Customer Reviews

Anxiety Always

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Just plain slutty, but I mean this in the most positive way ever. When I hear raw electro beats and dirty synth like this I just think: slutty. Adult uses a lot of the old school 80's drum sounds, not much unlike the tr-808 or something of that nature. Adult has a female singer. Her voice is very annoying, but that's why it is good. Adult may be electro (please never say electroclash), but Adult's roots are founded in punk music. This is also a positive thing. You may hear Adult bumping at 80's night at that horrible scene dance club you go to, or maybe some awfully pushy and forward girl in your Women Studies class recommended them to you. Don't let that bother you.

At first listen Adult may seem completely pretentious, but I assure you that's part of the fun.

Has this review helped you? Hell yeah it has. Buy the album.

All of the Adult. naysayers appear to be ravers who don't know that electronic music doesn't have to be ibiza friendly. Adult. has embraced electronics as a means of music expression, but do not limit themselves to categorization. If you are expecting a Felix sound or (sigh)-Tiga, then you've come to the wrong place. This is pure electronic post-punk existing in our present time. Adult. is the only band thrown into the hodgepodge that is "electroclash" that knows how to rock with their synths. If the clubbers can't handle it, then they can go listen to their Ladytron CDs.

Adult are gaining speed in Houston, selling rather quickly. Great retro-electro female vocals with a couple of instrumentals. Buy this CD. Highly recommended.

Adult's "Anxiety Always" has promise, but it just doesn't deliver. They try to be as creative as possible, but what they do is create unlistenable and unsatisfying songs. Not to mention that whoever the female vocalist is needs to work on her style (it's not horrible, but it's just not that good). The electronic style is essentially just very fuzzy guitars with some blips, bloops and samples thrown in every now and then. Overall it feels uninspired and not very interesting. The lyrics are especially pretty dull. Only electronica fans would like this, but even they would be disappointed. It's not the most horrible thing I've ever heard, though; it's just "ok". Not recommended.

Highlights include:
"Shake Your Head"
"Glue Your Eyelids Together"
"Blank Eyed, Nose Bleed"
"Nothing Of The Kind"
"Nervous (Wreck)" (parts of it)
"Kick In The Shin"

As the Electro movement gained popularity towards the end of 2002, Adult. got tired of the electro scene and wanted to head into harder post-punk territory. While Anxiety Always isn't bad, it doesn't have the hooks and grooves of Resuscitation. The Cold Call sounds like an unusally listener friendly Throbbing Gristle cut, while Glue Your Eyelids Together could be some 25 year old post-punk anthem. The vocals are highly affected and delivered in a serious-as-a-heart-attack style which is often unintentionally amusing. All in all it's not bad, but it's not a non-stop hard electro dance party.

I'm thrilled to see that a record company had the guts to release this. Excellent use of analog synths and strange sounds. Might remind you of the best aspects of 80's bands like Nitzer Ebb, Devo, Soft Cell, etc., but Adult.'s sound is still fresh. I'm actually quite fond of the vocal style used in most of the tracks here--fairly monotonous, but edgy enough to not become dull or grating. Can't get "Kick in the Shin" out of me head. Highly recommended.

I don't know how I missed out on this one when it was originally released and the naysayers had me convinced this was crap. Well I for one love it!

If Chris & Cosey and add(n)to x had a bratty punk rock child who was into Siouxsie & the Banshees Adult. would be it.

They tap into the zeitgeist of late 70s punk and early 80s electropop and expertly fuse the two together. The vocals are definitely an acquired taste but for me they mirror and compliment the cold emotionless music. She sounds likes an even more bored Miss Kittin, if that's possible.

Definitely beginning to end fave CD for me. I love every track!

Adult. knows how to write good songs, there's no doubt about that. But as for playing good songs, they're only so-so. The programming on Anxiety Always is spot-on; the synths they use are wonderfully retro-sounding and occasionally harsh. The music itself harkens to the darkness that the whole new wave moment seemed to miss back in the 80s. But the vocals definitely leave something to be desired. They might be going for the aggressive yet aloof growl (like Romeo Void), but it comes off as completely amateurish. There's no irony when she sings nyah nyah nyah on "Turn Your Back" or about how much love hurts on "Kick in the Shin." It's a pity that the vocals take center stage; it's the music itself that should be the star.

The lyrics and vocals get on my nerves. It sounds way too intentional to be genuinly wierd. The music is good. I love the instrumental tracks. Maybe she should get a voice pedal and concentrate on using her voice as an instrument. That would be Fantastical!

chances are this is better than anything you own. so buy it. it's derivative of early 80's synth (and punk) music, but is still probably better than anything you own. and it still manages to sound quite original. and it's great to dance to. and they're great live. and their record label is great. so buy it ok?