Trouser Press, May 1980: Difference between revisions
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{{Bibliography index}} | {{Bibliography index}} | ||
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<center><h3> Get Less Anxious </h3></center> | <center><h3> Get Less Anxious </h3></center> | ||
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The one factor that most strongly separates Elvis Costello from 99 per cent of the other artists that find their way onto this country's airwaves is his intensity. Some rockers wail convincingly; others write songs of depth and passion; a few play with real fire. But nobody (repeat: ''nobody'') puts it all together with as much concerted power as Elvis and band. His second and third albums (the first suffers too much from imperfect execution) are ticking time bombs of flat-out fury. Even when he's not tapping his seemingly bottomless well-spring of venom, Costello delivers the goods with convulsive tension. No one else could charge even a love song with so much convincing anxiety. | The one factor that most strongly separates Elvis Costello from 99 per cent of the other artists that find their way onto this country's airwaves is his intensity. Some rockers wail convincingly; others write songs of depth and passion; a few play with real fire. But nobody (repeat: ''nobody'') puts it all together with as much concerted power as Elvis and band. His second and third albums (the first suffers too much from imperfect execution) are ticking time bombs of flat-out fury. Even when he's not tapping his seemingly bottomless well-spring of venom, Costello delivers the goods with convulsive tension. No one else could charge even a love song with so much convincing anxiety. | ||
This album is different. Disregarding the title (Costello wouldn't dare use such an obvious ploy), the most noticeable change on ''Get Happy!!'' is the tempered sense of aggression. Some of the tunes work up a proper head of steam (and that doesn't refer specifically to volume, speed or angst), but the songs' overall effect is palpable inertia. Maybe Costello has worked all the vitriol out of his pained system; more plausibly, he has simply decided to try something different. Costello has taken a jaunty | This album is different. Disregarding the title (Costello wouldn't dare use such an obvious ploy), the most noticeable change on ''Get Happy!!'' is the tempered sense of aggression. Some of the tunes work up a proper head of steam (and that doesn't refer specifically to volume, speed or angst), but the songs' overall effect is palpable inertia. Maybe Costello has worked all the vitriol out of his pained system; more plausibly, he has simply decided to try something different. Costello has taken a jaunty tack — with a decided slant towards '60s Motown — and plastered it all over 20 numbers that vary from ace to awful. | ||
'There is no pervasive theme as some have suggested; in no way is this Costello's "up" album. In fact, nothing about ''Get Happy!!'' seems thought out enough to indicate preconception or careful preparation towards a specific theme. Sequencing is totally chaotic (and further confused by an intentional mislabeling of sides). The recording sounds rushed; simple production values contrast sharply with the care and intricacy of ''Armed Forces''. Haste, not forethought, is the strongest force here. | 'There is no pervasive theme as some have suggested; in no way is this Costello's "up" album. In fact, nothing about ''Get Happy!!'' seems thought out enough to indicate preconception or careful preparation towards a specific theme. Sequencing is totally chaotic (and further confused by an intentional mislabeling of sides). The recording sounds rushed; simple production values contrast sharply with the care and intricacy of ''Armed Forces''. Haste, not forethought, is the strongest force here. | ||
It's not a drastic change in musical direction that makes ''Get Happy!!'' difficult to accept; the overwhelming effect of so many songs, none of them sounding fully developed, defies comprehension (let alone absorption). This could almost be a collection of unfinished | It's not a drastic change in musical direction that makes ''Get Happy!!'' difficult to accept; the overwhelming effect of so many songs, none of them sounding fully developed, defies comprehension (let alone absorption). This could almost be a collection of unfinished demos — not a bad idea in itself, but not one that makes enjoyment easy. ''Get Happy!!'' takes some work. | ||
If there had been only a dozen songs instead of 20, ''Get Happy!!'' could have been an in-credible record. As it is, bad items detract from good ones. The album also suffers from a stupefying maze of verses, choruses and refrains. There are virtually no musical breaks; Costello sings for almost all of the LP's 47½ minutes. Some melodies seem to pop up more than once.Take out eight songs and ''Get Happy!!'' zips along in much more exciting fashion. Less is definitely more. | If there had been only a dozen songs instead of 20, ''Get Happy!!'' could have been an in-credible record. As it is, bad items detract from good ones. The album also suffers from a stupefying maze of verses, choruses and refrains. There are virtually no musical breaks; Costello sings for almost all of the LP's 47½ minutes. Some melodies seem to pop up more than once.Take out eight songs and ''Get Happy!!'' zips along in much more exciting fashion. Less is definitely more. | ||
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{{Bibliography notes}} | {{Bibliography notes}} | ||
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'''Trouser Press, No. 50, May 1980 | '''Trouser Press, No. 50, May 1980 | ||
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[[image:1980-05-00 Trouser Press cover.jpg|x120px]] | [[image:1980-05-00 Trouser Press cover.jpg|x120px]] | ||
[[image:1980-05-00 Trouser Press page 03.jpg|x120px|border]] | [[image:1980-05-00 Trouser Press page 03.jpg|x120px|border]] | ||
<br><small>Cover and contents page.</small | <br><small>Cover and contents page.</small> | ||
[[image:1980-05-00 Trouser Press page 34.jpg| | [[image:1980-05-00 Trouser Press page 34.jpg|280px|border]] | ||
<br><small>Page scan.</small | <br><small>Page scan.</small> | ||
[[image:1980-05-00 Trouser Press photo 01 eb.jpg|280px|border]] | |||
<br><small>Photo by [[Ebet Roberts]].</small> | |||
<br><br><br><br> | <br><br><br><br> |
Revision as of 16:35, 11 November 2013
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