Customer Reviews

Alive & Amplified

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I would like to start by saying give it a rest to all of those saying Suzuki is nothing but sell-outs. They've made no bones about the dysfunctions they went through while trying to record this album with the Matrix. That said, even though I'm much more of a traditionalist as far as garage rock is concerned, I still say this album is as much fun to listen to as any other. I still love the energy and these guys still produce beautiful, fun, old school rock 'n' roll with a touch of soul and blues (and admittedly some cheap pop), i.e. Messin' In the Dressin' Room, NY Girls, Shake That Bush Again, etc. Not to mention Graham Tyler (lead guitarist) sounds as good on this album as any other. This album might not be as dirty or rough around the edges as their previous ones, but I would still say it is just as much fun to listen to. I would say the raw energy of Suzuki still overpowers the Matrix on this album quite easily.
And if anyone gets a chance to see these guys live TAKE IT! They've got remarkable stage presence and the energy you leave with walking out of a Suzuki is unparalelled by any show I've been to.

I have to agree with another reviewer, if you know the Mooney Suzuki already, then you most likely will be disappointed. I loved these guys since i heard the self titled CD in 1999. Long Gone are the rough buzzing guitars heard in 'I say I Love You' and 'love is a Gentle Whip'. Now it's a cleaner too intentional 70's sound that seems all too contrived. While I do like a few tracks on this new album, such as 'Alive And Amplified', I found myself missing the signature sound I fell in love with in the beggining. Don't expect to find a great song with a sound like 'A simple life' had. I'm not one of these people that disregards a band because they sign to a major label, I let the music speak for itself. Unfourtunately, the music didn't say much with this release. It comes off as a sort of parody of themselves.

This is a good album, sure it could've been way better if it was recorded with the same production of Electric Sweat with the buzzing guitars and all, but this is not a bad album. Garage rock? nawwww, but good ol' rock n roll? h311s yes.

THE MOONEY SUZUKI relased "Electric Sweat" in 2003. People who pick up on all the cool buzz in the music business checked it out and liked it -- a lot. Unfortunately, the muzic-dorks (aka Radio station owners and managers) ignored the CD, so it never got a lot of marketing support. Consequently sales lagged. So, SONY (a company run by brain-dead executives who think that using the FBI to arrest people who swap MP-3 files) intervened and directed MOONEY SUZUKI to do more pop-styled and less hard-edged music. The results apparently pleased the executives, but unfortunately, the new CD sounds brain-dead.

While this had all kinds of potential, none of it has been realized. It's good, but it could have been great. The buzz-saw guitar attack is gone; replaced by a sanitized pop studio sound. But people buy songs, not engineering, so the extra effort was mis-directed and a waste of effort in my view. The pop special effects detract from the music. Instead of sounding "Live" or "Amplified", the band sounds lifeless and stifled. The nmusic lacks any ral punch here. The title is a mis-fire, and it will very likely backfire: pure hype, and totally dishonest.

Live, I think THE MOONEY SUZUKI can still cut it. But perhaps it's time to say "Sayonara" to Sony, and get themselves a record deal that allows them to stay alive ... amplified, rocking out, and still cool.

Firstly, if I hear another uninformed poseur talk about how this second album of theirs let them down, and oh, dear me, they changed their sound... After People Get Ready, then Electric Sweat, Live & Amplified is their third full length LP, and their fourth release if you include the Self Titled EP.

I don't care about the so-called change in their sound- I got into Suzuki with the, Your Love is a Gentle Whip, single. On that early release their garage sound was completely mechanical, and devoid of the blues/funk that they've evolved into today. They have changed/evolved with each album. Most good bands do.

This is a solid album. It would be a solid first album, and it is a solid third album. Their sound evolved and matured, and I hope it continues to. Yes, it was produced by the Matrix. Did that effect the sound. The producer always does. Primitive Condition, Alive & Amplified and Shake That Bush Again are all really great songs. I hope they made a few bucks licensing the title track to, appropriately enough, Suzuki for the Grand Vitara TV spot where the guy parachutes off the red-rock down to his SUV... You've heard it a dozen times, that's the song.

Let's get this out of the way: Mooney Suzuki has collaborated with The Matrix. Yes, that infamous trio that wrote the bland songs for pop starlet Avril Lavigne -- in garage rock, the equivalent of sacrificing babies on a fiery altar. But don't panic -- their latest album, "Alive & Amplified," is not that bad. But it definitely isn't good.

In "Electric Sweat," the music seemed to almost ooze feeling, sweat and grit. That's been cleaned up by the Matrix in favor of generic rock numbers and boring musical backdrops, although Mooney Suzuki force their way through in "Sometimes Somethin'," a slice of pure rock'n'roll, and "New York Girls," a fun poppy number that escapes Matrix slickness.

Even taken apart from their breakthrough album, "Alive & Amplified" is just not that good. It feels halfhearted and overpolished, grabbing the grimy heart of garage rock and scrubbing it raw. Does this sound fit Mooney Suzuki? Frankly, no -- it's too tame, too polished. It sounds like wild, untamed rock that is being held in... or like every other garage rock band spawned by the success of the Strokes and White Stripes.

The scruffy sound has been cleaned up until it's almost unrecognizable as being the same band -- it's sort of the reverse of what happened to Phantom Planet's sound, where they took fun pop and made it dark and gritty. The Matrix has nothing that can benefit a high-octane, hard-rockin' band, and they wildly overproduce the album, until the greasy aura has been washed away. You can hear hints of the new York Dolls, the Rolling Stones and (of course) the Stooges, but they feel glossed over.

At least one thing hasn't changed: Sammy James Jr. His endearingly awkward lyrical abilities are unchanged, but they are more front-and-center. But the songwriting has the sound of something scribbled down in a day and a half, on a tour bus, between groupies (which is also the focus of three songs). "Let's get in a primitive position/We're just fancy animals with hands/And animal glands." Ewwww...

Since the band have since vowed to never ever ever touch the Matrix's efforts again, Mooney Suzuki fans can breathe a sigh of relief -- whatever comes next from these talented guys will surely be far better than "Alive & Amplified."

This album is a complete let down for all of the long time Mooney Suzuki fans. Instead of the raw fuzzy garage guitar and banging drums, listeners are exposed to over-produced generic FM Rock. The Mooney's songs were engaging in the first place, and anyone with any decent music tastes who bothered to listen to their music would come to like it. The production on "Electric Sweat" was definately good enough. There was no reason to go with such a high producer. Also, WHAT HAPPENED TO THE LEATHER JACKETS,SOMETHING HAS TO BE THE SAME! I am giving this album 2 stars because it's the Mooney Suzuki and their earlier material is Prime A+ Garage. Hopefully the Mooney Suzuki will realize their mistake and put out another "Electric Sweat."

Here begins the Mooney Suzuki's decline. Let's see it. There are three main demographics here:

1. Those who are familiar with the Mooney Suzuki and enjoy them.
2. Those familiar with the Mooney Suzuki who don't like them.
3. Those who have never heard of the Mooney Suzuki.

Now, let's see how Alive & Amplified affects each group's take on the Mooney Suzuki:

1. Those who knew and like the Mooney Suzuki are upset. The new CD features very juvenile lyrics. Apparently, they're trying to appeal to a younger/popular music oriented crowd. People who liked Electric Sweat are disappointed, it seems the Mooney Suzuki is selling out.

2. Those who didn't like the Mooney Suzuki have more kindling to burn them with. If they didn't like you the first time around, adding a more rebellious theme is not going to make them change their minds.

3. Those who didn't even know the Mooney Suzuki existed before still have no idea what's going on.

Summary: Alienating fans and not quite spicy enough for anyone else, the Mooney Suzuki begins their downward spiral. Sorry guys.

A highly anticipated new release from New York garage rockers Mooney Suzuki thrills with peices like the funky, energetic title track, which boasts of drums reminiscent of "Sympathy For The Devil", vocals that sound like the twisted offspring of Ozzy Ozbourne and Jimi Hendrix, as well as with the opening track, "Primitive Condition", which starts with a guitar riff that could easilybe on an AC/DC album. Luckily the sophisticated yet poppy lyrics spare the need to compare the two.

I picked this up for free from the record store I work at, not really expecting much but hoping that it was good. And, I was pleasantly surprised! This album provides some damn good hip-shaking funk and deep sexy soul.

The first song is just naughty enough to make me smile, while the title track "Alive & Amplified" is a big energy romp through the highs of life.

I won't go into much detail after that, it's sort of something you need to experience for yourself.