Baby 81
August 25, 2008
After the surprisingly spare acoustic diversion of 2005’s acclaimed Howl, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s fourth album returns the San Francisco group to the big guitars and rock swagger of their earlier albums. Baby 81 is a loud affair, and with each track polished to a high shine (the album was self-produced by the band, co-produced by Michael Been, who formerly led the Call), the results are slick and serviceable rock. BRMC are sometimes accused of rehashing courses charted by earlier bands, and here that tendency occasionally works in their favor (”All You Do Is Talk” opens on an airy organ, recalling U2’s majestic “Where the Streets Have No Name”), but also leads inevitably to comparison (much of Baby 81 evokes Oasis or a T-Rex-lite sound). Here’s hoping BRMC won’t shy away from following their noses down some previously unexplored musical paths in the future. –Ben Heege
Customer Review: Love it love it love ittt !!!
I can’t get enough of this album, its incredibly good!!! Honestly, I don’t know much about this genre, usually I listen to pop music but this band is soooo so good that I’m making an exception. Its a must have, ppl go ahead and buy it!!!
Customer Review: Among my top 3 albums of 2007
“Weapon of Choice” wins the “best alternative rock radio hit that never was because RCA didn’t hire anyone for radio promotion” award. I have a wife that, regardless of the mix CDs I have burned and the iPods I have bought her, still spends a few hours each week listening to the local modern rock station. I was beginning to have a little faith, hearing two of the best singles of 2006 get heavy airplay in 2007 (Silversun Pickups “..Twinkles” and PB & J’s “Young Folks). Hell, they were even playing Placebo in heavy rotation. Somehow BRMC received no such love. Alternative radio should not only be an alternative to hip hop, R&B, country, & bad metal. It should also be the alternative ethics behind building a playlist for your listeners. This is what is killing your local FM programming. Those wanting to hear new indie rock tracks on a daily basis with a warm voice to guide them have no choice but to plug into KEXP’s online stream or maybe KRCW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic. You always hear that the majors are not into careers anymore, they are into “hits” - immediate gratification by means of spins and record sales. But there are a few major label bands that have been able to build their audience slowly and effectively, without selling out to commercial radio. Their fans are few, but mighty. They are lifers. Dandy Warhols, Flaming Lips, Placebo, and even Radiohead before they split from EMI. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club is the next band to enter this club. They may never have a radio hit or appear on SNL, but hey will be able to tour forever and put out records on a modest budget, making a modest living in both fields. Have you been to their website (http://www.blackrebelmotorcycleclub.com)? They actually have a continuously updated ranking of all their songs as decided by their fans. Fans register on the BRMC website and then are able to post comments for each song, often giving their own interpretation of the lyrics. Bands on top 40 radio and even bands on commercial alternative can’t claim this level of connection with their fans. If BRMC ever gets dropped by RCA, their fans are going with them. And more power to them. They may be one of the only artists that could actually get the new Radiohead model to successfully work for them. Buy from here…
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