Tuesday, November 01, 2005
Pitchfork Review Bromide Watch, Day One
Various Artists
One Kiss Can Lead to Another
[Rhino; 2005]
Celebration of sentimental pop songs as more mature/timeless than rock cliches:
Defensive support of Rock Crit Cred through measuring of release's importance to the established rock/punk canon, with tacit nod towards "authenticity" of said work and gratuitous namechecking:
Verdict: This box set sounds totally fucking awesome. |
One Kiss Can Lead to Another
[Rhino; 2005]
Celebration of sentimental pop songs as more mature/timeless than rock cliches:
One of the saddest quirks of rock criticism is that the hopes, dreams, and fears of teen girls are frequently considered frolicsome fluff while the rage and defiance of teen boys is miscast as the articulation of free thinkers. And yet, it's the girls-- in part, because they're more likely to function as mouthpieces for adult songwriters-- who examine universal subjects such as love, romance, self-actualization, self-confidence, and personal politics, while young rock bands often simply reject growing up, fight responsibility, and wear that struggle as a badge of pride. Both approaches can work, of course, but unlike a sneer, a kiss never goes out of style.
Defensive support of Rock Crit Cred through measuring of release's importance to the established rock/punk canon, with tacit nod towards "authenticity" of said work and gratuitous namechecking:
In the past 40 years the music featured on One Kiss has served as a touchstone for a wide variety of artists, most notably 1970s New Yorkers (the Ramones, Bruce Springsteen, New York Dolls, Blondie-- even Martin Scorsese), 1980s Brits (the Smiths, Jesus & Mary Chain, the Field Mice, the Cocteau Twins), and contemporary indie stars (Saint Etienne, Magnetic Fields, the Avalanches, the Concretes).
Verdict: This box set sounds totally fucking awesome. |
