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Grotesque
= Cult of Ray =
France
777 Posts |
 Posted - 06/22/2006 : 03:04:59
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quote:
Originally posted by Jontiven
There's a lot of great music here, and if some of it goes over your head, just wait until you have some emotional experiences that allow you to expand your musical/lyrical horizons and then perhaps you will find FMRM to be the Exile On Main Street of your generation. Miss it at your own peril.
bye,
Jon Tiven
All that is matter of individual tastes and sensibilites. Better forget ages and generations.
A baby could like FMRM, I'm sure he won't regret the old pixies sound...
But anyway, all that hate against the album was VERY predictable: all those fans started to listen a kind of music that is the OPOSITE of Luther Alison, Buddy Guy and Marvin Gaye, and now you make their absolute hero sound a bit like them, without loosing his originality.
If this is not provocation, this is naivety, but in both case I appreciate the moove hugely.
Did I say I loved the album?
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NimrodsSon
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1938 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2006 : 06:06:14
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I haven't read this whole thread, so I'm not sure who it is that doesn't care for Mr. Tiven's work, but I would say that he deserves an immense amount of praise for (if for no other reason...) his incredible production work on Johnny Barleycorn. That song is SOOOOO modernly Spectoresque! It's only missing the choir. Were you consciously trying to emulate that Phil Spector sound? If so, you sure pulled it off! As I mentioned in my other post, the only complaint I have with the production, which is a very small complaint when one looks at the big picture, is that you didn't insist on Frank redoing his vocal, or at least parts of it, on "Fast Man." But then again, maybe you were purposely going for that kind of "raw" sound.
¡Viva los Católicos! |
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cassandra is
> Teenager of the Year <
France
4233 Posts |
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PixieSteve
> Teenager of the Year <
Poland
4698 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2006 : 07:17:56
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quote:
Originally posted by NimrodsSon
As I mentioned in my other post, the only complaint I have with the production, which is a very small complaint when one looks at the big picture, is that you didn't insist on Frank redoing his vocal, or at least parts of it, on "Fast Man." But then again, maybe you were purposely going for that kind of "raw" sound.
¡Viva los Católicos!
is that really the only problem you have with his vocals on the album? to me his singing is acceptable on that song, but some others..
FAST_MAN RAIDER_MAN - June 19th |
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NimrodsSon
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1938 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2006 : 08:52:12
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Well, I don't mind a couple of bum notes here and there. I guess if I was going to get really picky, I would say the vocals on "Elijah" sound a little strained, and a few other little details like that, but none of that stuff really bothers me. For some reason "Fast Man" is the only one that really bothers me--I guess because it's the type of song thaat should have a flawless vocal performance.
By the way, I'm now down to only two songs on the first disc that I don't particularly care for!
¡Viva los Católicos! |
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frnck blck
-= The Man =-
312 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2006 : 21:33:54
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quote:
Originally posted by NimrodsSon
Well, I don't mind a couple of bum notes here and there. I guess if I was going to get really picky, I would say the vocals on "Elijah" sound a little strained, and a few other little details like that, but none of that stuff really bothers me. For some reason "Fast Man" is the only one that really bothers me--I guess because it's the type of song thaat should have a flawless vocal performance.
By the way, I'm now down to only two songs on the first disc that I don't particularly care for!
¡Viva los Católicos!
yes. i agree with elijah. a bit strained. it is a constant battle i have.
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frankblackphx
= Cult of Ray =
USA
287 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2006 : 22:52:48
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Fast Man is my favorite song off of both discs. For me, it is one of the first times that Frank's falsetto vocal really clicked with me. I'm not sure a part has moved me more in any song as it does in the "Here I Am" bridge. Totally heartfelt and just amazing.
I also love the vocals on Elijah as well. Also one of my favorites. The vocals on My Terrible Ways sound more strained to me than any other performance on the CD.
I think it is your best album since Dog In The Sand Frank. Thanks a ton for bringing cheer to my life (and driving my wife crazy as I play it constantly). 
Dan
I got me so down I got me a headache. |
Edited by - frankblackphx on 06/22/2006 22:57:50 |
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danjersey
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
2792 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2006 : 22:57:54
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| yeah this dbl cd is more frank black music. |
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vilainde
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
Niue
7443 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2006 : 00:55:42
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I'll have to listen closer to Elijah and Fast Man. The vocals that bug me the most are on My Terrible Ways. Frank sang it soooo great live, I didn't expect that falsetto and it put me off.
Denis
Your team sucks |
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Ten Percenter
- FB Enquirer -
United Kingdom
1733 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2006 : 01:39:13
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Bazza passed this review on to me to be posted:
http://www.ireland.com/theticket/articles/2006/0616/2738086374TK1606CDREV1.html
FRANK BLACK
Fastman/Raiderman Cooking
Vinyl ****
Having doubtlessly made a bit of extra cash from the lucrative Pixies reunion, Charles Kittridge Thompson III can afford to indulge himself in a double album and hire such past legends as The Band's Levon Helm, Cheap Trick's Tom Petersson, Bad Company's Simon Kirke, and the likes of Al Kooper, Steve Cropper and Spooner Oldman. This is no filler-packed vanity project, however, but a continuation of the themes he began on last year's Honeycomb album. This time sees him tapping even deeper into a rich, rootsy vein on such rough, countrified tunes as If Your Poison Gets You, Johnny Barleycorn, In the Time of My Ruin and Where the Wind Is Going. He takes Ewan MacColl's Dirty Old Town out of the backstreets and into the barrios, helped by honky-tonk singer Marty Brown, and brings a biblical Bruce Springsteen vibe to Elijah. Kevin Courtney
"I thought that I had reached bedrock, but I had yet to reach Birmingham..." |
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PowerSurge
- FB Fan -
USA
12 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2006 : 06:05:47
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Why is this a vanity project and why are so many critics using the "it's too long" excuse to bash the album? Was the White Album too long? Electric Ladyland? These are rhetorical questions, but after reading through all the reviews here, I'm left wondering out loud...
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marcus4realius
- FB Fan -
133 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2006 : 10:35:08
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Powersurge, at the time of their individual releases, yes, both the white album and Electric Ladyland were panned as too long. Time heals all wounds.
People are saying it's a vanity project because it sounds like it appeals to the creator rather than the audience. No artist should pander to the audience, but then again, no artist should shut them out.
A happy medium is usually sought.
Anyway, reviews are just opinions. Just because I felt one way about something doesn't mean it's the truth, or that you should agree.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
"This is a weird story. President Bush has apologized today for scolding a member of the White House press corps for wearing sunglasses because he found out the reporter is legally blind. ... Bush also apologized for telling physicist Stephen Hawking `to get off your lazy ass.'"
---Conan O'Brien |
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Carl
- A 'Fifth' Catholic -
Ireland
11546 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2006 : 13:22:54
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http://arts.guardian.co.uk/filmandmusic/story/0,,1803580,00.html
Frank Black, Fast Man Raider
Man
 (Cooking Vinyl)
Dorian Lynskey
Friday June 23, 2006
The Guardian
The sticker on the front trumpets Frank
Black's 12th album as "his most
ambitious", by which it simply means
his longest. None of these 27 songs
can touch the power and vision of
Black's work with the Pixies. It's as if
he used up a lifetime's ideas in one
astounding five-year flurry and has been
pleasing himself ever since. Fast Man
Raider Man, a spiritual sequel to 2004's
Nashville-based Honeycomb, is the
work of a middle-aged man with little to prove: amiable, assured,
seldom surprising. Backed by an army of session veterans, he
roams through the country-tinged end of classic rock,
successfully impersonating Van Morrison, Tom Waits and, on
the magnificently ominous When the Paint Grows Darker Still,
Leonard Cohen. Despite the success of the Pixies' reunion
tours, Black seems interested in anybody's past but his own.
http://blogcritics.org/archives/2006/06/25/142649.php
CD Review: Frank Black - Fast
Man Raider Man
June 25, 2006
Modern Pea Pod
In 1929, Luis Bunuel directed a
film called Un Chien Andalou.
Perhaps you've heard of it: co-
written with then-Surrealist
artist and provocateur Salvador
Dali and possessed of an
infamous opening sequence
which still shocks today, it was
met with admiration in artistic
circles but with much more
widespread revulsion from the
general public - though not, as
is often apocryphally claimed,
with the riots which would
eventually greet Bunuel's second collaboration with Dali, 1930's L'Age
d'Or. Look at the first two films by this director, and a career
trajectory seems immediately obvious. Here is a man who would
attack social taboos and mores with shocking, dreamlike images and
juxtapositions; a bold, uncompromising filmmaker who could only truly
be appreciated by a niche audience. Of course he would continue in
the direction suggested by Un Chien Andalou and L'Age d'Or...who
could imagine him doing anything else?
Except, of course, he did do something else. Fifteen years later, the
film released by Bunuel was not another bizarre psycho-sexual journey
into the surreal, but simply an adaptation of Daniel Defoe's Robinson
Crusoe. More faithful to its source material than anyone had a right to
expect, Bunuel's Crusoe had a coherent plot and a filmmaking style
which was "Hollywood" enough to net lead actor Dan O'Herlihy a 1955
Academy Award nomination. So why, you might ask, did such a
fearless filmmaker settle for such a "typical" film? Was he under
studio pressure? Did he simply recognize that one can only make so
many films like Un Chien Andalou before financial concerns force one
to either sell out or get a straight job? Perhaps; but the bottom line
is, whether Bunuel went from Andalusian dogs to British classics in
fifteen years for love or for money, he ultimately did it because he
wanted to.
Now maybe this is a strange and roundabout way to talk about the
new album by Frank Black, but think about it for a moment. The time
between Black's glory days with his old band, the Pixies (don't
suppose you've heard of them, too?), and Fast Man Raider Man is
longer than the fifteen years which separated Bunuel's first film and
Crusoe; seventeen years, to be exact, since 1989's Doolittle, when, of
course, Black brought Bunuel's own Andalouto a wider public
consciousness with "Debaser" and its references to "slicin' up
eyeballs." But there are more than a few parallels. Here's a guy who
in the late 1980s played a key role in laying the groundwork for
alternative rock's rise to fame - and did so with a weirder and, yes,
more Surreal approach than pretty much any of his followers. Listen to
the end of "Tame," on which Mr. Black (then known as Black Francis)
metamorphoses into a sort of ragged-breathing wild animal, and it's
as difficult to imagine him any other way as it was to imagine Luis
Bunuel adapting English literature and winning Academy Awards. But
like his admitted hero Bunuel, given less than two decades Black has
achieved a new and decidedly un-edgy respectability: in his case, by
recording two mellow albums with country-soul masters like Spooner
Oldham, Dan Penn and Steve Cropper. And man, are there a lot of
people who wish that rabid beast Black Francis would come back.
For the record, you can count me among their number - sort of. I
would be a fool to stand here and say that Fast Man Raider Man, or
even last year's tighter but ultimately similar Honeycomb, is a match
for the best of the Pixies. Those albums were monumental, and the
first two - Surfer Rosa and Doolittle, three if you count the 1987 mini-
LP Come On Pilgrim - were pretty much as close to perfect as rock
music can get. I won't even step on the toes of people who say Frank
Black and Teenager of the Year were Black's most essential solo
records, although frankly, with their overstuffed running orders and
occasionally throwaway songwriting, they exhibit many of the same
flaws currently being ascribed to Fast Man Raider Man. But the thing
is, I know Black Francis is alive and well. I saw him as recently as late
2004, at the Fox Theatre in Detroit, and you can see him too, at any
of the upcoming dates on the Pixies' seemingly neverending reunion
tour - if you live in Slovakia, you can even see him next month! So can
we please just let Charles Thompson, the man behind Blacks Frank
and Francis, make a few albums of his own for once?
I know, I know. We're not supposed to make excuses for artists'
current work based on their past achievements...but where I come
from, we're not supposed to force them to relive their college years for
our own entertainment, either. There's no doubt in anyone's minds
that "Cactus" and "Hey" are more exciting, more vital songs than "Kiss
My Ring" and "When the Paint Grows Darker Still," but at the same
time, who says there isn't room for both - or, for that matter, the 24
other songs on Black's latest "disappointment?" There's good music to
be found here, if we can only put our Pixies-sized expectations aside;
it's just that we have to look for it first.
Critics aren't supposed to say that, incidentally. Instead, I'm
supposed to be reprimanding Black for putting out too much damn
music - again. This is, after all, the guy who put out a full six albums
in five years with backing band the Catholics to near-universal
indifference; two of which, 2002's Black Letter Days and Devil's
Workshop, were released on the same day. Thing is, though, that's
Frank Black: he's been a boutique artist basically since 1996's The
Cult of Ray, and if critics and casuals will lament the idea of two full
CDs to digest this summer, then a certain kind of fan will probably
cheer. I, myself, could probably do without a few of these tunes;
Black's "House of the Rising Sun"-pilfering Gothic folk on "The End of
the Summer" gets tedious fast, and "I'm Not Dead (I'm in
Pittsburgh)," while fun, isn't much more than a cute title. But then
again, I could do without more than a little of the White Album, too.
And all said, it's tough to say which songs here are truly dispensable:
even though "Dog Sleep" doesn't hold on to the promise of its lovely
opening verse, the Hammond organ swells, barrelhouse piano and
drunken trombone swoons which color the rest of its arrangement still
bring it pleasingly close to Black's original vision of a Blonde on
Blonde tribute.
There are, of course, downsides to the sheer wealth of music here.
Where Honeycomb came off somewhat monochrome - if sepia-tinted -
Fast Man Raider Man is the end result of two years' worth of pick-up
sessions, from the week in Nashville which yielded Honeycombto one
day in L.A. as recently as this January. And the patchwork shows,
sometimes for the worse: if "Where the Wind is Going" puts a roots
spin on Black's early solo material and still manages to rock, then
"Johnny Barleycorn" sounds a little like something the Crash Test
Dummies forgot to record. But when the all-star sessioneers Black has
assembled stick to what they know best, the results can be truly
magical. Check out the first of Fast Man Raider Man's title tracks, a
spellbinding soul ballad which Black's fragile falsetto yelp sells in
spite of his somewhat forced lyrics. Or better yet, there's
"Wanderlust," which would almost sound like it was written by Dan
Penn himself if it didn't bear a "Black" songwriting credit.
In the end, my conclusion probably isn't going to surprise anyone.
Your enjoyment of Fast Man Raider Man will relate directly to your
ability to see Charles Thompson for who he is: not the shrieking,
androgynous madman of the Pixies, or even the whimsical eccentric of
Teenager of the Year, but a middle-aged man. This isn't "exciting"
music in the way the Pixies were exciting. It's reflective, muted even
when it reaches for the uptempo rock numbers. It's "mature" and
"accomplished," with all the good and not-so-good connotations those
two words suggest. Give it the time and attention it deserves, and it
will reward you; and if the shout Black lets loose with on his
(excellent) cover of Ewan MacColl's "Dirty Old Town" sounds a little
like a meow next to the roars of "Tame," well, that's maturing for ya.
But for those of you who aren't convinced, just keep in mind: less
than ten years after Robinson Crusoe, Bunuel directed The Discreet
Charm of the Bourgeoisie, a biting satire which delved once more into
the disjointed surrealism and absurdist social commentary of his early
work. In other words, folks, respectability don't have to last forever.
Reviewed by Zach Hoskins |
Edited by - Carl on 06/25/2006 13:22:35 |
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Atertus Coveni
- FB Fan -
France
16 Posts |
Posted - 06/26/2006 : 00:57:03
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I found this review on a french website today, I hope it hasn't been already posted. I don't have the time to translate it now (and my english is probably too poor anyway) and I'm not sure it is really worth to be translated: it is a very very bad review.
Frank Black - Fast Man/Raider Man
Sur ce copieux double album enregistré en compagnie du gratin des musiciens de Nashville, le meneur des Pixies nous ressert le plat réchauffé d’Honeycomb. Une alliance de country et R&B classique, en pilotage automatique.
Pour que je continue à chroniquer chaque nouveau disque de Frank Black (alors que cela fait plus de dix ans que le bibendum rock ne sort plus rien d’extraordinaire), c’est qu’il doit certainement y avoir, cachée derrière cette manie, une pathologie récurrente d’une vielle maladie, la nostalgie. On exprime ainsi une certaine forme de gratitude éternelle mêlée de ridicule. Et pourtant, on lui doit tellement à Black Francis. Beaucoup de fans de rock ont bifurqué vers l’indie rock grâce aux Pixies, votre serviteur le premier. En 1990, alors jeune collégien, l’écoute de Bossa Nova fut comme un détonateur. Imaginez l’impact sur un morveux de 14 ans qui écoutait le hard rock de Led Zeppelin. L’attitude rock débraillée des Pixies tranchait avec les poses martiales du guitar hero Jimmy Page. On réalisa soudainement qu’on pouvait aussi jouer du rock avec trois accords et des solos d’une note. Musicalement, c’est tout un pan culturel qui s’ouvrit à nous. De fil en aiguille, on se pencha sur le label 4AD, puis sur Creation Records, Jesus & Mary Chain et tout s’enchaîna, on remonta la filière... . Qui sait, peut-être que si les Pixies n’avaient pas dressé nos esgourdes juvéniles, on en serait toujours à écouter Led Zep, ou bien on aurait lâché l’affaire rock depuis bien longtemps, comme bon nombre de gens de notre entourage...
Frank Black a bien changé depuis Black Francis. On a beau faire semblant de s’enthousiasmer à chaque nouvelle galette solo, le soufflet de l’engouement retombe bien vite. On cherche alors l’étincelle lors des concerts donnés par les Pixies rabibochés à grands coups de billets verts. On sait que le jeu est faussé, mais on prend toujours son pied à écouter ces classiques. Les symptômes du virus nostalgie rôdent toujours.
Après une période punk rock à trois sous, son syndrome actuel à lui s’appelle Nashville et le pousse à s’égosiller en mâchant un Chewing Gum. Son précédent opus, Honeycomb enregistré avec la crème des musiciens studios manquait sérieusement de relief. Une succession de morceaux country/R&B respectueuse mais mollassonne, enregistrés avec des musiciens cadors, dont le crédit d’émotions s’était bien épuisé du temps de Come on Pilgrims. Fast Man/Raider Man fait mieux, mais encore faut-il arriver à bout de ce double album. Ce n’est pourtant pas la première fois que Charles Thompson nous fait le coup. Son dernier coup d’éclat d’ailleurs, Teenager of the Year, manqua à deux doigts d’être double.
Fast Man/Raider Man a été enregistré avec la même équipe de requins que le précédent, plus quelques nouvelles têtes : Al Kooper ; Tom Petersson des Cheap Trick ; Simon Kirke de Bad Company ; Levon Helm de The Band... L’ensemble est moins monotone, mais il traîne toujours ce sentiment de chansons qui se suivent et se ressemblent inlassablement. C’est le paysage interminable de poteaux électriques qui défilent sur la route 66 qui s’offre à nous : on sait qu’on roule sur une voie prestigieuse, mais on s’ennuie sec pendant le voyage. L’autoradio marque quelques pauses le temps d’un rare sursaut : des cuivres entraînants de temps à autres, une ballade soul vintage gentillette (“Sad Old World”) ou une petite mélodie punk-rock convaincante (“In The Time Of My Ruin”). “Johhny Barleycorn”, clone americana de “Headache”, aurait fait un morceau potable sur un album des Catholics. C’est agréable à écouter, mais pas mémorable. Et puis 27 titres, même à l’heure de sa présélection Ipod, c’est trop long.
Du temps des Pixies et du néant d’informations qui précédait le web, la voix de Black Francis me laissait suggérer étrangement le physique d’un Neil Tennant. On était loin du compte après vérification.... Peut-être à cause de “Dig For Fire”, il y avait sur cette chanson un chant gracieux au milieu de ses hurlements de sanglier. Maintenant, sa voix reflète mieux l’apparence de son physique : beaucoup de kilos en trop et une maturité "pépère". Frank Black joue désormais de l’adult rock, le pire gros mot qui soit.
article écrit par Paul-Ramone, le 22 juin 2006
http://www.pinkushion.com/chroniques.php3?id_article=1862
Fred
"La morte non è nel non poter comunicare ma nel non poter più essere compresi" Pier Paolo PASOLINI
"Death is not when you can not communicate, but when you can no longer be understood" |
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Frog in the Sand
-+ Le premiere frog +-
France
2715 Posts |
Posted - 06/26/2006 : 01:19:03
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Rigolo. Le mec reproche sa "nostalgie" à FB alors que lui-même chiale sur les Pixies d'un bout à l'autre de son article. Allez mec, une tisane, un suppo et au lit.
-----
 blackolero le only Frank Black / Pixies site 100% in français |
Edited by - Frog in the Sand on 06/26/2006 01:19:41 |
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PowerSurge
- FB Fan -
USA
12 Posts |
Posted - 06/26/2006 : 04:58:15
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quote:
Originally posted by marcus4realius
Anyway, reviews are just opinions. Just because I felt one way about something doesn't mean it's the truth, or that you should agree.
True, true. Thanks for explaining what you meant, and sorry if my post seemed directed at you. I was just grousing out loud, and you're right in that these are only opinions. |
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marcus4realius
- FB Fan -
133 Posts |
Posted - 06/26/2006 : 08:49:28
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Thanks for thanking.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
"This is a weird story. President Bush has apologized today for scolding a member of the White House press corps for wearing sunglasses because he found out the reporter is legally blind. ... Bush also apologized for telling physicist Stephen Hawking `to get off your lazy ass.'"
---Conan O'Brien |
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ScottP
= Cult of Ray =
USA
618 Posts |
Posted - 06/26/2006 : 14:27:36
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quote:
Originally posted by frnck blck
quote:
Originally posted by NimrodsSon
Well, I don't mind a couple of bum notes here and there. I guess if I was going to get really picky, I would say the vocals on "Elijah" sound a little strained, and a few other little details like that, but none of that stuff really bothers me. For some reason "Fast Man" is the only one that really bothers me--I guess because it's the type of song thaat should have a flawless vocal performance.
By the way, I'm now down to only two songs on the first disc that I don't particularly care for!
¡Viva los Católicos!
yes. i agree with elijah. a bit strained. it is a constant battle i have.
fb
Vocals are fine. Songwriting even better. Good bread Chucky. |
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a guy in a rover
= Cult of Ray =
United Kingdom
535 Posts |
Posted - 06/26/2006 : 14:52:45
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Why is everyone slapping off about strained vocals on Fast Man? They dont strained here or anywhere else on the album to me.
Kiss my ring...I am the greatest
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Jefrey
= Cult of Ray =
USA
918 Posts |
Posted - 06/26/2006 : 15:00:46
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quote:
Originally posted by Jontiven
There's a lot of great music here, and if some of it goes over your head, just wait until you have some emotional experiences that allow you to expand your musical/lyrical horizons and then perhaps you will find FMRM to be the Exile On Main Street of your generation. Miss it at your own peril.
I think there's a lot of truth in that, and I wonder how many reviewers even have that experience/context to draw from. I find it strange that a vast majority of reviewers seem to be comparing FMRM to FB/Pixies old stuff rather than actually reviewing the album.
It's also a problem with long/double albums. They may take years to fully digest, but pundits, especially in the internet age, have to form an opinion and publish immediately. It's not really fair, but that's the way it is.
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NimrodsSon
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1938 Posts |
Posted - 06/27/2006 : 14:16:07
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Well, somehow or another, my opinion has completely changed on the song "Fast Man." Not only do I now love the song, but I can't figure out what problem I had with the vocals. I don't even think he actually does go out of tune, except for maybe very slightly in one or two spots. Anyways, this album is great and just keeps on getting better, and the best part is I still haven't tired of it at all after a week!
¡Viva los Católicos! |
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1965
= Cult of Ray =
Australia
799 Posts |
Posted - 06/28/2006 : 06:56:45
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A relatively positive review from:
RAVE Magazine, Australia, Issue No.746 - 27 June 2006.
FRANK BLACK - Fast Man Raider Man (Cooking Vinyl). The big man follows up 2005's Honeycomb with double album.
Frank Black will forever be associated with the mini LP and four full-length albums he recorded as Black Francis, singer/songwriter with art-punk surrealists the Pixies. Those who haven't followed the man in the years that followed, may easily forget that his solo career has covered a far larger quantity of both time AND music, made in collaboration with veterans from such wide-reaching sources as Pere Ubu and Teenage Fanclub to Booker T & The MG's. It's all culminated in Fast Man Raider Man, a sprawling 27-track double CD that teams Frank with seasoned sessioners such as drummer Jim Keltner and Beach Boys/Phil Spector bassist Carol Kaye, as well as MG's guitarist Stever Cropper, Small Faces keyboardist Ian McLagan and The Band's legendary drummer Levon Helm. With such company, things inevitably get pretty trad and rootsy, while blending with Frank's fevered creativity, in the honky-tonk meets Zappa weirdness of Dog Sleep and the bluesy jazz shuffle of If Your Poison Gets You. There's even a hint of Roxy Music in saxophone-coloured, Traffic-paraphrasing Johnny Barleycorn and a nod to the Pixies' eccentric pop sensibilities in Kiss My Ring. Elsewhere he's a retro country-pop songwriter to match Scott McCaughey in It's Just Not Your Moment and Where The Wind Is Going. While Some Pixies fans may lose their patience at the record's lack of bizarre, explosive unhinged rock, many Frank fans will find much to treasure in this expansive collection's more muted Basement Tapes-evoking rural soul.
* * * 1/2
Matt Thrower.
(( I'm a Snake... cut in half 'cause I'm not the one you needed. )) |
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Miss Thing
- FB Fan -
USA
49 Posts |
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kfs
= Cult of Ray =
USA
889 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2006 : 07:13:57
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That's cool!
Thanks V.
Hey! What's YOUR favorite FMRM song? |
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cassandra is
> Teenager of the Year <
France
4233 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2006 : 07:36:16
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from http://www.europe2.fr/music/album/57585/: (the site of a big French Radio)
Frank Black
Fast Man / Raider Man
Label / Distrib. : Cooking Vinyl / Wagram Music
"Origines :
en se penchant sur l'actualité de la saison 2005/2006, on peut légitimement se demander si les Pixies sont bien décidés à sortir le fameux album qui marquera leurs retrouvailles. Mais en attendant, Frank Black a souhaité mener à bien ses propres projets et donner une suite à son album Honeycomb, paru durant l'été 2005. Fast man / Raider man n'est pas un projet tout à fait classique, puisqu'il est composé de deux CD regroupant respectivement 13 et 14 morceaux.
Ingrédients :
sombre, lyrique, nostalgique, non conventionnel... Tels sont les quelques adjectifs qui permettent de qualifier ce nouvel opus. Ici, il n'est pas question de parler de musique enragée, Black ayant tout simplement choisi de jouer la carte de la sobriété. Une guitare par ci, un piano par là et une voix toujours aussi profonde suffisent à nous faire aimer ce disque dès les premières notes. Et quand l'artiste se met en pleine nature pour enregistrer la chanson Raiderman, il nous invite à découvrir une ambiance estivale parfaitement adaptée aux circonstances. Black n'a pas changé, ça fait plaisir !"
pas de bras pas de chocolat |
Edited by - cassandra is on 06/29/2006 07:36:41 |
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Carl
- A 'Fifth' Catholic -
Ireland
11546 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2006 : 00:34:23
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http://www.2theadvocate.com/entertainment/music/3252931.html
Frank Black
By JOHN WIRT
Music critic
Published: Jun 30, 2006
Frank Black
FASTMAN RAIDERMAN
Prolific Pixies front man Frank
Black returns with a two-CD
set that casts him in a different
light. Neither screaming nor
detonating waves of distorted
electric guitar, Black leaves the
alt-rock he pioneered behind
to go a little country and a little
soul and other things, too.
Piano, organ and acoustic
guitar form the songs’
foundation. Occasional horns
and something that sounds
like a dobro show up, too.
Legendary sidemen, including
Levon Helm, Steve Cropper,
Spooner Oldman and Al
Kooper, help the unusually
quiet Black dig America’s music roots.
“You Can’t Crucify Yourself” and “Golden Shore” play like Black’s take on Bob
Dylan’s Nashville Skyline. Fastman Raiderman, in fact, was cut in Nashville and
Los Angeles. He goes nostalgic, Randy Newman style, in “Seven Days.” “Dog
Sleep” has a laid-back New Orleans vibe. “I’m Not Dead (I’m In Pittsburgh)”
shuffles along like a drunken cowboy song. Fastman Raiderman’s soulful side
arrives with two songs on disc two that are very like Van Morrison, especially
“Elijah,” with its rush of lyrics in the verses and kicking chorus. “Sad Old World”
could be a ’50s torch filtered through ’80s British rock.
There’s fine stuff on Fastman Raiderman, but it might have more impact if its 27
songs were trimmed to the 14 or 15 strongest tracks. |
Edited by - Carl on 06/30/2006 00:39:47 |
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HeywoodJablome
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1485 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2006 : 09:16:39
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I finally picked this up yesterday and I gotta say after reading a lot of these reviews I was a little scared it wouldn't be so good. But on the first listen some songs clicked right away and some didn't which is the Frank I've come to know and love. I'm a pretty big fan of the country/alt country Nashville sound (call it what you want) which no doubt aids my view of the record. And in my opinion it is a vast improvement on Honeycomb. The production doesn't seem as dry and the songs are more varied (and better over all). A solid album indeed. The next Exile on Main Street? I suppose time will make that decision. My only real complaint is that the numbering of songs on disc 2 starts over at #1 while they continue into the 20's on the cd cover. So by the time your on disc 2 you have to like, do math or something to figure out what song your on. Totally not cool maaaaaaaaaan!
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Wait a minute, strike that. Reverse it. |
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jfsalewicz
- FB Fan -
USA
55 Posts |
Posted - 07/01/2006 : 04:20:00
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http://www.musicbox-online.com/reviews-2006/frankblack-fastmanraiderman.html
Frank Black
Fastman Raiderman
(Back Porch)
First Appeared in The Music Box, June 2006, Volume 13, #6
Written by John Metzger
Featuring 27 tracks spread across two discs, it’s safe to say that Frank Black’s Fastman Raiderman contains a little something for everyone save for those fans of the Pixies who have been perplexed by the myriad of avenues that he has pursued since embarking upon a solo career in 1993. Although it was recorded over the course of nearly two years, Fastman Raiderman feels as if it sprang from a single session as Black further refines the Nashville-imbued flavors that crept through last year’s Honeycomb. Right from the start, with the beatnik groove and Van Morrison-esque chorus of If Your Poison Gets You, it’s clear in which direction Black is headed, and the bulk of the album is kissed as much by the sad-eyed wistfulness of country as it is by the radiant passion of southern soul. Not that Black doesn’t dip into his customary array of classic rock influences, too, tucking the Rolling Stones into Fast Man, Creedence Clearwater Revival into Kiss My Ring, The Band into My Terrible Ways, The Doors into The End of Summer and When the Paint Grows Darker Still, and both The Beatles and Bob Dylan into Wanderlust. However, the overall ambience of the endeavor is decidedly different from anything else that he has ever done.
Nevertheless, there is one big problem that plagues Fastman Raiderman, ultimately keeping it from becoming something greater: its pacing. Much of the first half of the collection is unhurried and ruminative, while the latter portion of the set packs a bit more of a punch. Yet, for all of the distinctive textures that Black employs — and, ambitiously, the full range of the Americana spectrum is represented — each of the endeavor’s two distinctive segments inevitably becomes a tad too monochromatic for the outing to function as a whole. Make no mistake, though. With few exceptions, the material is strong, and supported by an all-star cast that includes, among others, P.F. Sloan, Al Kooper, Steve Cropper, Spooner Oldham, Buddy Miller, and The Band’s Levon Helm, Black wrings everything that he can out of his songs. Despite its flawed layout, Fastman Raiderman proves that Honeycomb was no fluke and that Black is as engaged as ever in his art.
Ratings
4 Stars: Excellent
I wanna live on a abstract plane |
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billgoodman
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
Netherlands
6214 Posts |
Posted - 07/02/2006 : 02:59:05
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So funny, but I agree with NimrodsSon exactly,
the falsetto on Fastman doesn't bother me anymore.
This record is amazing, but you know the press were going to hate this.
Luckily, Frank doesn't make records for the journalist, but for us!
Still I think a new FB/EDF-collaboration is going to be better received,
and maybe even a better album all together.
---------------------------
God save the Noisies |
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cassandra is
> Teenager of the Year <
France
4233 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 02:58:25
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another French review:
http://musique.krinein.com/Black-Fast-man-Raider-man-4526.html
Black (Frank) - Fast man, Raider man
Critique par Zdenek - le 23/06/2006
Artiste : Frank Black
Maison de disque : Cooking Vinyl / Wagram
Année de parution : 2006
Black (Frank) - Fast man, Raider man
7.5
"Vas-y Franko
Frank Black doit être un homme plutôt heureux. Le retour des Pixies a été globalement triomphal, la presse et les fans avides guettent l'oeil humide un nouvel album du combo, et notre dodu guitariste-chanteur prend son pied en solitaire. Ainsi, après le fantastique et sensible Honeycomb, il nous ressort le coup des musiciens légendaires, de Nashville et de la nostalgie des musiques nord-américaines, mais cette fois sur un double album pour un total de vingt-sept chansons. Voilà un homme qui a des choses à dire. Un peu trop.
Superman
Sans rentrer dans le détail du pedigree à rallonge des collaborateurs de ce disque, sachez que l'on y retrouve Steve Cropper (arrangeur pour Otis Redding, au hasard), Spooner Oldham (qui a joué avec Wilson Picket entre autres), Buddy Miller (guitariste de Emmylou Harris), Chester Thompson (batteur de Franck Zappa), Reggie Young (qui a prêté ses talents à Johnny Cash notamment) et le producteur Jon Tiven, déjà à l'oeuvre sur le précédent opus studio, collaborateur de Robert Plant ou B.B. King. Et comme si cela ne suffisait pas, il y a des petits nouveaux, dont des membres de The Band, de Cheap Trick ou de Bad Company. Caprice de star ou rêve de gosse, peu importe comment l'on ressent la chose, l'important est ce que l'on entend sur cette production. Evidemment, avec une telle ribambelle de pointures, même lorsque le dit Blake Francis pond des morceaux très conventionnels, les arrangements aux petits oignons et l'exécution impeccable font sonner à merveille la moindre des mesures. Au niveau des registres, tout y passe : jazz, blues, country, folk, rock (le volume a un peu augmenté depuis la dernière fois) et même soul, qu'il s'agisse de chutes de studio d'Honeycomb, de reprises (Dirty old town, des Pogues, parfaitement buriné) ou de compositions originales, l'ambiance est au rendez-vous, qu'on se situe au coin du feu (Raider man, chien et cigales à l'appui) ou dans la tourmente (My terrible ways).
Tomb Raider
Le problème réside plutôt dans la quantité, qui comblera assurément les fans mais laisse un peu décontenancé dès lors qu'on prend un peu de recul. Loin de nous d'idée d'interroger la nécessité de la présence d'un second disque (son auteur est libre de ses choix artistiques), mais il est vrai que sa musique a tendance à tourner en rond sur la durée, malgré la variété stylistique, notamment du fait du registre vocal limité de ce gros bébé de Seattle. Il a beau se racler la gorge (Elijah), gémir ou murmurer, on finit inévitablement par être lassé de sa teinte. Inutile donc de chercher à s'enfiler la totalité d'un coup, ce serait une folie équivalente à celle qui consisterait à apprendre l'interminable liste des crédits de l'enregistrement. Malgré cette déconvenue, il faut reconnaître une certaine audace dans la démarche qui préside à ces sessions, car on se situe à des lieux de ce que les Pixies avaient l'habitude de trousser. A l'ancienne, Black assouvit ses penchants archéologiques, et peut s'appréhender comme un idéal passeur de relais vers les chantres de l'americana.
Il est en tout cas toujours aussi plaisant d'écouter des musiciens dont on sent qu'ils ont pris plaisir à enregistrer et jouer ensemble. Partant de ce principe, difficile de reprocher à Frank Black d'en faire trop ou de se reposer sur des acquis. D'autant qu'au demeurant, Fast man, raider man ne manque ni de bons morceaux ni de talent(s). Recommandé aux amateurs de l'effort précédent."
Frank Black - Fast man, raider man
CD 1
01. If your poison gets you
02. Johnny Barleycorn
03. Fast man
04. You can't crucify yourself
05. Dirty old town
06. Wanderlust
07. Seven days
08. Raider man
09. End of the summer
10. Dog sleep
11. When the pain grows darker still
12. I'm not dead (I'm in Pittsburgh)
13. Golden shore
CD 2
14. In the time of my ruin
15. Down to you
16. Highway to lowdown
17. Kiss my ring
18. My terrible ways
19. Fitzgerald
20. Elijah
21. It's just not your moment
22. The Real El Ray
23. Where the wind is going
24. Holland Town
25. Sad old world
26. Don't cry that way
27. Sad Man's Song
Zdenek
pas de bras pas de chocolat |
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Atertus Coveni
- FB Fan -
France
16 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2006 : 03:12:58
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Pas mal du tout cette critique, je ne peux décemment pas être d'accord avec tout (registre vocal limité, on finit par être irrémédiablement lassé par sa teinte...)mais ça n'est pas mal écrit et plutôt sympa.
Fred
"La morte non è nel non poter comunicare ma nel non poter più essere compresi" Pier Paolo PASOLINI
"Death is not when you can not communicate, but when you can no longer be understood" |
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Atertus Coveni
- FB Fan -
France
16 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2006 : 03:34:18
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Is there some italian fans here? I'm desperatly looking for italian reviews but I don't find anything, only some stuff about Pixies.
I know Frank is not really famous (at least his solo work is not) in Italy, but there must be some independant music press which has done something on Fastman Raiderman. (I mean something different from: "Next Pixies' album is not for this year, but their frontman's last solo effort will be released...").
Fred
"La morte non è nel non poter comunicare ma nel non poter più essere compresi" Pier Paolo PASOLINI
"Death is not when you can not communicate, but when you can no longer be understood" |
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cassandra is
> Teenager of the Year <
France
4233 Posts |
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Atertus Coveni
- FB Fan -
France
16 Posts |
Posted - 07/06/2006 : 10:28:15
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Moi non plus, ça n'est pas la première fois que je lis ce genre de remarques sur sa voix. On peut ne pas l'aimer, mais dire que son registre est limité! Du hurlement animal (il n'y a qu'à écouter la fin de Tame sur le DVD Sold Out, hallucinant!) au falsetto maitrisé, en passant par ces délicieux petits déraillements un peu rauques (je suis totalement fou du passage dans "I'll be blue" : "like the reign of MAStodon": peu peuvent se targuer d'avoir un registre si étendu, et surtout dans la musique rock.
Fred
"La morte non è nel non poter comunicare ma nel non poter più essere compresi" Pier Paolo PASOLINI
"Death is not when you can not communicate, but when you can no longer be understood" |
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cassandra is
> Teenager of the Year <
France
4233 Posts |
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Topic |
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Fast Man Raider Man reviews
