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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
you like electronica, but you're still hooked on guitars?, October 24, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: Audiocards (Audio CD)
Tyro is yet another case for the destruction of all radio stations. They have a sound that makes you wonder why pop stations can't play clever pop songs, why rock stations can't play smart songs that kick, and why nobody plays electronica at all. Because, somehow, Tyro is able to fuse all of these genres into a coherent unit. The singer has a waif-like voice that sits lightly over the music that rages behind her. The melody of "Pulse"-a song that evokes Television w/ Phillip Glass playing keyboards- is candy-sweet for 3/4 of the song until it finally builds up to a throaty climax that can honestly give you chills. "New Forms of Control" recalls the sound of their Mute labelmates Add N to X with meandering keyboards and a military-like drum part that seems to be leavened w/ at least a touch of irony. With sampled sounds that evoke factories, steam, and the ever-present Authority Figure, the song could easily be the soundtrack for Metropolis. Amazon's clip of "Over the Moon" unfortunately misses the most brilliant part of the song where the meandering electronic blips and gadgets break into a nasty bass rumble. Someway, somehow, I would urge people to hear this song. Also, I would love the opportunity to see a crowd of people attempting to dance to this song- i imagine something between Dokken and Kraftwerk.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
I guess I'm living in the (recent) past, but..., October 11, 2000
This review is from: Audiocards (Audio CD)
...I liked Katie and Skipper Hartley's previous efforts better with the group Toenut (I own their two CDs and have reviewed them here); upon first listening, the same novelties are there as before--the short atmospheric instrumentals and liberal spoken samples gleaned from the late show or Katie phoning in from somewhere, but there's something definitely missing, and if I have to put it bluntly, they're not as charmingly weird as they used to be, and the new group of musicians doesn't have the same fire as the Toenut squad, who really put across a feeling that that tightly wound sound of theirs could explode at any moment. What's here is music that is simpler and more direct, both musically and lyrically, played competently by a less inspired ensemble. After the promise of the opening prologue and the standout track "Shadow", much of the CD unfortunately suffers from a lack of variety in tempo, arrangment, and melodic invention, especially the first half, with the hip-swinging synthy breaks in "Blameless" being small consolation. "Over the Moon" really sticks out for sounding nothing like the rest of the disc (stripped down, and Kraftwerk-like, with more of a sense of humor), and I appreciated that. I guess you don't change the band and the band's name for no reason (I know, Chris Collins' death was something of a catalyst); evidently something along the lines of more traditional pop is being attempted, but it's just a bit too unleavened for me. I wish them well, though; I do recommend picking up "Two in the Pinata" by Toenut for those that are enjoying this currently--see what you think!
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5.0 out of 5 stars
freaking awesome rock songs (about cheese grits), October 5, 2000
This review is from: Audiocards (Audio CD)
this cd reminds me of pulling a tweaked backside boneless one on a cement ditch in a small southern town. it rocks like a 20' bodyslam into the flat. it'll make your teeth hurt from the "drunken grin" it forces onto your face. i remember when i was very young. i was blameless. somebody take my pulse! i have been attacked by timer the strangler! unfortunately you can't hear the great chord in the "over the moon" sample - it makes you feel dirty.
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