DevO Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 ... it ain't pretty! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guigsy Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 whoa... that's not pretty at all... im actually pretty surprised... but ya cant please all the people all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secondtube Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 and keyboardist Bob Wiseman's tinkling on "Elvezz" is, if nothing else, a nice break from Lauzon's non-stop musical masturbation You sure luke didn't write this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secondtube Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 There is a great deal of talent showcased here, especially by Lauzon, but Zedonk is as stiff and soulless as the aforementioned atomic bomb, which also has its fair share of raw power. Power without the heart to guide it, however, is at best a wasted resource, and the musicians in Nero would do well to listen a little more to their hearts and a little less to their all too analytical heads. I agree with the talent aspect. The band is freaking full of talent. Ahhh well, i'm sure that review isn't gonna stop them from getting kickass moe.down invitations and the like. In our scene, they are still Canada's hottest band... :: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaimoe Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 The review is more of an attack than it is a proper review. I say that this writer was waiting in the weeds for this album to drop so he could pounce on it. And another thing, Jambands.com has consistently employed some of the worst reviewers I've ever read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esau Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 Can't win em all over I guess. Jambands.com has consistently employed some of the worst reviewers I've ever read. Agreed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 Just before we get too far down the road here I wrote it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaimoe Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 I never said it was poorly written. It was an attack however. I stand by my opinion that Jambands.com has a legion of hack writers, See: Benjy Einsen, or any concert reviewer. Even guys who know how to write like Jesse Jarnow are prone to over-analysis, which also plagues almost all jam-type reviews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ollie Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 At least the reviewer talked about the music. There was an awful review in Ottawa Xpress last month that criticized the jamband scene and thus the album by association. It even pulled out the old "hackey sack" cliche. That's the worst kind of review. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaimoe Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 nero are far from a " hackey sack " hippy and love band. They are teetering on the hard rock heard on recent Jeff Beck albums, which is welcome... at least it is for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guigsy Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 im a little concerned that the reviewer didnt actually listen to it... i mean, he stated he only started to hear punky at track 5... c'mon.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davey Boy 2.0 Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 im a little concerned that the reviewer didnt actually listen to it... i mean, he stated he only started to hear punky at track 5... c'mon.. agreed. (maybe he was too busy playing *hackey sack*) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamH Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 I could agree with some of the points made about having heart to guide the music a little more. I can't speak more highly of the musicianship or the people in the band but for me personally what's missing is an emotional quality to the music. This may sound cheesy but I like seeing a band share some part of their inner self while on stage and I guess I don't get that from a Nero show these days, although a couple of years ago (when the music was a bit slower) I certainly felt it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guigsy Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 hmm.. i think that's fair to say.... but i think it's also fair to say that not all music needs to be emotionally charged... and obviously it'll vary from person to person, as to who seeks it out, and with who.edit to add: i just thought of this on the crapper, and i think it's important to mention...there are bands/musicians that really strike a chord with me emotionally, the slip, grateful dead, wilco, modest mouse, tom waits, martin tielli, and some joel plaskett to name a few... now, if every band or musician i listened to hit me like that, i'd be a basketcase and probably need some serious counselling, or to simply just stop listening to music, which would be a real drag.i mean, a heart-wrenching balls out If One Of Us Should Fall, or a drunken wailing of Jersey Girl, or something of the like from any of the aforementioned bands/musicians, can really do something to my insides.but, say, a kickass Darius isnt gonna do that to me. it's gonna make me move, and feel great to be wherever i am feelin' that groove... which, as i type this i realize is an emotion in itself, just a different type, so, i guess i just talked myself all the way around this thing... hmm... well, whatever, i'm sure you get what i mean...continue.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 I didn't actually write it so we're clear. That would be why it says it's written by Brian Gearing. It's not that badly written and it's not particularly unfair either. I like this bit: if it weren't for their haphazard, schizophrenic randomness, some of the changes might add some flavor to what is otherwise a droning, tedious series of predictable changes in rhythm and tone. I can't really say too much on this score since the boys bought me off by naming that song after me. Now if they take that back it's a texas death match. But seriously you could see where a reviewer listening to this through a few times, having all sorts of other choices of music he'd prefer, would gather these impressions. The one thing I've always thought about nero is that what they do really well, their distinctive competency, is create an immersive environment of sound. They make no bones about the fact that their sound is derived in part from the uninterrupted stream of electronic music. The limitations of the 'ribbon of sound' approach particularly without vocals is that the distinctions between songs and feels can become sort of blanched. I think in part that is what the reviewer is trying to say in an unsentimental fashion. Which is a further point to be made, he has no reason for being sentimental- there is no live reference point against which to index the recording. Part of what makes nero so unique is their ability to feed off the response of the audience, composed oftentimes of an extended family of friends, and envelop that into their sound. Where a band like the Slip does a similar mirroring of the audience, as do a great many improvisational bands, they channel it often into a melancholic courage for life whereas nero translates it into a tour de force hell or high water courage for life. I think if anything they're more heart than head but maybe more in a cowardly lion kind of a way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tooly Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 i actually LOVE this cd, listened to it this morning and danced around doing what needed to be done around the house. i love the addison horn section on the first tune, and i like how wiseman adds more flavour to the mix with his keyboard playing. fack jambands.com and their sh!ttya$$ reviewers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms.Huxtable Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 Wow, that's disappointing. I understand that not everyone likes everything, but there were some serious jabs in that review. I absolutely love the album. I thought it was a great representation of their tunes. I listen to it over and over again when I need emotionally picked-up, physically energized or I just need a soundtrack for the mundane tasks in life. The CD always, always, ALWAYS makes me feel good. What more could you ask for from music? Some people really loose sight of what music's purpose really is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shainhouse Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 thanks for telling me to fu©k off tooly! (I work for jambands.com) Not all writers are bad. everyone is entitled to their opinion. I think the reviewer should have written with a more self sustained sense of journalistic (is that a word?) professionalism when bashing the band. He could of worded his thoughts in a less harsher fashion, but on the other hand, it is a strong representation of his feelings towards the album. I agree with some points but disagree as a whole with what the writer's thoughts are towards the album. For example, when I reviewed the record for Jambase or Jammedonline etc..., it was semi-negative, but I worded it differently... see... "The only criticism of Zedonk is the album rarely strays from the themes of metal and psychedelia, relying on the constant classic rock influenced soloing and Lauzon and Buote, instead of experimenting with the uncharted, an approach that nero has become synonymous with throughout their career. The two most powerful tracks on Zedonk, the authoritative Calypso influenced ‘Lemondust’ and Lauzon’s beautifully moving solo acoustic number to finish the album, ‘Beyond Chance’, are the only two tracks that forcefully test the limits of nero’s sound. By experimenting with world-beat rhythms and alt-country twang, Zedonk transforms into an even more powerful beast, effectively encompassing airy Caribbean melodies and emotional acoustic music amidst the seventy minute journey into progressive, psychedelic cock rock." I don't know, I guess similar thoughts conveyed at opposite ends of the spectrum look like different opinions... okie.. I'm done Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 I thought yours was way less harsher Shain. Jambands.com has consistently employed some of the worst reviewers I've ever read Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisley Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 well I love the album but I could see part of that as being biased by my deep and unshakable appreciation of live nero (gonna have to BUY a copy and find out!) nobody liked the Grateful Dead's albums either (though I do) so oh well... bit of a buffer from mass promotion clammering to suck the bands souls dry with overhype allowing them to continue playing and creating honest moods and grooves one of the boys will still end up on Queer Eye for the Straight Guy someday Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meggo Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 man i love that show!! i was thinkin, maybe they could have a show where lesbians come and renovate straight girls' apartments.... but i have a feeling it would turn out kinda different. maybe not. all i know is i want my place to look like those. ANYWAY sorry, tangent. regarding the review: who gives a rat's ass. hopefully no one who really cares about music is going to base their opinion solely on one review without even listening to the music in question. ya know? i know it's hard to listen to someone bash a band when the musicians are your buddies, that's different. but when all's said and done: it's one dude's opinion. sure he probably listens to lots of music. but maybe he had a hangover. maybe he caught his special lady doing the guy who was putting new floors in. it's ONE GUY. whooopdeefriggindooooooooo. my 2 cents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaimoe Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 I agree meggo, but for a band like nero that works to generate a buzz in the States, this review ( on a site that features nero's peers ), isn't good news - even though I feel they're misrepresented. It's the vitriol in which the reviewer wrote the review that bothers me most. Sure the nero boys are my friends, but they are a risk-taking and innovative band in a country that likes to support easy spreading mayonnaise music. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewRider Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 in a country that likes to support easy spreading mayonnaise music. hey, you slaggin' Cavern brah?!?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weezy Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 I agree the review was written with an unnecessary harsh tone. His attempt at constructive critisism came-off as bashing instead. However, it was a short, highly opinionated piece and therefore not worth very much. I've read many favourable reviews of nero's live show - which is what it's all about anyways, so whatever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guigsy Posted July 29, 2004 Report Share Posted July 29, 2004 it shouldnt matter if the musicians in the band are your buddies. telling a band they're great just because they're your buddies isnt gonna do them any good... if the critism is warranted, it shouldnt matter where it comes from, or what relationship you have with them (the band). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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