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"out-shearing
melody guidance beyond all today's
Popkonventionen"
|
from
Bloom
written by Christof Herrmann
creatively translated by Google |
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|
The
prehistory might admits to be:
In July 1980 the four British
published the album "Underwater
Moonlight" on behalf of softly
Boys, a marvelously diagonal
like melodische Verquickung
of Byrds guitars, Psychedelic
Music and garage skirt. The
critics were inspired, the buyers
however heard at that time rather
nervous new Wave, so that softly
the Boys a little later dissolved.
Only in the course of the 1980er
years was it shown like very
the quartet of its time ahead
was, when - particularly in
the United States - young of
volume shot such as mushrooms
from the soil, which made themselves
it comfortable with Rickenbacker
guitars in the Neo-60ies sound.
Representative such as R.E.M.,
Replacements or camper Van Beethoven
called those softly Boys as
one of their most important
sources of inspiration.
When in the last year "Underwater
Moonlight" was finally again-published,
in the meantime on the 50 happening
"yield young" Robyn Hitchcock
(voc) went, to Kimberley Rew
(g), Matthew Seligman (bg) and
Morris the Windsor (dr) suddenly
again together on tour. The
four seem to have had much fun
with one another in such a manner
that they booked a studio over
20 years after the Split and
took up "Nextdoorland".
Bad
tongues may dismiss the whole
as "unnecessary comeback", because
in the comparison to the predecessor
"Nextdoorland" can only lose.
"Underwater Moonlight" was taken
up at that time with little
money on a 4-Spur-Maschine and
sounds still today impudent
and fresh, against what the
ten new pieces work by far adapt
and perfectly produced. On the
other hand Hitchcocks salient
voice lie - which one hears
problem-free from 1000 others
-, Rews itself times winding,
times singing, times zerhackendes
guitar play and again and again
the out-shearing melody guidance
beyond all today's Popkonventionen.
Therefore one may look forward
to some true beads from Hitchcocks
feather/spring, which recommend
the purchase of "Nextdoorland",
if make not even necessary:
The Opener "I Love Lucy" about,
a merrily progressing Gitarrensong,
the simple worm "Mr. Kennedy"
with the Refrain "Maybe settling
in the ear it wants rain, maybe
it wants rain tonight" or the
fiese monster "stringer", which
sounds as if the Troggs, Captain
Beefheart and the Sex Pistols
in the Sgt would have itself.
Pepper's Lonely Hearts club
to a Jam session met.
The
Live qualities of the solo artists
Hitchcock and Rew are generally
well-known. Thus might ignite,
which on plate occasionally
something braked therefore comes
here, in the volume collective
on the stage powerfully. It
applies to secure times again
route data in the eye to kept
and with times maps.
Christof
gentleman man
|
|
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from
actionmanMAGAZINE
written by Ben Schulman |
| "if
there is a lesson involved, then
it is this: bands such as The
Soft Boys are the reason people
first ever truly delve into and
begin to fall in love with honest
music in the first place. Songs
as gracious as these are formed
only out of the purest love and
appreciation for music itself.
The Soft Boys are one of the best
bands of time then, time now and
like a lost photograph, days forgotten
in between" |
| |
from
AVguide.com
written by Bob Gendron |
| "Laden
with pop hooks that curl and swerve,
odd lyrical mappings, and turbine
bass, the record toys with and
recurrently refines an assortment
of multifarious tempos. Like marathoners,
Hitchcock and Rew go back and
forth, each musician tapping into
the other’s cerebellum, twisting
songs into unforeseen shapes and
soldering post-punk distortion
onto shimmering pop scenery." |
| |
from
Virgin MegaMagazine
written by Michael Jolly |
| "Better
than it has any right to be...
After the show-stopping "Mr.
Kennedy," the album's other
epic is the off-kilter and frankly
difficult "Strings."
More straightforward pleasures
are to be had in tracks like "Sudden
Town," which has a great
'60s vibe to it, and "La Cherite,"
one of Hitchcock's prettiest tunes." |
| |
from
Dusted Magazine
written by Jason Dungan |
| "If
there is any major change, it's
that Hitchcock has lost some of
his acerbic anger, but it's been
replaced with a more knowing,
balanced sense of life that makes
for arguably more complex material...
for the people who love this band,
their sound, and Hitchcock's songwriting,
this album will definitely not
disappoint." |
| |
from
Stylus Magazine
written by Brett Hickman |
| "The
Soft Boys have shaken free of
the terminology bestowed upon
most reunited acts and set its
own course for their destiny.
By wiping away the romanticized
version of their past, the band
has forged ahead to find their
place in the here and now. Here
is wishing that this album is
not just a one-off effort and
that many more are to come." |
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from
Satanosphere
written by Paul Shrug |
| "It's
just a damn good album, and one
of the extremely few reunion attempts
in recorded history to result
in a record nearly as strong as
the first incarnation. You'll
love it. Find it." |
| |
| from
Rockbites |
| "Robyn
Hitchcock delivers the most evocative
vocal performance of his career...
If you’ve ever wondered what it’s
like to be synesthetic, feeling
colors or tasting notes, listen
on headphones, with eyes closed,
to Hitchcock’s voice and watch
the movies playing against the
back of your eyelids" |
| |
from
azcentral.com
written by Michael Senft |
| "Most
reunions are based purely on filling
the bank accounts, but the Soft
Boys' motivation isn't strictly
selling tons of records. Rather,
the band seems genuinely excited
to be together again. And given
the quality of their new work,
the songwriting chemistry they
had in the '70s hasn't diminished,
either" |
| |
from
Seattle Weekly
written by
Fred Mills |
| "a
2002 rock 'n' roll tour de force...
if taking an enforced exile yields
such a start-to-finish pleasure,
perhaps more bands should consider
a similar trajectory" |
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from
Neumu
written by Jim Connelly |
| "one
of the rarest of things: a reunion
album that captures the spirit
of what made the band special
in the first place" |
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from
Launch
written by Bill Holdship |
| "unquestionably
one of the best rock albums of
2002" |
|
|
from
soundsxp
written by Tone |
| "I’m
glad this is as great a record
as it is because reunions are
about carrying on good work...
very tight rock ‘n’ roll, great
jangly guitars, great lyrics and
clever observations of life by
master wordsmith Robyn Hitchcock" |
| |
from
Lost At Sea
written by Doug Hoepker |
| "[Hitchcock's]
clever, quirky lyrics are back
with a vengeance ("You could be
used for a cutting tool") and
the guitar interplay between Hitchcock
and Kimberley Rew is still fantastic" |
| |
from
Salon
written by Murray Jason |
| "reveals
the quartet as sardonic, romantic
and multilayered as ever... "Nextdoorland"
assembles layers of musical references
and sly puns into songs that are
little worlds under glass" |
| |
from
the River Cities'
Reader
written by John James |
| "simply
shimmers... Hitchcock rules my
roost as the greatest living songwriter
(British division), a dangerously
charming cross between Revolver-era
John Lennon and a dripping-wet
Syd Barrett, a cocked eyebrow
and a tender heart pinned upon
his Dali-draped sleeve" |
| |
from
Columbus Alive
written by Stephen Slaybaugh |
| "This
record was a long time coming,
and thank goodness it came" |
| |
from
Logo Magazine
written by Gillian Nash |
| "intelligent,
challenging lyrics, intricate,
spacious harmonies and the guitars
of Hitchcock and Kimberley Rew
alternately flirting and seducing.
It’s like a black magician, let
it into your house and it will
never leave. Don’t worry, you
won’t want it to" |
| |
from
Billboard
written by Joshua Klein |
| "The
band disobeys the law of diminishing
creative returns with such consistent
excellence that it makes one wish
the whole of the post-punk and
new wave movement would dust off
those guitars, if only on the
oft chance they come up with something
as great as 'Nextdoorland'" |
| |
from
eye
written by Stuart Berman |
| "If
anything, the Boys are now even
more spiky than their younger
selves: Robyn Hitchcock and Kimberley
Rew's guitars tangle and bite
like prime-time Television, while
bassist Matthew Seligman and drummer
Morris Windsor tap right back
into the post-punk groove that's
soundtracking so much of the underground
these days" |
| |
from
Pitchfork
written by Joe Tangari |
| "finds
the band's old chemistry in full
effect, and Hitchcock's songwriting
seems re-energized by the presence
of his old mates" |
| |
from
artvoice
written by Mark Norris |
| "the
'classic Soft Boys sound' that
fans salivate over" |
| |
from
FFWD
written by Gary Mentanko |
| "Madcap
leader Robyn Hitchcock is still
able to weird us out and savant
guitarist Kimberly Rew shows just
how much one man can roam in a
short pop song." |
| |
from
The Phoenix
written by Ross Hoffman |
| "powerful
pop sense and lovely harmonies" |
|
|
|
from
Billboard
written by Cheryl Spielman |
| The
Bowery Ballroom show in New York. |
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from
Chicago Metromix
written by Kevin McKeough |
| The
Chicago show, obviously. |
| |
|
from
How Was The
Show?
written by David de Young
|
| A
report from Minneapolis. |
|
A
view from the Bowery stage.
Photo by Brian Edward Rise |
|
|
from
Julian Cope's
Head Heritage
written by Gareth |
| "one
of the finest British indie LPs
ever made. I was 24 when I first
heard it and I wept like a wounded
child" |
| |
from
Splendid
written by George Zahora |
| "defiantly
intelligent and harmonic in an
era that celebrated blunt aggression" |
| |
from
PopMatters
written by Kevin Mathews |
| "A
big, psychedelic, folk-rock guitar
masterpiece whichever way you
want to look at it, Underwater
Moonlight deserves the attention
and adulation of every card-carrying
fan of obscure, intelligent pop-rock
music" |
| |
from
New Musical
Express
written
by Victoria Segal |
| "these
songs bring nun-pure harmonies
into intimate contact with sexual
surrealism, electrifying lust,
despair in the face of a 'hideous
age of abuse and decay'. And yes,
a conversation between a curry
and a corpse" |
| |
from
Sonicnet
written by Don Share |
| "Underrated
in its time, this remarkable (and
remarkably strange) album about
relationships and raw yearning
still shines on" |
|
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|
Regular
Guy Robyn Hitchcock & the Soft
Boys Return to NY Behind Best
Record in 22 Years
Mark Rifkin talks
to Robyn Hitchcock for the New
York Resident. |
| |
Soundman
gets the Soft Boys treatment
Who is Mr.
Kennedy, anyway? The Minneapolis
- St. Paul Star
Tribune's Chris Riemenschneider
reveals. |
| |
Soft
in the Head
Tim Houghton ruminates for the
Wessex
Scene. |
| |
Seems
Like Old Times
Bill Holdship talks
with Robyn Hitchcock about Nextdoorland
for the Seattle
Weekly. |
| |
A
Kind of Homecoming
Lee Smith talks
to Robyn Hitchcock. For Atlanta's
Creative
Loafing. |
| |
The
Soft Return - An interview with
Robyn Hitchcock
by Tyler Wilcox for
junkmedia |
| |
Robyn
Hitchcock interview
by Chuck Molgat
for Exclaim! |
| |
Soft
Boys Resurface 'Nextdoor'
by
Troy Carpenter for Billboard |
| |
Soft
Boys Move Next Door
by
Christina Saraceno for Rolling
Stone |
| |
Matthew
Seligman interview
on Scholieren.com |
| |
Kimberley
Rew interview
by
Jason Gross for Perfect
Sound Forever |
| |
Still
a Softie
An
interview with Matthew Seligman,
by Joe Tepperman for the University
of Southern California |
| |
Give
It To The Soft Boys
by
Iain Smith on Eskimo
Chain |
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