Search - Todd Rundgren :: No World Order

Craig B. (Zonker) from RENTON, WA
Reviewed on 6/10/2007...

BMG Club edition

0 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.

180

B | Rochester, NY United States | 06/29/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The music scene was changing dramatically in the early 90's, and unlike many artists, Todd Rundgren was not content in becoming a relic of the past, making the same album over and over (not that he ever did that).



Enter "No World Order" (relased under the monicker "TR-i"), the world's first (and only) interactive music CD. Problem is, the piece of equipment that allows you to interact with it (Phillip's CD-I) has been obsolete for years now. However, you can still listen to this album without it. It's a bit strange though, with various fragments of songs appearing many times throughout. As for the songs, Todd has gone and added throbbing bass lines, hip-hop beats, techno pulses, perky synths, and so forth, to the majority of these songs.



Lyrically, Todd frequently goes on politically oriented rants - or should I say, raps. Todd rapping surely alienated a lot of fans with it, but he's a smart lyricist, so it usually works.



"Worldwide Epiphany" is the most overtly catchy thing on here, a seamless blend of power pop, hip-hop beats, the occassional synthesizer wash. It has a great hook, making it one of Todd's most anthematic songs.



Also accessible is "Property", which is the closest you'll get to old school Todd; it's extremely catchy throughout, blending soul with blissful, upbeat pop.



"Fascist Christ" is primarily based on Todd's rapping (backed by turntable scratches and funky bass), with a clever chorus. The bridge is also neat, with a dense, atmospheric synthesizer part (and a brief guitar solo). The whole package, to me, is utterly irresistable. It's really fun live, as well.



On "Day Job", Todd spits out lyrics rapidly (no singing here) over a pulsating, techno beat. Musically, there's not much here, but it's pretty hypnotic. "Love Thing" appears multiple times, perhaps a bit overdone, but it's funky and has some really soulful vocal parts.



The title track is a lengthy number, again, mostly Todd's political rapping over a somewhat lush synth beat (he shows off his soulful voice again for the chorus though). The message is good, and I love how he took those "Ooo's" from "Lost Horizon" (on "A Capella") and used 'em here.



"Time Stood Still" and "Fever Broke" are similar musically, both (the latter especially) drenched in atmospheric synthesizers, and tempo-wise, the two slowest things on here. The latter sounds like something from "Healing", actually.



Also worth mentioning is "Word Made Flesh", a fantastic rocker (probably the heaviest thing on here, but still retains a pop beat) that becomes increasingly more catchy with each listen. Some nice guitar work, too.



It's pretty sad (though amusing) that you can snag a copy for this for 1 cent. That may lead you to believe that this is a piece of junk (and granted, it did garner a lot of criticism). But honestly, this is a really good (albeit very different) album. Since it's so sporadic, it takes a handful of listens for everything to sink in. But there's really a LOT of good melodies and what not to be found on here. After 3 or 4 listens, it starts becoming pretty cool!



Also, if you don't like the whole repeating song fragments, there's "No World Order Lite", which takes the 10 songs, and puts them over just 10 tracks, with spaces between each one. So it makes things a bit more accessible (and better if you want to burn certain songs onto a compilation)."

A classic in Popmusic

Bert Jippes | Netherlands | 02/06/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have still the interactive version of this CD. It only works on CD-I players and I still have such a player. CD-I is away from the market now. I am wondering why they didn't make versions for PC or Mac. The interactive one is a curiosity and unique in his kind. Maybe I am mistaking, but I believe it was the first interactive CD in his kind ever made, but sad enough also the last. Put it in your player and it never stops playing. On a screen you can adjust mood, tempo and a lot of other things. It is surprising every moment and it goes endless!!

And..... last but not least. Great great music!! It is a classic in Popmusic!!"