The Drop music blog
The life and times of a live album junkie
By Jillian Mapes, Assistant Managing Editor
December 1, 2007 | 1:17 a.m.
For the last week or so, I’ve been suffocating at home, a place where the local music scene is nonexistent and decent venues are an hour away. As a substitute, live albums have been in heavy rotation in my world.
I've always been a sucker for live albums, which probably has something to do with the fact that live music is my most favorite thing in the entire world. There is nothing like seeing your favorite band live or being in the crowd of a show when the music is just electric, permeating the air and seizing control of all who hear it. Live albums typically don't measure up to seeing a band live, but they help in recreating the experience. Enough of this talk, allow me to introduce you to a few of the recently released live albums.
Music from various artists within a certain genre can all start to sound the same after a while, so at least French dance duo Daft Punk manage to win out by having many of its own songs sound the same instead. Perhaps this is because Daft Punk have the market cornered on a completely unique brand of semi-mainstream house music that packs indie appeal while also being sampled by a big-name artist like Kanye West. Everyone who’s somebody knows who Daft Punk is, and even people consciously oblivious to the duo’s music are familiar with it. A bizarre kind of musical fame, if you ask me.
Obviously, I think way too much about Daft Punk, but it’s only because the group still proves to be an enigma to me. With the digital release of Alive 2007 last week, I actually have a reason to talk about Daft Punk. The release, which will be available in CD form in North America on Dec. 4, is the band’s second live album. With manipulations and fusions of its biggest hits, Daft Punk has managed to double the catchiness of any of the dance duo’s best songs. Seriously, every track is so jam-packed with juicy, synth-laden beats that it is impossible to sit still while listening to Alive 2007.
It is almost mind-boggling to believe that all of the digital effects that Daft Punk uses in the studio are replicated so perfectly in live form. Alive 2007 surpasses any singular Daft Punk album by featuring all of the duo’s best songs spliced together in unbelievable quality with enormous crowd energy as a backdrop. The only things missing from Alive 2007 are Daft Punk’s widely discussed and completely surreal stage visuals, which included pyramids, robots, giant honeycombs and a whole lot more that really can’t be explained past actually experiencing a Daft Punk live show.
I could honestly gush about Alive 2007 for days and days because, on this album, almost every over-played Daft Punk song sounds better than it did in its original form. Neverthless, the combination of “Television Rules the Nation” and “Crescendolls” must be noted individually because it is a full-body attack that forces your limbs to robot dance for almost five minutes of pure musical joy.
Additionally, long-time English punk rockers Buzzcocks released a live album, Buzzcocks 30, of 28 tracks this week for digital download. According the band’s Web site, “CDs will be in the shops in early in '08 and a limited number.” I just love the way those Brits talk.
The best thing about Buzzcocks, besides the fact that my roommate was a member of its 2006 Warped Tour entourage (seriously), is that the band’s music is really listenable punk rock. I can recognize the musical importance of, say, The Sex Pistols, but Nevermind the Bullocks is by no means a record that you can throw on while doing homework or walking to class. It’s one of those albums that, albeit significant in musical history, you have to make a point to hear.
Not all punk rock songs have anarchy-laced, angry lyrics framed by three repeating chords played very fast, and Buzzcocks prove that by playing songs that would still be great even if they were slowed down. Ultimately, pop song craftsmanship is at the heart of the band’s songs. Yes, I said pop music – it’s not a dirty or tainted phrase, despite claims otherwise.
Pete Shelley’s vocals are as clear as day in comparison to his contemporaries of rabblerousing mumblers. His aged voice gives way to straight-forward lyrics that have anthem-like appeal for the love-sick youth, especially with lines like “Operator's manual/Tells me what to find/And how to make adjustments when/You tamper with my mind” on the song “Operator’s Manual.”
The guitar riff of the song “369” sounds bratty, even taunting, which is common trend among the Buzzcock classics played on Buzzcocks 30. Between the song selection and the tremendous sound quality of this live album, Buzzcocks 30 is a good choice for those in search of an album with a genuine kind of punk rock appeal that has nothing to do with Fall Out Boy.
Although neo-new wavers The Killers' recently-released album of rerecorded B-sides, rarities, covers and remixes, titled Sawdust, is not a live album, it deserves discussion, though not all for good reasons. Sawdust is better than The Killers’ disappointing second album Sam’s Town, especially on songs like “Sweet Talk” and “Where the White Boys Dance” when frontman Brandon Flowers’ voice soars in post-punk agony. Although some of the band’s B-sides that are included on Sawdust, simply put, are too strong to never see the light of day, there are definite flaws within the album overall.
“Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll” is just one example of a song that is unbearably over-the-top -- a recurring theme for Sawdust. Personally, I have some major qualms with the song. First of all, indie rock isn’t glamorous, and Brandon Flowers is too blasé to be this sarcastic. Besides, The Killers border more on arena rock than indie rock at this point. Additionally, it’s obvious that Flowers did not think the lyrics of this song through too much – he just keeps repeating the line “It’s indie rock & roll for me.” Who writes an ode to entire musical genre and then fails to elaborate on it past just proclaiming this ambiguous love?
Remember kids, rock’n’roll won’t kill your soul, just your ears.
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To legally download any of the albums mentioned in this blog (except the bad ones -- don't even think about it!), head over to Ruckus.