A little limp
Stargrazer | deep in the heart of Michigan | 01/11/2010
(2 out of 5 stars)
"This is undoubtedly the low point of the recent trilogy of Alice Donut albums (which also includes "Fuzz" and "Three Sisters.") Three Sisters was a headlong celebration of being back from a decade-plus hiatus. It took me by surprise -- I fully expected it to suck, but bought it anyway to be "supportive." Then it kicked me repeatedly in the head, and oh how good it felt. The follow-up, "Fuzz," was a little more expansive and psychedelic, maybe a little less focused, but still something I would recommend to fellow Donut fans.
While "Ten Glorious Animals" is draggy in spots and has less riveting songwriting, it incorporates quite a bit of interesting production, from the piano-dominated "Mrs. Carradine" to the 12-string acoustic gospel flavor of "Cavalry" to the Sissi Schulmeister-led anthem "Don't I Know," a worthy if slightly laconic successor to "Everyone Is On Sale." It pleased me to no end that they mention their tour with Unsane and Seven Year B*tch (thank you Amazon, for teaching me to censor myself!) in the new song "Shiloh," as this was the tour where I finally got to see them (at St. Andrews Hall in Detroit) at a woefully under-attended show. There are some pluses to a poor turnout: I got to meet Tom Antona and he drew a small, obscene cartoon on my ticket stub that lives in honor inside the jewel case of my copy of "Untidy Suicides." We also got to hang with Unsane for a few moments after the show while they were tearing down their drum kit, and rather than being annoyed with us they were extremely down-to-earth and gracious. Ah, the memories... OK back to the subject at hand.
And of course there's the trombone instrumental version of the Pixies' ubiquitous "Where Is My Mind" to join their canonical takes of "Helter Skelter" and "War Pigs" from previous albums.
Their recording technique has clearly advanced. This record is clean and there's good instrument separation throughout. A little too clean, though, as it comes off stiff and digital -- the ProTools curse. I really wanted the guitars to sound threatening, but they just don't. The drums sound good, but just don't quite sock you in the gut. The song "Wide" comes the closest to their old, growly instrumental sound.
I'm not in the habit of denying bands I like their right to experiment, but last time they did to this extent (the kitchen sink psychedelia of "Pure Acid Park") they broke up. "Ten Glorious Animals" needs to kick up its tempo and reduce its clean, well-recorded sound just a notch. "Prog Jenny" could have been a great song, played with just a little more fire.
"Ten Glorious Animals" deserves a fair shake by long-time fans. There is some songwriting payoff here. Casual fans and neophytes are warned to stay away (till later, anyway), and seek out older work like "Mule," "Bucketfulls Of Sickness And Horror In An Otherwise Meaningless Life," and "Untidy Suicides Of Your Degenerate Children" instead."
It was bound to happen
Dean Marnell | Milltown, Nj | 09/23/2009
(2 out of 5 stars)
"First off, I worship the ground this band walks on. I have to see them live everytime they come around. On my top 5 band list from the 90's!!
With that said, this release doesn't have the power or the pace of the usual Donut CD. They went out of their way to create a different sound, and also to cover the lead vocals a bit. The spotlight needs to be on the vocals at all times for Alice Donut.
Again: Love the band - but this cd is probably their weakest."
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1