Customer Reviews

Bakesale

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Sebadoh's Bakesale is definitely one of the best albums of all time. The band is unusually collabrative, pumping out a collection of songs that fit together so well it could almost be considered a concept album. Just when you've had enough of Lou Barlow's sensitive whining, Jason Lowenstein takes over and pelts out one of his raucus tunes. This is the most cohesive they ever sounded. If you buy just one Sebadoh album get this one.

The first CD contains the Bakesale album, and all the extras are on the second CD (62 minutes). These consist of a few demos of Lou Barlow songs with acoustic guitar and lots of worthwhile experiments in musical dissonance, with several of Jason Loewenstein's best contributions to Sebadoh. This second disc alone would be one of my favourite Sebadoh issues. An absolute must for fans and a good way to start an addiction for Sebadoh.

This actually is one of the best albums Sebadoh would release. The music and sound is totally laid-back compared to something like Bubble and Scrape or Smash your head on the Punk Rock. One reviewer said it was a "subtle pop classic" and that is the exact definition of the album itself. It's way more subtle and easier then other Sebadoh albums.

This actually had the first Sebadoh tune I've heard and this is the second last album I bought. The song was Skull and I heard it in the opener of the skateboarding video Anthology (by Transworld magazine). I liked the song at the beginning and thought it flowed really well with what was going on. I would later find out after about 2 years that it was from one of my favorite bands.

Even though this is way more relaxed then the other albums, it doesn't mean that Lou won't deliver some harsh (But cynical) lyrics and some pretty powerful songs. Tunes like Careful, License to confuse, Not a friend and Magnet's Coil all have a unique sound with some very, very good lyrics. Careful is almost devastating to hear but it's all so simple at the end. Not a Friend is something we all can relate too sometimes with friendships. License to Confuse is just 2 minutes of cynsism from Lou. Magnet's Coil isn't as harsh as most of the album, but the opening base line is extremely catchy. Then there's the easier songs with the easier sound. Skull, Got it, S Soup, Rebound, Dramamine and Together or Alone. Together or Alone just gives me a feeling of emptyness but it's a great song. Skull is the first song I heard from Sebadoh, great tune but nothing to crank. Rebound is just awesome. S Soup and Dramamine somehow connect within listens.

One song that sticks out though is Give Up. Starts off like a heavy metal track then goes right into the normal Sebadoh type ranting. It's my favorite track on the album next to Careful and Not a Friend.

Totally recommended for some great songs with even better lyrics. I wish Sebadoh were still around....

here's the deal.....bands evolve, they change, and though the sebadoh that is heard on bakesale is very different from the sebadoh on a say, III, or even bubble and scrape, it is still one of the finest bands out there. bakesale is an incredibly cohesive effort, its not at all schizophrenic like some of the earlier work....lou tackles the personal issues here, self image, love and loss, etc. i think the thing that makes the album so good however, is that jason's songs are finally fully realized and fully listenable. it seemed before he was always just a record behind lou, but here, he really comes into his own, in fact, penning the albums best tune (s. soup) of course the lou stuff is great too: check out not a friend, skull, and together or alone.....i've probably listened to this album once a week since i first bought it my freshman year of h.s....and i didn't exactly whip through college. timeless stuff.

This album is most definitely one of the best Sebadoh albums if not indy albums of all time... Its right along with III and Bubble and Scrape. It takes a while to get used to it and I didn't like it right away but once it stuck, it stayed!

Don't listen to the previous reviewer. Bakesale is as good as Sebadoh has ever done, although I do agree with them that Bubble and Scrape is incredible. I know that Bakesale isn't as experimental as previous Sebadoh, but it makes a great case for powerful non-experimental rock. I never thought I'd like anything as straightforward as Bakesale, but it also isn't conventional in an important way--it takes you on an incredible rollercoater of awesome and frequently beautiful rock. And don't listen to what the previous reviewer says about Harmacy--that's another incredible album. Where Sebadoh really lost it was with The Sebadoh, which, while better than most of what's out there, sounds like a bad copy of Bakesale and Harmacy.

1994 was a good year. A very good year.
Jon Spencer wailing 'Dang' showed me their was another world in music I had yet to discover. On TV Jay Mascis in a golf cart singing 'Feel the Pain' and the Weezer guys being dorks in front of a blue square are just performing in Arnold's quickly became the images of my youth. But there was more, underneath were also the incredibly fuzzy but superious songs by Guided by Voices, the genious of Pavement and the perfect pop song "Skull".

Did I know that Lou Barlow used to be in Dinosaur Jr? or that they released many albums before this? no, but this album blew me away when I bought it. The rolicking "License to Confuse", the uptempo gems "Magnet's Coil" and the 2 chord song "Rebound" were instant classics. Lou Barlow immediately became one of the most lauded singer/songwriters in indie circles. Perfect songs like "Skull" (a drug song), "Together or Alone" or "Mystery Man" are still great today.

Sebadoh has always been a 2 1/2 man deal. Lou Barlow writes the best songs and Jason Loewenstein can chime in with some songs as well. On many albums this means unevenness because Loewensteins songs are clearly not as good as Barlows. But "Bakesale" also has the best of Jason's work with "Careful" and the brilliant "Not a Friend".

It's their heaviest album I think, no acoustic lo-fi songs, heavy guitars even on the slower songs and a clear sound that defines every song.

I still think this is the most even Sebadoh album they ever made. Barlow's songs may have gotten more sophisticated afterwards, but the overall equality of "Bakesale" they never reached again.

In the Pantheon of classic lo-fi albums, Bakesale ranks as the greatest ever recorded. Lou Barlow's songwriting is pristine (as always) and Jason Loewenstein finally comes into his own as a wonderful songwriter (his song "S. Soup" is in a class by itself). Sebadoh paved the way for indie rock, and this is their high water mark. In short, if you love the rock and roll music, Bakesale is a must.

This is invariably the best Sebadoh album. It gives you all of the jagged, messed up guitar parts you could ever really need. You really have to love the erroneous discription given below: I am also dusting off my copy of Bakesale, having not listened to it in a long time, and I can assure you that there is nothing hi-fi about it. If you're not convinced, you only have to listen to the first two seconds of magnet's coil to realize: those are acoustic guitars being played through distortion. Nice. I just would have liked to see these guys before they split. Oh, well.

Once again, I am amazed by reviewers who trash a band that moves away from its perspective musical style and tries something new. Sebadhoh's Bakesale is quite different than anything they have ever done before, but that is cool as hell!! First off, "Not a Friend" is one of the most heartbreaking and beautiful songs I have ever heard. "Careful" is powerful, especially the line, " And God only knows, I need a blance". The album is perfection from the first line Lou sings in "Liscense to Confuse", where he expresses, "I'm not attractive today, I'm not a sight for sore eyes". Lou Barlow is our generation's Lou Reed. Love him, respect him, and buy this amazing Lo-Fi Pop masterpiece!