If you don't understand the magnitude and awesomeness of a Saints reunion then I'm sorry, I don't have the energy to explain it to you. This is a band that in theory I would have spent/found/stolen 4 grand to fly Down Under to see any one of their handful of recent reunion sets. The first of them is captured on this disc, and the Saints sounds crazy awesome on it, making it clear they are truly one of the all time greatest punk bands, a tribute to to Australia's low class criminal/troublemaker heritage. And Chris Bailey's singing is solid...but why is he crooning in a kind of lounge singer version of his Saints voice? Andrew Stafford, in the liner notes, refers to this saying, "If the years have smoothed away some of Chris Bailey's insolent sneer, he has gained in soul." I guess. Is that why he's striking a Bobby Darin pose in his suit on the CD booklet back cover, because of "soul?" Well, regardless, this is still great, but until someone stuffs a joey down Bailey's throat and gets it agitated again, I might just pay rent and food this year, as I reluctantly decided to do in lieu of seeing their "(I'm) Stranded" full album show recently. This CD is fantastic but it makes me feel better about my decision.
No comments:
Post a Comment