Wall of Mouths

I came back to this thread to air the great news that despite my constant complaining over the last few months that I just didn’t like ABCOL, I have recently had the realisation that I do like it. Since seeing a few tracks live in Bristol the other week, the album has developed a big personality with me, and I’m starting to understand it more now. Sorry for being a bit slow. Having said that, this thread has just started bashing Semi Detached, High Anxiety, and unbelievably Never Apologise! Bash Shameless if you please, but not them! Here’s to a UK headline tour this year though, can’t wait!

Oh yeah, forgot about Unbeliever, probably because I would never have added it to a set list in a million years! It’s not bad, but they have a hundred better tracks. Polar Bear,Sprung, This Ones For You, Innocent X, Bad Mother, If It Kills me for example? Teethgrinder was a great opener tho, doesn’t get better than that!

I think you got the Troublesome tracks mixed up. I think it was Isolation, Knives, Nowhere and Screamager. Which I personally think is way too many, with too many other great albums ignored. The Troublgum shows where supposed to signify Therapy? no longer leaning so heavily on that album anymore. Maybe this was due to it being a support slot, but I’d like to have heard some more albums represented. Overall tho I really enjoyed it, in particular Living in the Shadow was great. The sound all evening was pretty crap, but not the end of the world. Some people in the pit we’re being morons, violence is not fun, moshing is, and a bit of aggression, but some people take it too far. Great to meet Andy and Michael in the pub garden after Skindred tho!

So much for not playing so much Troublesome anymore. I know it was a support slot but maybe just Screamager and Nowhere would’ve sufficed? With so many other albums to pick from 4 or 5 tracks from that album is too many I think. What about Suicide Pact, Never Apologise etc.

I reckon just Exiles (although not a fave of mine) and Enjoy The Struggle (awesome). BTW I second the motion for the return of If It Kills Me.

*quite

When you point the camera at the front cover of ABCOL, the Living In The Shadow… video pops up and plays on screen in place of the album cover, and adjusts to the angle you tilt the phone at. Augmented reality I believe it’s called, quiet clever and fun.

So are these albums actually being re-released? One of the ABCOL reviews mentioned it again. Can we expect remastering, or re-recording? I expect the first option. And is Nurse going to be done too? All three would be awesome!

“They just don’t seem to get thebandat all - don’t really want to be labled and certainly won’t be making Troublegum II anytime soon (thank God!).”

Yeah what a stupid idea to record an album with great rock tunes that everyone loved/loves which was critically acclaimed and sold by the bucket load leading to high up festival billings and all round general greatness. Absurd notion.

Artimus wrote:

Have to disagree with most of you here. Got the album on the day of release and it’s another disappointment for me I’m afraid. I really disliked Crooked Timber, unfortunately ABCOL mines the same territory. In a nutshell, sparse production, lack of any spark, Mr Cairns sounds disinterested (His performances from track to track are largely interchangable), little or no memorable hooks (And yeah, that’s a valid point, Therapy? are largely a band you associate with writing a good hook)

Admittedly, things get off to a great start with Living in the Shadow of The Terrible Thing, but it’s largely downhill from there. Plague Bell is passable, then we have the bizarre Marlow whichever way you look at doesn’t sound at home on this record. I listen to a lot of instrumental/post-rock bands and Marlow is well short of the mark for an instrumental piece. Sounds like something the lads were fucking around with at a jam and only half finished.

Before You With You After you picks up things briefly, kinda reminds me of something from the Semi-Detached era. Nice.

The Buzzing is the worst song Therapy? have ever commited to tape.

Of the latter half of the album, for me, only Get Your Dead Hand off My shoulder is worth mentioning, the rest of the tracks are really not very memorable at all - I’m looking at you Why Turbulence?

Ecclesiastes deserves a mention for being especially uneventful too, meandering along and allowing the album to limp off into the atmosphere.

I think Therapy are capable of much better, they’ve proven that time and time again but this album is a 4/10 for me. If the fans got to vote for a Therapy? Setlist I don’t think there’d be too many counts for tracks from this record.

I agree with almost everything you say here. I was initially very really disappointed with the whole thing, but to be fair a couple of tracks are working for me now, in particular ‘Before You…’, but the last track is such a weak ending, Stark Raving Sane and The Buzzing are hateful to me, and if I hear the lyric “Big black hooded perambulator” one more time I might cry. You can’t please everyone though, it just wouldn’t be fun that way. I love it’s getting great reviews everywhere though, they deserve the credit.

Too be fair I totally agree with you, and thanks, I will enjoy the gig, and I’ll defend T? to the end of my music listening career, there is a light at the end of the tunnel!

All I’m saying is, I love Therapy? (honestly I do), and I’ve been banging on about them for the last 18 years to everyone I know (friends and family), to the point of annoyance, and some of these people are coming to the Bristol show to see them for the first time, partly because I insisted, and partly because of Skindred, and I want them to fly the flag of Therapy? live rock brilliance. This, I hope, is with such tracks as Teethgrinder, Innocent X, Evil Elvis, Trigger Inside, Polar Bear, Jude The Obscene, Sister, Stop It You’re Killing Me, Gimme Back My Brain and I Told You I Was Ill, because these tracks rock, and I love them. These tracks, and so many more, rock so hard, and I assume this was the reason why the boys first formed the band in the first place, to rock hard! But if they play The Buzzing or Plague Bell (or, I’m sorry, but nearly all the ABCOL tracks, apart from Living In.. which is great), these people will laugh at my allegiance and never listen to T? again. There is a fine line between selling out and not appealing to new listeners. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think T? should just make songs purely on the basis that they will sell to the lowest common rock denominator, (ie sell out and make Troublegum 2), but I honestly think they have gone to far with this album, life is too short for philosophers, historical writers and obtuse noises. Can’t we just rock the fuck out? Isn’t that the whole point?

If they played Marlow I’m pretty sure the causal rock fan would assume a mid-life crisis had hit hard, and again just go to the bar. As the upcoming tour is a support slot, I would imagine there will only be 1 or 2 new tracks, and mostly crowd pleasers, and I for one am very much looking forward to be pleased!

Apart from Living In The Shadow… I can’t see how any of these tracks will work live. Far too dour and maudlin surely? If they play The Buzzing, everyone will go to the bar. Or maybe this is just another way I seem to be the only one who doesn’t get this album.

I read in some interview that some of the music on this album was supposed to represent some kind of paranoia, and the Buzzing certainly fits that bill to me. I want it to be more like getting drunk and headbanging, at least as far as the music goes, the lyrical themes can go in any direction the writers want obviously, but for me I need to enjoy the music, and I’m not right now.

On the positive side, I like the short sharp shock (sorry) of a 10 track 40 minute album, and I love that Therapy? have still not done 2 albums the same. Also the production is great. But I still don’t ‘get it;’ after multiple listens, I just don’t enjoy listening to it, The Buzzing in particular is a horrible noise. I prefer the great sing-a-along, fist pumping, rock tunes you get in the likes of NANE, I’m really not interested in listening to their interpretation of paranoia via the medium of an album release. It’s not pleasurable to me. I’ll still listen to it a fair amount because they will always be my favourite band, but I’m looking forward to a another album in a few years which will thankfully sound completely different.

Did I get sent a different album to the one the reviewers, and you all got? I really don’t like it. I can’t find anything about it I like yet. Granted I’ve only listened twice, but I never felt this way about a new T? album before. They’ve been my favourite band since ‘94, and can do no wrong in my eyes, but this does nothing for me. Some of it sounds like the sort of music you’d hear at a bad modern art performance, out of tune solos, random impact words being shouted out. I guess I simply don’t get it. In particular Plague Bell and The Buzzing, I’m finding almost unlistenable. Had to turn it off in the car because I think people were thinking what are these noises. I’m really sad about it. I’m defo gonna keep listening, because I really hope I’m wrong, but I just want some good rock tunes. I guess T? aren’t that band anymore. Am I on my own here?

Indeed it is! But you know what I mean. Bleeps and beeps and stuff like that!

I guess Enter Shikari aren’t the sort of band the average T? fans will like, but the new album, A Flash Flood Of Colour, is a belter! I don’t normally have any time for music with extensive electronic elements in (unless it’s Nine Inch Nails), and I can’t normally stand dub step, drum n bass etc, but I think this album is fantastic. And they seem to be one of the only British bands, other than The King Blues, who are commenting on the current state of the worlds problems ie financial debt, the environment etc. Highly recommended!

Aren’t they just doing a couple of festivals? Hope they tour properly, that album is huge.

The As I Lay Dying track called Nothing Left has the exact riff from Stories in it, only much heavier!

I don’t know why it didn’t sit well with me the first few times I heard it, but I’m defo converted now. I think it’s great. They should open with it at the Bristol show! I’ll be the one at the front apologising for doubting the track!

I’m not 100% with it to be fair. The vocals in the chorus have this monotone sound which seems to have changed since the live version. Not sure I like it so much. Plus the ‘breakdown’ or ‘solo’ part doesn’t really go anywhere. Video is great on the other hand, plus I do seem to have had it in my head all day, so it’s defo not a stinker or anything.

Bored of trying to distinguish the song from the crappy You Tube Videos! Think it’s gonna be a belter! Where can I hear it now?

I must’ve been lucky in the past, Wildhearts was the 2nd gig I ever saw, and have seen them maybe 10 more times since then, and never seen anything but excellence, which is why I was so pissed off I guess. But bollocks to it, I stand by the fact he is a performer, his own choice, that we paid to see, so do your fucking job and perform. Have a bad day before and after the performance, not during it. Sure, have a shout at the guy who fell on the stage, but the rest is unacceptable. The Pledge website he is using is a great idea for the new album, and relies on fans to work, but he has lost at least 2 life long fans (me and the missus) because of ‘having a bad day’ in Bristol.

deadsetgav wrote:

Was he a crowd surfer, or was he jumping around on stage like a fucking twat? because there is a difference, and I’m sure on the video he had issues with a guy that was dicking around on the stage damaging (expensive) equipment.

He was a poor attempt at a crowd surfer, there had been none all night coz it’s just a pub venue, but last song, I think he thought he’d go for it. He fell on stage in front of Ginger, knocked the mic stand into the roadies face, really bad, and then tried to hand the mic stand back to Ginger whilst looking quite scared that Ginger was gonna slap him as he got back into the crowd, which he probably would’ve deserved, what with the result! But he defo wasn’t a stage invader. Just watch the video. So much for me letting it go… Also watch the video for the start of the gig, Inglorious was awesome! Peaks and troughs!

Yeah fair enough. It’s amazing how much this has effected me though, I should’ve let it go ages ago, but it’s really been a big thing for me. Therapy? and the Wildhearts were the first bands to introduce me to rock music back in ‘94-‘95, so this whole thing really sucks. Bollocks to it though, Therapy? were always my favourite.

Just out if curiosity, any crowd surfing at the birthday gig? You know, like at a rock gig?

The message board thread about his shitty attitude has now been locked on the Wildhearts board. Something about freedom of speech? I know that sounds like a contradiction in terms, but no-one shut down Ginger’s ramblings on stage, other than the crowd surfer I suppose…

Bet he feels bad, poor guy. Accidents happen.