Sunday, August 23, 2009

Album Review - thenewno2: "You Are Here"

Hello readers. Apologies in advance for the brevity and clumsiness of this review. You see, when Our Fearless Leader asked us all to do an album review, I realized two very important things:

1) I don't know how to write an album review
2) I can't remember the last time I sat down and actually listened to a complete album.

That being said, I have made a couple of musical discoveries recently. One of them has been around for a while, and if you like interesting music that stands the test of time, check out some early Peter Gabriel. He is best known for a couple of catchy tunes, and of course "In Your Eyes", from the boom-box scene in the quintessential "Hey, I can relate to Lloyd Dobler but I'm just not as cool" movie "Say Anything". But to stop there would be an injustice to a fine aural and lyrical artist.

But I digress.

thenewno2 is a duo consisting of Dhani Harrison and Oliver Hecks. The album has a consistent tone throughout, and that tone is moody. A little melancholy, a little rebellious, with maybe a twinge of anger and some hidden uncertainty. It's definitely not going to rock the masses at the next LakeFest, and you shouldn't use it as a conversation starter with the goth girl you've been trying to find an excuse to talk to, but it's good.

No, this album is what you put on when you need to turn the lights down low and get some serious thinking done. It's best enjoyed in a quiet environment. A journal, a pen, and something hot to drink would also be advised. There is the usual social commentary, and in truth, if "You Are Here" were a muffin it would be fair to say that I've removed and eaten the easily consumed top, but haven't digested the spongy, crumbly contents within yet.

The short of this short review is that I like this debut album. Give it a listen and let me know what you think.


Yours,
DamnRenegade
As told by JR at 6:56 AM
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6 comments:

  1. KenAugust 23, 2009 at 10:40 AM

    Whoo-HOO! Very cool. I now want to run out and hear these guys. Which I just did, when I placed the LaLa player into your post :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. KenAugust 23, 2009 at 11:29 AM

    I listened to it all the way through. I liked it, especially "Another John Doe" and "Hiding Out".

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousAugust 23, 2009 at 7:39 PM

    Nice music.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousAugust 24, 2009 at 5:18 AM

    I like your review, however

    1. thenewno2 is not a duo. It started as one, but is now a band since they started performing Live, consisting of more musicians.

    2. You have not got the full tracklist. The one you have has been upgraded by a re-release a while ago.

    Rob :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousAugust 25, 2009 at 7:48 AM

    Oh dah dah dah. The frontmen are Harrison and Hecks. The iTunes version of the album has 13 tracks, so the list above is missing "Jokes on You" and "You gotta wait"

    ReplyDelete
  6. KenSeptember 3, 2009 at 12:31 PM

    This is the player that was available to be inserted. Don't blame the blogger!

    ReplyDelete

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