Two thumbs up, Nickel Creek!! Two thumbs up!!Chris Thile looks worried here, but really he shouldn't be worried as he sits in the studio while recording "Why Should the Fire Die?"
I bought the Nickel Creek's newest cd, "Why Should the Fire Die?" today and have been listening to it, continually throughout my day. I am way impressed and no, Jordan, it's not because I have a teeny music crush on Chris Thile (who doesn't? he's amazing on the mandolin). Who cares about that? The truth is that this piece is a break-through, in my opinion for Nickel Creek. You never know what to expect one piece to the next. It's flavorful and inventive. Sara Watkins's voice really pushes through her previous experiences with NC, no joke. The girl sounds unbelievable. I especially like her on the song, "Anthony" which is number 9 on the cd. This is a cd to blast on the car stereo with the windows down.
Nickel Creek's opening song, "When in Rome" is the best thing I've heard in a long time... they even stomp along with the music to keep the beat, which my father tells me is an old Apalachian tradition. It has my feet stomping and body swinging as I move around the room. There is more I could tell you about this cd, but why listen to me yammering on when you can listen to this instead. This is for sure a crowd pleaser.
I guarantee your toes will be tapping and your fingers strumming the "air guitar" along with this intense cd.
For more information, visit Nickel Creek's website at http://www.nickelcreek.com
3 comments:
Alaina, you are MOST certainly welcome. I think their new cd is the best they have put out. It's really a mature sound and they play so comfortably with each other. You won't be disappointed in purchasing this cd... p.s. buy it at wal-mart it's cheaper there.
Hey, I can't read your script because I it makes my eyes bleed.
Can you change the color to white on blue?
Otherwise, cool blog.
Ok, I will be the bad guy. This is by far the worst nickel creek cd to date. In fact, the funny thing is that their first cd was the best, the second was ok, and...well, i can only so much as stand about 1/2 of the latest cd (which still makes it a rip off as the price I paid amounts to about 2/3 of the normal price). Probably the best song on the cd wasn't even written by any of the members - Bob Dylan's "Tomorrow is a Long Time." Also, the best showcase of ability on the cd – “Stumptown” – is only 1:43 long!! Why!!?? My heart cries, “Play more, impress me. I know you have it in you! I have seen you live!”
If I am forced to categorize all of my criticisms and narrow them down to the biggest two, here they are:
(1) I can't imagine a CD that is less able to display the talents of each individual member of the band. Joanna, you've seen Thile live - you should know this, and be concerned. There is something really, really wrong with the fact that I myself could probably learn to play all but two songs on the cd within a day or less when you consider that the band is made up of three wonderfully trained, technically mature musicians - one of which happens to be a good contender for 'best mandolin player in the WORLD.' This is a lot like listening to John Coltrane play nothing but the melody of "pop goes the weasel" over and over. there is a lot left wanting here!
(2) The songwriting is immature (here I mean lyrically) - listening to the lyrics, I feel like I might be listening in on a phone conversation between two teenage drama queens - or perhaps like Carolyn and Samantha just forced me to sit down and watch hours upon hours of the OC. Dylan is a master, so of course his is going to be the most well-written track on the cd, then we have the Watkins’ tunes – these are bearable and even at times enjoyable. Yet, dare I say, for all of his mandolin prowess, Chris Thile needs to take a break from writing. He sounds like he is trying to sound like a musical genius – YUCK!
I shall end with this thought (which I am proud to be able to contribute to my wife): Nickel Creek’s newest CD makes a plea for us all to keep the fire from dying – well, I won’t be too remorseful to use this particular CD as fuel to keep my fire burning on a cold night.
P.S. Nickel Creek shall remain one of our favorite bands due to their obvious exceptional musical talent, their live show, and due to their previous CDs.
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