Customer Reviews

99.9 F°

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the most musically interesting of Suzanne Vega's recordings, and was my personal favorite from its release until "Songs in Red and Gray" a decade later. The debate below about the industrial or techno effects reminds me of the 40-year-old complaints about Dylan going electric. We started paying attention to him when he plugged in and performed "Like A Rolling Stone", and while I snatched up all her earlier work, much of Vega's most interesting music is here, is electric, and is engaging in large part because of its sound. Every one of Vega's CD's sounds different musically, and thus the notion that this isn't the "typical" Suzanne Vega seems silly to me. The one criticism I've read here with which I agree is that the CD is not perfectly cohesive; the simpler acoustic songs sometimes can sound out of place, however lovely. Perhaps it's just that they aren't always the best compositions here.

There are plusses and minuses to using electronic instruments and sounds. Listening a decade later, I find some of this music sounds dated, which will never happen with an acoustic guitar and a lovely voice, as on Ms. Vega's first CD. Still, it's the electronica that draws me in here, along with lyrics that focus as much on warm blood as her first collection focused on frozen water. Perhaps that's why she chose to use such pulsing electronic beats. I honestly don't know what's on her "best of" CD, but I couldn't imagine one without "Fat Man & Dancing Girl", "99.9Fº", "Blood Makes Noise", "If You Were In My Movie", "Rock in This Pocket", or "Bad Wisdom". I.e., I think more than half this CD is essential Suzanne Vega. I can't say that about any of her other five brilliant recordings.

The lyrics here are just as interesting as the music, as one would expect, and though Ms. Vega's cool detached observations can be found as readily here as elsewhere, there was perhaps more warmth and humanity here than in previous recordings. I experienced this CD as Suzanne Vega coming down to earth and having a bit of fun along with her poetry and her musings about disturbing subjects and bad men. If you aren't a folk purist and you are a Suzanne Vega fan, I can't imagine this not being a favorite. If you're new to her work, this is a better place to start than most.

I have all five of Vega's cds and I think she was her most daring with 1992's 99.9F. She blended alternative electronic sounds into her music creating a kind of Nine Inch Nails/Vega sound. I like all of her work, but I think this is a classic cd along with 1996's Nine Objects of Desire. She really hit her stride here. Songs like "Rock In This Pocket", "Blood Makes Noise", "99.9F", "In Liverpool", "If You Were In My Movie" and "As Girls Go" make this a classic. This is a must have for any rock collector.

My first Suzanne Vega album was Solitude Standing which I bought about 3 years ago. I had heard Suzanne's "Luka" on the Lilith Fair live album and decided to give her a try. Unfortunately, I was sort of turned off by the heavy 80's sound, which at the time I wasn't really into. I forgot about Suzanne for over a year until I ran into this album at the library...and out of curiosity I checked it out.

From that point on, my opinion completely changed. At first I was taken aback by the sound, but on the second listen I was hooked. It completely changed how I listened to "Solitude" and seduced me to get all of Suzanne's other albums. She's now one of my favorite artists.

There's no two Suzanne Vega albums alike, yet when viewed as whole collection make perfect sense. As "industrial" as this album may sound at times, it's also one of her most acoustic. "Bad Wisdom" and "Blood Sings" are mostly just Suzanne and her beautiful (and frequently overshadowed on albums) guitar.

For me there's not a bad track on the album. It's probably one of her most accessible, yet most complicated albums -contradiction I know- and rarely goes long without being played on my CD player.

I've only had the CD a few days now, but in those few days I've discovered how truly awesome this album is. Suzanna Vega's voice along with the industrial/machine-driven rock has mesmerized my ears. Songs like "Blood Makes Noise" and "Rock In This Pocket" are amazing pieces of music, and I find myself listening to the CD over and over again. I highly reccomend this CD to anyone looking for something original and amazing. You won't be disappointed.

I'll just start off by saying that I am not a Suzanne Vega "fan." I find folk music generally offputting because of its innate pretention (and that's going to get me a few unhelpful ratings right there).

I must have simply been waiting for something like this to come along. The songs are terrific, the beats contagious, and the music way ahead of its time.

Perhaps this inspired Tori Amos to go electronic on From the Choirgirl Hotel (my favorite Tori album). Perhaps the producer is due the credit. Perhaps I just came in at the right time and the songs hit a chord with me. All I know is I never get tired of listening to these tunes, I've featured this album on at least two of my Listmania!'s, and I can't really get into anything else by her (except for Nine Objects of Desire, which represents a bit of a departure from this format).

The lack of length of the songs has given some pause, but I believe they are the better for it. In fact, my favorite, "When Heroes Go Down," clocks in at just under two minutes.

I would recommend this for anyone looking for introspective tunes with a good electronic feel, especially fans of Tori's Choirgirl album.

Machine-driven music was not Suzanne Vega's most enticing musical direction, though the experimentation certainly yielded some pronounced successes and destroyed the notion that Vega was just a guitar-strumming folkie.

The often cacophonous arrangements at times intrude: Vega's voice and delivery are ill-equipped to compete with overloud drum machines and bass guitars. "Blood Makes Noise" has an exhilirating sound, but her heavily processed vocals are a take-it-or-leave-it affair, and her singing sounds very strained (hear her struggling for breath when she hits "I'd like to give the information you're asking for"). "In Liverpool", however, achieves a wonderful balance between 99.9 F-era Vega and Solitude Standing-era Vega, a song of great spiritual, melodic and lyrical clarity, recorded with the same industrial/dance leanings used throughout the album, but remaining human enough that Vega shines through.

Not a misstep, but a tangential exploration that would result in the harmonious folk/jazz/keyboard hybrid on Nine Objects of Desire.

Well, I bought this album in a second hand store on the casette format, but including a bonus track "Private Goea Public". I'm in love with this music and will definitley search for the CD version.

Recently I've been listening to this album every day at least two times. Especially while going to the university, with headphones on and the walkman in my pocket - it leaves an indellible impression - walking the sad melancholic streets in autumn and listening to the melancholic voice of Suzanne Vega.

Each cut here is simply perfect, or at least very likeable. With the first songs you plunge into the world of Suzanne Vega's introspective lyrics and delicate tunes and real emotions hidden in her voice. This is definitely sad music, but still there is a hope. You'll like the folk-tinged songs "Bad Wisdom" and "When Heroes go Down", you'll sing along while listening to "As Girls Go" and "In Liverpool", perhaps you'll shed a tear by "Song of Sand" or "Blood Sings".

Listen to this great album and it will surely grow on you as it grew on me and still makes me want to listen to Suzanne's other outings. I also enjoyed "Songs in Red and Gray" and will hands down enjoy anything else.

In years to come Suzanne Vega will probably be remembered by most for her two biggest hit-singles , "Luka" and "Tom's Dinner" . That's so unfair for a singer who has released five really great albums and has contributed so much to what we call today ' the female music scene ' . 99.9F is her most eccentric yet charming album yet. For the first time she tries to use technology in her songs combined with her , excellent as always guitar melodies . The result is something between pop and funk but even with all that machinery influences , it still sounds personal . The lyrics are more risky than ever . She have the guts to write an almost dance track about Aids ( "Blood Makes Noise" ) but where she cuts like a knife is on "As Girls Go" where she simply does what Eminem wasted a whole record on ( suggesting that he actually tried to make a comment of today's reality ) withought insulting the gay community though ( "...If i could pull this off / would i know for certain / the real situation / behind the curtain? " ) . "In Liverpool" ( 1992's best video clip )and "99.9f" are also some of the tracks you should pay special attention to ( you will almost be hypnotised while listening to the second one ) . Vega is an artist who knows how to use the language properly and is able to write about something more than boyfriend troubles . She's much too clever for that . Even though she's gone all jazz and bossa nova now , she's still more fascinating than most of the other ladies in today's pop and rock world. Just buy this album and you'll find out what i am talking about.

This definitely is not her typical album, but far from making it a throw away, that fact makes this work all the more interesting. Her folksy, quiet style comes through here, but doesn't dominate as in her earlier releases. Here it is mixed in with a few more upbeat, engineered tracks.

The title track, as well as "Blood Makes Noise", have an almost industrial edge to them, and though short, are quite catchy - almost reminiscent of the DNA remix of "Tom's Diner". The pace of the album as a whole waxes and wanes significantly, with enough variety to produce an excellent balance.

Of my fairly extensive (and somewhat eclectic) collection of music, this disc stands strong as one of the regular favorites 5+ years after its purchase.

What makes Suzanne Vega such an interesting artist is that she's not just one of the best rock poets out there but she's prepared to push things to the edge. Usually, it's in her subject matter which deals with unusual, occasionally disquieting issues - prostitution, child abuse, death, divorce, even lesbianism - delivered, very cleverly, via strong often ecstatic melodies and driving, tightly metered lyrics that make the impact of what she's actually singing about so hauntingly effective.

But on 1992's "99.9F" she and her husband, Mitchell Froom, took things one step further - adding challenging and, for the time, highly adventurous arrangements to her essentially folk-rock melodies. And it worked... with the hard, often harshly "industrial", multi-layered rhythms adding to the impact of her songs and perfectly complementing her almost deadpan approach to them. Different, exciting, at times (as on the exquisite "In Liverpool") quite beautiful, and, with only a couple of exceptions, very effective it's not only stood the test of time but begs the question why she hasn't worked with more similarly adventurous producers to take things even further.

Not that there's anything wrong with her sparse, equally intriguing but musically "safer" output since then - both "Nine Objects of Desire" & "Songs in Red & Gray" are superb albums - but, as 99.9F showed, her highly distinctive, almost detached delivery coupled with the sheer power of her compositions are ideally suited to a more innovative & adventurous approach... time for a collaboration with one of the new generation of perceptive electronica/dance master mixers?