Search - Various Artists :: Chicago Cab

Pearl Jam influence all over this mother

jackblackrocks | Lancaster, PA USA | 05/31/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The soundtrack for the 1998 indie movie Chicago Cab boasts an impressive array of buzz bands like Sparklehorse, Supergrass, and Fu Manchu along with one of the biggest rock bands of the 90's, Pearl Jam. While it's not a blow away album, there's enough good to take from it for one to deem the soundtrack successful. Sparklehorse's contribution, "Hammering the Cramps," is a very atmospheric song that, unlike much of their work, leans closer toward accessibility. "Don't Be Cruel" is much moodier than most Supergrass tracks until the more upbeat chorus kicks in. "Swami's Last Command" is just straight up stoner rock as provided by Fu Manchu, and is very similar to Queens of the Stone Age. The strongest element of the album, however, is the Pearl Jam influence, which is evident on four separate tracks. The first half is brought by the band themselves, as No Code's "Who You Are" is included, as is the b-side "Hard To Imagine," a very melancholy track recorded during the Vs. sessions that could just as easily have been included on any one of their studio albums. "Secret Girl," by Stone Gossard's side band, Brad (which sounds like much of Gossard's PJ stuff, like "Mankind" etc.), and Hoovercraft's "Haloparidol" (which includes Eddie Vedder's wife) are the other two tracks with the PJ connection. Much like the movie, the Chicago Cab soundtrack is more small-scale than it is bombast, which serves the sense of the album very well."