Stereophonics

Stereophonics - I Could Lose Ya Stereophonics Tour Dates 11/07/08 The Academy Dublin 11/10/08 Union Chapel London 12/02/08 SECC Glasgow 12/03/08 SECC Glasgow 12/04/08 AECC Aberdeen 12/06/08 International Arena Cardiff 12/07/08 International Arena Cardiff 12/09/08 Echo Arena Liverpool 12/10/08 MEN Arena Manchester 12/12/08 Metro Radio Newcastle 12/13/08 Trent Arena Nottingham 12/15/08 NIA Birmingham 12/16/08Centre Brighton 12/17/08 Intn'l Centre Bournemouth 12/19/08 Arena Sheffield 12/20/08 O2 Arena London

I'm actually a pretty big Stereophonics fan, so I was pretty happy to see their latest album, Pull the Pin, on my to review list. Fans who's already bought the album on import, should either be really unhappy or really happy that the US version (for a limited time) will include a bonus DVD, featuring four live tracks - complete with an altered cover.

The new album is pretty much typically Welsh rock, if you've enjoyed their previous albums, you'll definitely enjoy this new album. The cover artwork seems to suggest a mix of sex (two women's lips?) and war (a grenade pin), a theme that reminded me of their infamous Performance & Cocktails cover art.

Back to Pull the Pin, the official single from this album is "It Means Nothing", which I didn't like that much as I think the song sounds too sensitive. I mean, I've always thought the 'phonics as more rock-n-roller type, and as they've aged into Just Enough Education to Perform they seem to get more mellower. I suspect this has more or less to do with singer/songwriter Kelly Jones (I don't have Only the Names Have Been Changed, but I reckon this is might be more acoustic and mellow compared to Stereophonics).

The songs I did like, I really like, and they include "Soldiers Make Good Targets", "Bright Red Star", "Pass the Buck", and "I Could Lose Ya". Yes these songs are aggressive, compared to say "It Means Nothing", "My Friends", and "Ladyluck", but I just some really enjoy that loud, loud rock sound with Jones' whiskery vocals.

The DVD portion only features four songs live, and I thought "Bank Holiday Monday" sounded particularly well.

Pull the Pin did quite well in the UK, charting at number 1, but in the US failed miserably. Shame, really, because I think it's actually one of their best album to date. The album is available now from any major retailer, courtesy of Universal Music Group.

Also, there's a lot of 'phonics news on the vine, I hear that Decade in the Sun: The Best of Stereophonics is scheduled to be released on November 18^th.

Details below:

HAVE YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW THE STORY BEHIND YOUR FAVORITE STEREOPHONICS SONGS? WE WANT YOUR QUESTIONS!
In celebration of Stereophonics' forthcoming album Decade in the Sun: Best of Stereophonics, the band will be answering fan's questions about the songs included on the greatest hits (+2 new songs) album. These questions and answers will be put into a very special podcast that will be made available worldwide through the band's website. The band will answer 20 questions (one for each song) from a few lucky fans who will be chosen to not only ask the band their question on the podcast but will receive an autographed copy of Decade in the Sun.

HOW TO ENTER:
Email your question for the band to: StereophonicsPodCast.at.gmail.com (Deadline is November 10th)

The question should specifically relate to one of the songs included on Decade in the Sun: Best of Stereophonics. The track listing is as follows:
Dakota
Bartender and The Thief
Just Looking
Have a Nice Day
Local Boy In The Photograph
Maybe Tomorrow
Superman
Pick A Part That's New
My Own Worst Enemy *
I Wouldn't Believe Your Radio
You're My Star *
Mr Writer
Step On My Old Size Nines
Devil
It Means Nothing
A Thousand Trees
Vegas Two Times
Traffic
More Life In a Tramps Vest
Handbags and Gladrags

The greatest hits album CD and DVD will contain two previously unreleased songs: "My Own Worst Enemy" and "You're My Star".

Since I actually own all of Stereophonics' album, I thought it would be nice to talk about their previous five albums and my favorite tracks from each album. For casual fans with only one or two albums, you might want to check out Decade in the Sun. Hardcore fans will want the best of for the two new songs.

Stereophonics - A Thousand Trees Word Gets Around (1997) This was Stereophonics' debut album, originally as a trio. The album didn't do so well in the US, but it did alright in the UK charts. I bought this album when Performance & Cocktails was released, so I had a lot of 'phonics song to listen to, but my favorite was "A Thousand Trees".	Stereophonics - The Bartender and the Thief Performance & Cocktails (1999) I love the cover artwork for this album. I've always thought it was a picture from an airport, but as it turned out - it was a staged photograph based on a similar picture outside of a prison. There are loads of great songs off this album, but I'm fond of "The Bartender and the Thief".
Stereophonics-Everyday I Think of Money Just Enough Education to Perform (2001) I saw Stereophonics live for this tour, the big controversy was that the title was originally called "JEEP", but apparently that's a copyrighted name from a car company. I bought the Best Buy version of the album as it included a bonus 4-track CD, which was nice because the album was only $9.99. You might enjoy "Everyday I Think About Money" about a trunk driver who fantasies about stealing the content of his truck. There's a nice, sad, twist of an ending of the song you don't often find in pop songs.	Stereophonics-Maybe Tomorrow You Gotta Go There to Come Back (2003) I "borrowed" this album from my ex-roommate, who was a Stereophonics fan. By this time, they've cracked the mainstream (although if you ask me, I thought they did that with Performance & Cocktails.) Not much to say about this album. "Maybe Tomorrow" appeared over the credits to the Award-winning movie "Crash" (2004).
Stereophonics-Dakota Language, Sex, Violence, Other (2005) I did borrow this album from my ex-roommate, and I can't say that it's one of those album I've listened to over and over again. Despite all that, this album was really well-received by the British press and even reached #1 in the UK charts. The first single is "Dakota", which I thought was pretty decent, but I would not have called it as "Single of the Year", as did some reviewers. It is pretty catchy and I thought the line "whatever happened to you" says a lot to the band around this time.	Only the Names Have Been Changed (2007) This is singer Kelly Jones' inevitable solo album. Each of the ten songs are names of girls - most people just assume they were former lovers :/ I never bought this album, I don't even think it was released in the States... Update: I just found out that this album is being released in the US around the greatest hits album.

Links: www.stereophonics.com myspace.com/stereophonics

 11/04/2008 08:04:44  ♥ written by vu ()