Baby 81

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, BRMC | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 1, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Red Int / Red Ink
• ASIN: B000NVIXPA
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #32,601 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

After the surprisingly spare acoustic diversion of 2005's acclaimed Howl, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club's fourth album returns the San Francisco group to the big guitars and rock swagger of their earlier albums. Baby 81 is a loud affair, and with each track polished to a high shine (the album was self-produced by the band, co-produced by Michael Been, who formerly led the Call), the results are slick and serviceable rock. BRMC are sometimes accused of rehashing courses charted by earlier bands, and here that tendency occasionally works in their favor ("All You Do Is Talk" opens on an airy organ, recalling U2's majestic "Where the Streets Have No Name"), but also leads inevitably to comparison (much of Baby 81 evokes Oasis or a T-Rex-lite sound). Here's hoping BRMC won't shy away from following their noses down some previously unexplored musical paths in the future. --Ben Heege

Product Description

UK pressing of the 2007 release from Black Rebel Motorcycle Club features one bonus track: 'The Likes Of You'. BRMC are back with their fourth album! l. Combining the classic songwriting of Howl (2005) with the sleazy Rock N' Roll of the band's first two albums Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (2001) and Take Them On, On Your Own (2003), Baby 81 shows the three piece at the top of their game. The album's first single, `Weapon of Choice', showcases the album spectacularly with a blistering mix of driving guitars and an anthemic chorus. Universal. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Old Rock and Roller's Review, May 6, 2007

By 

R. Morris "Rob & Matt Morris" (Idaho Falls, ID USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Baby 81 (Audio CD)

I'd never heard of these guys till I went to the Rolling Stones concert in Missoula, Montana last October. BRMC opened for the Stones, and I have been hooked on them ever since. They are literally the only modern band that gets any play time on my mp3 or stereo system (I own mostly vinyl). This group is good, old-fashioned rock and roll, heavy on the layered, fuzz-box/acoustic sound of the sixties but still able to put a modern, alternative spin on the old-school rock. The fact that the Rolling Stones asked them to open and spoke highly of them is quite a plug.

I read the reviews of this album this morning before buying it at Best Buy for under eight bucks, and found that some reviewers found this effort to be mediocre or a reversal to their older sound. Personally, I like their older sound better. This is a solid, eclectic and highly enjoyable rock album.

If you like old-school, talented rock and roll, like the Stones, the Doors, the Who, even some of the heavier Beatles or Badfinger, these guys are a nice surprise. On a couple of songs, you can almost hear John Lennon and shades of 'Sgt. Pepper' or 'White Album'. I also appreciate that they don't feel the need to screech or whine like most modern alternative bands.

Great album. Keep rocking, BRMC.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THIS IS B.R.M.C., May 7, 2007

By 

Sao Paulo - See all my reviews

This review is from: Baby 81 (Audio CD)

I am a big fan of this band. Really terrific live. Talented, passionate musicians. I loved their sound from the first album, but they did such a great job with Howl that I almost wanted them to stay in that genre. The second album, in the style of the debut, was pretty forgettable to me. I think this is their most balanced, consistent effort. It contains some very good stand-alone tracks like Berlin, Weapon Of Choice, All You Do Is Talk, Lien On Your Dreams, Killing the Light, and Am I Only.

If you liked Howl and thought that's where they were headed, think again. Great album, but that was their Exile On Main Street. I think that album contributed to the growth evident in this release. Read the liner notes: Baby 81 was written, performed, and produced by B.R.M.C., with production help from frontman Robert Been's father, founder of 80's Bay Area band The Call. This is B.R.M.C., and thankfully they are here to stay.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Bound to be misunderstood, May 5, 2007

By 

Max "maxim_138" (Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Baby 81 (Audio CD)

I'm seeing a lot of reviews that demonstrate how misunderstood this record is, already. There's a lot of talk of BRMC taking a step "backward" or retreating, or reverting. Certainly, the sound is more akin to the rest of their catalog than it is to Howl, but I don't see it as anything other than their next record. The recording sessions were fairly close to those for Howl, and several of the songs were written, and performed live at least contemporary to that record. Plus, during Howl, they were down one man. So, it seems to me that if you are a fan of what BRMC are about, this will be a welcome addition, but if you're not, and really want them to be something they aren't, you'll misunderstand.
What BRMC are is pretty simple: a rock and roll band. This is a rock and roll record.