Search - Tindersticks :: Simple Pleasure

This album should carry a health warning

D. John Archer | UK | 06/23/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For me there's no other band out there to touch the Tindersticks. Within days of buying their first album four or five years ago, all my other albums started to lose significance. I kid you not. Every album from them since has ensnared me further, and now Simple Pleasure has finally forced me to give in and accept that nearly every album I've ever bought that's not by The Tindersticks is, relatively speaking, rubbish. In some ways Simple Pleasure is perhaps not as strong as its predecessors; it's got only 9 songs on it, and a couple of those (Pretty Words and From The Inside) are decidedly average. But the other seven are so astonishingly perfect that you may well find yourself wondering, like me, why the hell anyone else even bothers. The songs tackle a huge palette of emotions and thoughts effortlessly without once forgetting to fit them to gorgeous, utterly appropiate melodies. Just remember this: once you've listened properly (for background music it is definitely not) to Simple Pleasure and the other three complete albums from the band half a dozen times each, you'll find yourself totally addicted, unable to play anything else and unable to do anything else while you're listening. Don't say you weren't warned..."

So what?

Me | Right There | 05/22/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Yes, probably way too light-hued for me, I wanted it to sound broader and as mesmerizingly maudlin as usual, I'm probably still wondering what the hell are those girlie back vocals doing there, or how come strings and horns and voice overlaps and even sarcasm and plain sense of humour were kind of swept up all of the sudden. I actually sleep with Tinderstick's 2nd album and "Curtains" under my pillow, and dammit, was I eager to listen to the sequel or what, but come on, like they weren't entitled to change their pace, work on forgetable, candid lyrics, take a chance on some peeled off kind of production. They've already earned the right to try whatever they feel like doing. And even playing "Jingle Bells" just by whistling the tune all drunk out of their minds, they are good as hell. It will be no dissapointment, disregard each and every one of those complaining reviews, ask yourselves if you don't feel like doing something a little different just for the heck of it sometimes, go buy it, finally you'll enjoy it."