comfort after a relationship crashes and burns, 'Upside Down', a witty and oddly addictive song that is a definate 'grows on you' track, and the jewel in the crown of this album, 'War on Drugs'. The lyrics to 'War on Drugs' will strike a chord in the heart of anyone who has struggled with depression or addiction, or who has watched someone they love do so. It is heartbreaking and beautiful and it alone is worth buying this album for.

If you are new to the Barenaked Ladies, I wouldn't suggest you start with this album - one of their classics such as 'Gordon' might be better. But if you are already familiar with them, then this CD should be hugely enjoyable as you get to hear them experiment with a myriad of different sounds.

It seems everyone has their own idea about this album. My rating seems to agree with the general concurrence of four stars. In my humble opinion, not to turn the ratings board into a forum, granted, Maroon was my favorite album; In no way "disappointing"as was said in another review. However, I find that the sixth CD from this wit-filled band is rather a change of pace - for better or worse.

They've changed pace a bit from the fast-paced rythmis pop from their '92 release, Gordon, as well as the mostly pointless lyrics of Maroon, and have moved into what is for the most part a bit slower of an album with some of the lyrics making a bit more sense. The song "War on drugs" carying a steady melody that has brought tears to more than one person I know, as well as the song "Aluminum" having a mellow feel, as well as a MIDI-esque electric organ-like synth that calms rather easily. "Another Postcard" is a rather rambling song with no purpose, however it keeps the flair of speedy melodic rambling that has attracted quite a large portion of this band's fanbase spawning from the '98 hit "One Week" from their album "Stunt." That mood, however, is quite an ephemeron on this album.

Overall, a lot of good work, but not as upbeat or in-your-face witty as I have come to expect and love from the Barenaked Ladies. A bit of profound writing here and there, and a bit of nonsense, as only the Barenaked Ladies can do it.

Extra points for keeping their shirts on on this cover, unlike "Au Naturale - Live in Detroit, MI"

It seems that the freshness has gone. It is nice popmusic, but I miss the catchy, quirky tunes of the past, the nice acoustic intervals of the early BNL albums. Maybe it is my fault, but even after repeated listening it doesn't grow on me as "Gordon" did.

I had high hopes when I heard about the release of this BNL album. It was to be their first new set of original material in three years since 'Maroon', following a brief hiatus and greatest hits package.

The record itself is...well, ok.

Some tunes like 'For You', 'Aluminum', and 'Next Time' do go some way towards restoring faith in BNL's ability to write a good tune. Others, however, are cringeworthy. The biggest stinker of all is 'Shopping' which perhaps qualifies as the worst BNL song in their entire canon (shame really, because in theory a Barenaked Ladies and Blue Man Group collaboration should have resulted in something much better).

The main problem with this album I feel is that is over-produced. Ron Aniello and Mike Shipley have succeeded in sanitising the tracks with sleek production values to the point where they are robbed of any character or vitality. This is a great shame because those of you lucky enough to acquire the bonus DVD of acoustic material will be able to see the band have clearly written a bunch of solid tunes.

Compare the acoustic versions of, say, 'Maybe Katie' and 'Upside Down' with their album counterparts and I'd bet you would prefer the stripped down versions. Here's hoping the band come to their senses and return to their acoustic roots in future albums...

Excellent album - great tunes, clever/witty lyrics, well played, well produced..what more can you ask for???
If you're new to BNL, this is as good an intro as any, and is up there with MYSD and Stunt.
Check out the live album too!!

Possibly their best yet? Quite possibly, nevertheless this is a truly superb album (my personal favourite of 2003). This album should have been huge but it wasn't, a cruel injustice i feel. However this is most likely due to a failure on behalf of the marketing department as the album itself is certainly not to blame. The best thing about this album, in my view, is the way in which it incorporates so many different genres ranging from melodic pop to bouncy rock to slow and beautiful numbers.

Best Songs - Take it Outside, Testing 1,2,3, Second Best
Worst Songs - Hard to find on this fantastic record but I do feel that the BNL boys are stretching it a little with 'Shopping', although this would work well on a T.V advert.

Perfect album, one of the best ever. A bit Divine Comedy at times, but overall a top listen. Just stick it on and feel happy.

Come on guys, why not come to the UK!?