Mermaid Avenue Vol. II Music

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by: Billy Bragg & Wilco

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Customer Reviews
Average Rating: Rating: - Surprisingly Good Mermaid Avenue Vol. II is patchier but no less enjoyable than its predecessor. Tweedy's claim that the album is "less folky" is fairly accurate, as most of the album's highpoints are more rooted in Rock 'N Roll than folk, such as "Airline To heaven" with its tantalizing drum rhythms and chorus, the rollicking and downright fun "Feed of Man" with its joyous guitar licks, or "Blood of the Lamb," an eerie mix of thumping drums and bells that would not sound out of place on Bob Dylan's recent "Time Out of Mind." These sounds do not appear on vol. I, Tweedy is correct, and the result is stunningly good. The diversity of this album is even more startling than on Mermaid Avenue I. Not only does every song sound different from previous tracks, each song belongs to a different genre. Beyond the album's Rock tunes are some delightfully dirty blues tracks like "All You Fascists" and "Meanest man," which would fit perfectly on the next Tom Waits record. Bragg even touches on some jazzy drum shuffling and vocals on the very slick "Stetson Kennedy." However, Wilco & Billy Bragg do not entirely ignore the folk roots that pervaded vol. I; "I was Born" is straight from the vein of vol. I's "Ingrid Bergman," and most will recognize "Eisler on the Go" lurking beneath the surface of the gorgeous acoustic ballad, "Black Wind Blowing." Yes, this album does stretch the listener's attention span a bit more, the music is indeed more challenging, but delicately so. It is difficult to imagine that this talented group could deliver an album of as much meat as vol. I, but they have, proving that the union of Wilco and Billy Bragg just might be one of the most outstanding musical projects in modern rock history. But let's not forget that these Mermaid Avenue albums are only made possible by the brilliant songwriting legacy of one named Woody Guthrie. Rating: - Wilco's done it AGAIN! Wow. This band is on an amazing winning streak. Mermaid Avenue is Wilco's fourth outstanding album in a row. While none of its songs rises to the level of the best songs on Vol. 1, Vol. 2 works much better as a whole than its predecessor. With Bragg picking mostly heavy-handed political songs and Wilco sticking to love songs and other assorted nonsense., Vol. 1 sounded more like a really good mix of two albums. On volume 2, there's a much more equitable division of the wealth, but Wilco still shines brighter than Bragg, singing the best tracks: "Someday Some Morning Somewhere," "Remember the Mountain Bed," and the stunning opener, "Airline to Heaven." Bragg, however, sounds a lot better than he did on vol. 1, where he tended to get too precious, too heavy-handed...too Billy Bragg. He's loosened up in a big way on vol. 2, his songs ranging from the bouncing "My Flying Saucer," to the dark "Hot Rod Hotel," to the hard-rocking "All You Fascists." My expectations for the next proper Wilco album were already pretty high, but after this outstanding album, I can't even imagine what they've got in store. Rating: - Best album I've heard this year I bought this album, mostly out of obligation to the MA1 and Wilco. Man, was I floored! This is the best album I've heard this year. In ways, much better than MA1. It took me a little while to get into Wilco's "Summerteeth", but once I heard this one, I can see Wilco is still as prolific as ever. If you enjoy songs by Wilco like, "Casino Queen", "Kingpin" & "Nothingsevergonna...", you'll be all over this album. There are great tracks like "Secrets of the Sea", very much in the vain of "California Stars" on MA1. I was absolutley amazed by the opening tune, "Airline To Heaven". That is a song for the ages. Also, Billy Bragg is in top form with a great "murder" song, "Meanest Man" and the VERY dark, "Black Wind Blowing". Natalie Merchant & Corey Harris are great additions as well. MA1 & MA2 are a seamless pair of albums and should be appreicated and loved for years to come. A great triumph, Woody Guthrie would be proud.

Mermaid Avenue Vol. II Music

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