RUMOURS.....OR FACT??

The one downer about living in temporary accommodation is that I've had to cut back on buying the usual shitload of new records and CDs as and when they come out (it would be a bit difficult getting them home and staying under the weight allowance).

So...I've not purchased the new release by Rilo Kiley. But frankly, after reading some of the stuff written about it on blogs of note, I'm not too sure if I want to.

Toad, as ever, didn't beat about the proverbial bush with his entry entitled Rilo Kiley are Fucking Overated. He was clearly unimpressed.

So, using the search facility on The Hype Machine, I went looking for some second and third opinions, and sorry to say that I didn't come up with too many. Here's some evidence, and here's a little more, and finally, even more.

When I started reading words like 'pretty dismal', 'one part dance rock, one part porn jam, two parts bland alt. rock, and several parts over-produced', as well as the scathing review posted by the usually reliable Toad, I thought I might best proceed with caution.

Things weren't helped when I read an interview with the band in the latest edition of Spin magazine which contains phrases such as 'the record is a naked stab at the mainstream', ' a collection of tight 70s-tinged, mostly upbeat pop songs' and worst of all, right there on the cover, the question is posed - 'Rilo Kiley - Are they the new Fleetwood Mac?'

Surely not......after all, that's partly what punk was all bout....

So it was with intrepidation that I downloaded and listened to some tracks. And for once, the critics are right. It's all rather sad and appalling.

Do I offer a conspiracy theory that Jenny Lewis so enjoyed the freedom and kudos offered by her solo project that she helped sabotage this latest offering in an effort to break-up the band?? Or is it simply the sound of folk who have sold their collective souls to the man (it's their first record for a major label)??

I don't know....but I might get a better idea later this month when I go along to see them here in Toronto (the tickets were purchased before the LP was released).

In the meantime, here for your comparison are the classic single from their last LP, More Adventurous that came out in 2004, and the lead-off single from the 2007 offering:-

song : Rilo Kiley - Potions For Foxes
song : Rilo Kiley - The Moneymaker

And if you think it's a tad unfair just to do things that way, well have a listen (if you dare) to a pretty awful LP track:-

song : Rilo Kiley - Dreamworld

I will say that the blog that posted that song gave the new album a positive review:-

'A lot of my friends think I truly loathe Jenny Lewis. This isn't true. I just can't stand the honkytonk vibe she loves to dive into so much of the time. Under The Blacklight is out on Tuesday, and I really do enjoy it. Rilo Kiley has managed to completely reinvent themselves on this album. It's diverse in sound and so much of it is nothing like their previous material. Highly recommended - especially if you haven't been a huge fan in the past.'

Not the sort of thing however that I take as a positive recommendation.

Any thoughts out there??

And if anyone's interested, there's a few Rilo Kiley/Jenny Lewis clips now over at The Video Villain.