Customer Reviews

Acoustic

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When I bought this cd I wasn't really sure what to expect. I've always been a big fan of "acoustic" genres but when I was slightly wary when I found this particular one. Needless to say I bought it and took it home. The results stunned and shocked me.

As the cd opens up with "International You Day" you really are amazed already. Tony Sly with not much more than himself and a guitar, delivers some of NUFAN greatest songs with the bare minimum of instruments. What he achieved is nothing short of a new wonder of the world. The songs are two thumbs up, crackingly good music.

Eventually you'll come to Joey Cape's section of the cd. This is a bit of shock as most people seem to be under the conception that this is a sort of duet cd with both legendary singers singing alongside each other. It is not. Does it matter? It does not.

"The Caper"'s section of the cd does not disappoint. He has, unlike Tony Sly, got more than the bare minimum, combining such instruments as the banjo, the piano, and the accordion. The results are astounding especially when you get to such songs as "Violins". Joey Cape plays selected songs from Lagwagon and adds one or two of his own musings to the cd and produces some brilliant songs.

This cd is leg crumplingly good. No matter what you're expecting the cd will surpass your expectations. Don't expect some fast paced punk like NUFAN and Lagwagon. Just expect some damn good music thats so relaxing and ear friendly that you could fall asleep to it, but in a good way. Don't buy this cd and you are doing yourself an injustice, make sure not to miss out on this fine piece of artistry.

I must start out by saying I am not a big fan of either Lagwagon or No Use for a Name. I am, however, a big fan of Joey Cape's side project Bad Astronaut, and this CD reminds me of what Mr. Cape is capable of. The songs on this CD are beautiful retellings of songs that have helped catapult NUFAN and Lagwagon to "stardom", at least in to their respective fans. The cello work by Angus Cooke (once again of Bad Astronaut) is extraordinary, the orchestration never seems forced, it always fits in perfectly with the guitars, always complimenting, never overpowering. It's difficult to find any low points on this CD, the only minor problem with this CD might be song choice, I might have removed some songs and added others, but that's why they're the artists and I'm just a guy reviewing their work.

Anyone who enjoys this CD should definitely listen to Bad Astronaut, and also the American Lesion CD by Greg Graffin from Bad Religion. American Lesion is a Mr. Graffin's solo CD that features songs all in piano and acoustic guitar, including a stirring rendition of Cease on piano.

This album is absolutely beautiful. It's simple, nice acoustic music accompanied by vocals, but the results are stunning, and I encourage anyone who appreciates acoustic music to invest in it. I especially love the first song!

Ahhh No Use For a name and Lagwagon. I love both of these bands. It's awesome to see that Joey and Tony hooked up and did acoustic versions of some of their best songs. It's quite an interesting change from fast paced punk rock to slowed down mellow versions of these songs. Good stuff, check it out.

This was a pretty interesting cd. ive never heard anything like it. probably anyone who dosent listen to bands like no use for a name or lagwagon would find this rather dull. the songs overall are driven by inspired lyrics. the overall feel of the cd is rather depressing though.

violins and exit are my two favorite songs on the cd. the end of violins is both highly interesting and disturbing. my least favorite song is tragic vision because the lyrics seem pointless and the music itself is rather boring.

international you day is a great title for the first song and is decent but it reminds me of my only sunshine which is a song parents sing to little kids. somehow tony sly managed to put this tune into a slightly more upbeat and depressing acustic version of the song.

overall though if you listen to mostly music like lagwagon and no use then listen to this to give your musical tastes some variety.

This is one of the best albums I have bought in the last twelve months. The songs wrtten and arranged by Joey Cape are worth the price of admission alone (to be honest, I would have rather had 12 songs from Cape and zero from Sly). Both artists pull tunes previously released by their bands (Cape: Lagwagon, Sly: No Use), and both include one song only available on this album.

Unlike the reviewer "Nufan....." below, I thought the Tony Sly songs were somewhat uninspired and showing little talent outside of what is already expected from Sly's work with NUFAN. This is probably due to the fact that some of the songs presented by Sly have been regulars at live shows for over a decade, but I was expecting a well-worn polish to the songs, and instead found them mostly just worn out. Not to say that the first half of this album is unlistenable. If only Sly's tunes had been on the release, I probably wouldn't have any problems with them.

The problem for the NUFAN lead man's work on the album is that his songs share a disc with Cape's. Cape, between a career with Lagwagon, stints in Me First & TGG, and Bad Astronaut, has always shown comparitively more well-rounded and better songwriting than has been available from the NUFAN crowd. His broader range of talent and experience is relfected and magnified by proximity to Sly's tunes. While the NUFAN songs on this record sound like acoustic open-mic-night versions of the originals, all of the Lagwagon tunes are completely re-worked and feature more (and better) instrumentation than their record-mates.

Comparisons aside, this album is worth the price of entry if you're a fan of either NUFAN or Lagwagon. Even if you're not, the depth of Cape's arrangements and the illustration of his talent will probably turn you on to his other bands (in addition to putting this particular album in your CD player non-stop for a couple of weeks).

I am a fan of a wide range of punk, from hardcore music like The Subhumans to more mainstream bands such as NOFX and the Vandals. I have listened to a good deal of lagwagon's work, and NUFAN has always been one of my favourite bands. This said, I had no idea that Cape and Sly were capable of this calibur of emotive, moving music. Lagwagon has always sounded less polished than NUFAN, to me, and this album holds true in that respect. But while many feel that Cape's performance was somehow less than Sly's, I disagree. It just happens that is style is less refined. In "Violins", it is clear that the lyrics are perfectly matched to his style. It is plain, with the lyrics saying much more than the notes, which is the very essence of acoustic sets. I also think that Tony Sly will not surprise anyone on this album, which is good, as he has always had such a well-controlled vocal style for a punk artist. He is much more polished than Cape, and it makes for a very enjoyable experience in "International You Day".This album is well worth triple what you pay for it. The style is nothing like emocoustic bands like The Early November and Dashboard, in that there is no unnecessary vocal flair.The music is powerful and clear, smooth and touching, as the best acoustic should be. In short, this collaboration has resulted in several of my most favourite songs of all time, and you would be doing yourself a horrible injustice to deprive yourself of it any longer.

I've been a big fan of both Lagwagon and NUFAN for a very long time, and when I heard they were going to release an acoustic split together, I got pretty excited; sometimes it's nice to slow down the tempo and take a break from all the fast paced rhythms. Both Joey and Tony take some of their most well known songs from their respective bands and translate them into a more soothing blend of acoustic guitar, piano, and violins. What you have in the end are twelve songs that are meant to be played fast, but that are actually done at half speed, and somehow it works out pretty well. "Justified Black Eye" sounds excellent in acoustic form, as does the piano-infused "twenty-seven".

It's nice to hear remakes of your favorite songs, which is why fans of these bands should be sure to check this CD out. It comes with two new songs - Tony's "stunt double" and Joey's "violet" - which actually sound like they were meant to be played acoustically.

Although the songs have been changed quite a bit, it's somewhat difficult to not think of the punk rock version that you originally fell in love with. Just give it time, and I guarantee that you will enjoy the acoustic versions just as much.

Just brilliant ! they are both really good song writers showing us they can do something else than punk rock . Buy this if you like pop rock with good vocals ,catchy melodies and intelligent lyrics

I've always loved both these bands, And was thrilled about an acoustic release from them.