Search - Live :: Throwing Copper

Throw some Copper my way

blender | 02/17/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I'd still like to definitively know what the CD title means (I have an unconfirmed idea).This album is great from start to finish, and gets a lot of cycles in my CD player. From the very opening track, Dam at Otter Creek, to the final track (which is not listed on the CD), Untitled, this disc is destined to be a classic. Some may say it's boring re-tread genre music, but then we're all entitled to our own opinions.I don't give a - well, you know - about what tracks get a lot of airplay, mostly because I've never been one to listen to what's "hot" simply because of someone else's say-so. In saying that, here are the tracks that I care to say this about that:White, Discussion; Iris; Drama; TBD; Pillar of Davidson.The untitled track is somewhat corny, but fun to listen to; I usually skip over it unless I'm in the mood to hear Live sound like country bumpkins.This CD is always good for shouting/singing along to whenever I'm in need of a good emotional release - try Iris, TBD, or I Alone - you'll see what I mean.Peace Out."

My choice for best Album of the 1990s

Lawrance M. Bernabo | The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota | 09/07/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Involved in a discussion as to what we considered to be the best album of the last decade of the last century of the last millenium, I was somewhat surprised to come to the conclusion that "Throwing Copper" was my personal favorite ("Ten" came in second, and, yes, I see the similarities between the two works). My students were surprised I even listen to anything that came out after the Beatles broke up.On several tracks the thing that stands out the most for me is the drumming. I find that I like good drumming (e.g., John Bonham on "Dazed and Confused" from Led Zeppelin I and most of Dave Grohl's work with Nirvana). What also strikes me is the musical range of the album, which can go from quiet ("lighting cashes") to fast ("stage") to epic ("pillars of davidson"). I also like the way they use space (e.g., the way that one chord holds in "I Alone" while the drumming and voice continue). I like what Chad Gracey does and I think it adds something to most of the tracks on this album. The weakest part of the album is, of course, the lyrics. They aren't much and they get repeated a lot, but this is not a serious consideration because the voice here functions as a musical instrument. Kowalcyk's vocalizations are the instrument (similar to Cobain with Nirvana). The *harmonies* between the final chorus and the undertheme in "pillar of davidson" is the point, not the particular words. In a sense it is like opera, where people sing in Italian and all you get is a sense of emotional coloring. You don't want to be sitting there following alone with the lyrics/libretto.The fact that Live might never top this effort is not unique. You can make the same case for Nirvana, Peral Jam, Hootie & The Blowfish, No Doubt, Hole, Jewel, Fiona Apple, and countless other singers and groups who have smash debuts and then fail to scale the heights a second time. Now if somebody can just explain the cover painting in terms of the title..."