Search - Sumack :: Now Hear This

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dayreverie@hotmail.com | NYC | 03/22/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"We have every reason to believe that Sumack may not excell to the heights they deserve, because while "Now Hear This," the sophmore effort (but first major label release) of these Los Angelenos, is accessible, catchy, and instantly infectious, v2 and other forces just might bury what is otherwise a tres promising career.The album, "Now Hear This," is a tour-de-force of found sounds, trippy sampling, superior songwriting, and masterful, even grand, production. Stand-out cuts include "Metaphysical" (the first single, and fittingly so, for it is pop perfection with witty lyrics and snarky delivery), "Superdome" (a thunderclap of white-boy rap set among the Louisiana swamp lands), "Burn This Town" (funk excoriating Los Angeles life, name-dropping talent agency ICM among others), and "The Ballad of Frank and Charlie" (sublime in its beauty and simplicity, a folk song disguised as otherwise). Every note is layered and bright, and though the melodies stick with you for days on end, the pop leanings of this "junk rock" music don't tarnish the complexity of the music at all. At it's best it is original work that raises the stakes of bands like Soul Coughing and Sukpatch, giving more credence to the belief that the increasingly out-of-reach esotericism of precursers isn't a necessity for making a strong, creative, original album that blends funk, soul, and sampling with good old-fashioned rock. At its worse it's musical confection, a pastiche of pop that takes us on a party-inducing ride that doesn't let up until the last keg is tapped.Now why might this be a crowning achievement as well as a devestating blow? Press hasn't gotten behind the group and they've barely registered a blip on v2's catalogue. PR is light and marketing may even be lighter, and though the band has been touring tirelessly this winter and look towards more touring in the future, radio isn't jumping on the bandwagon either. It'll take a spot of divine intervention for this album to get the airplay (and notes) that it deserves, but maybe the forthcoming video (or will there even be a video?) might cure all those ailments."

Going back to cali

Tara Altebrando | New York city | 06/28/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Appropriately enough (since Sumack hail from LA), a friend had this disc with him when we took a trip to California together. In fact, it was the ONLY disc we had with us for five days, so I got to know its every detail-and with Sumack there are so, so many wonderful details: intelligent, heartfelt, sometimes completely whacked lyrics that surprise with each listen, an artful mix of sound effects and samples that make you wonder "what the heck IS that?" Many months later I'm no closer to tiring of Sumack's "junk pop"; even with "Do-Si-Do" or "Metaphysical" playing on this stupid iMac I'm working on in a boring job I took for few weeks in the heart of midtown Manhattan, I can close my eyes and transport myself back to sunnier days cruising down the Pacific Coast highway with the top down and Sumack turned up. Almost. The point is: highly recommended."

I can't stop listening to this

J Moe | Seattle, WA USA | 06/22/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"...nor do I really wish to.My wife heard these folks on local alterna-radio and immediately bought the record. What a delight! Sumack sorta sounds like a melding of Beck and Wilco with arcane and oddly metered lyrics which recall early Camper Van Beethoven. All this wrapped around some killer pop hooks. "Re: Saturday" and "Hey Professor" stand out on a consistently enjoyable album."