In Review: Liars - "They Threw Us All in a Trench and Stuck a Monument On Top"

Reminds Me Of:
A dash of The Strokes, a pinch of Red Hot Chili Pepper's (late 80's version), a teaspoon of Radiohead, set to mulch.

High On:
* The manic delievery of nearly every note.
* The subtle electronics which, in addition to earning a Radiohead comparison, make for a much more interesting listen.
* The undeniable groove found on most of the album... it's art-rock you can shake your ass to.
* The sheer creepiness of closing track "This Dirt Makes That Mud".
* The undisputed creativity of the titles: in addition to the 13-word album title, Liars also throw in Goddamnable song titles like "Tumbling Walls Buried Me In The Debris With ESG" and "Nothing Is Ever Lost Or Can Be Lost My Science Friend". However, my personal favorite is "Grown Men Don't Fall In The River, Just Like That".

Low On:
* The album's length: sure, it's over 50 minutes long, but 22 of those minutes are taken up with a singular, continuous (though, admittedly, kind of catchy and hypnotizing) loop that stretches the length of "This Dirt Makes That Mud" to just a shade over a half hour, and well over half the album. Take that loop away, and you've got eight proper songs in about 30 minutes.

The Bottom Line:
Though Liars take certain cues from the current trend-setters in music, their addition of a simple distinguishing element (that being electronics) and an unabashed commitment to creating funk/punk with high artistic merit, in the end they emerge, in this writers' opinion, head and shoulders among the rest of the pack. While The Strokes and White Stripes are earning all the headlines, Liars are content to dwell in the indie shadows, knowing that they've bested both of them with a raw and frantic masterpiece of a record.

9 EXCELLENT
Original Release Date: October 30, 2001 • Mute

Comments

Year in Rock 2025

Alright, I've got some explaining to do. By now anyone who's visited this blog is well aware of how infrequently I've used this space in recent years; aside from the occasional fertile year of content, I really haven't posted all that often over the last five years or so. There are many reasons for this, which have already been outlined in previous apology posts; but, essentially, it boils down to my own laziness and the cold reality that blogs are, like Refused (again), fucking dead. So, I wouldn't hold my breath for a triumphant return to reviews, or even semi-regular posts, but: a) I feel like Year in Rock posts have always belonged here and, even though I've experimented with different methods of presentation recently and been satisfied, the "blink and you missed it" unveiling via Facebook stories this year was perhaps ultimately a disservice to the records I lauded. After all, cramming the list into short videos isn't too far off from ju...

Year in Rock 2013 Nominee: Arctic Monkeys

ARCTIC MONKEYS Do I Wanna Know? From: AM Released: September 10 That Year in Rock 2012's Single of the Year R U Mine? ended up on this album is pleasing, and it fits the motif well enough. But R U Mine? isn't what makes Arctic Monkeys' fifth album an Album of the Year contender. Sweaty, sultry and pulsing with sexual energy, AM is the kind of record that's just as effective whether you're chilling out after a long day, staring into a mirror prepping yourself for a late night clubbing session or setting the mood for some escapades in the boudoir.

Year in Rock 2023: Album of the Year #10-1

Now we're getting somewhere; the top ten, where there are no duds or mids, only bangers. Also, no more teasing it out; let's wrap this up! What I've learned this year from my ten faves this year is that it is indeed still possible for a dude approaching his fifties to more or less stay up to date on the new school. Of course, there are some listed here that got a boost from playing tribute to the old school, but there is an undercurrent happening in rock that points to the future. But, I'm getting ahead of myself; here come the champs. 10 MILITARIE GUN Life Under the Gun June 23, 2023 • Loma Vista Highlights Very High Will Logic Never Fucked Up Once Rising from the ranks of the still-potent L.A. hardcore scene, the debut record from Militarie Gun (following a trio of EPs) bears a dash of polish that's expected with backing from a larger label; the tension and energy remain, though, resulting in one of the catchiest hardcore albums I can think of in recent years. 9 ...

SOUND BITES

Search This Blog