Black City

Division of Laura Lee | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 27, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Burning Heart
• ASIN: B000068CTF
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #361,829 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The best thing about the Hives' arrival is that it opened the gates for a slew of equally deserving Swedish bands, like political thrashers International Noise Conspiracy and psychedelic revivalists the Soundtrack of Our Lives. One of the finest of the lot is the Göteborg group Division of Laura Lee, a quartet of skaters whose fidgety debut mixes punk insurrection with hip-shaking garage rock. While sharing with its peers a preoccupation with the '60s, D.O.L.L. goes to great lengths to offer a record that not only sounds thoroughly modern (electronic effects crackle through songs like "Trapped In" and "I Walk on Broken Glass"), but is built on sparkling melodies ("Need to Get Some" and the title track), making it anything but ordinary. --Aidin Vaziri

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy this now, December 19, 2002

By 

J. Rossi (Downers Grove, IL) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Black City (Audio CD)

Division of Laura Lee are from Sweden and are therefore part of the 'Swedish Invasion,' but don't think this is a Hives knockoff or a (International) Noise Conspiracy retread. No, DOLL prefer to fuse their punk energy with red-blooded rock 'n' roll, new wave flourishes (in a good way), and in some cases a dark goth mentality.

This combination is sweet and intoxicating, like a perfectly blended screwdriver. Balls out rockers like the opener "Need to Get Some," "Access Identity," "Black City" and "Second Rule Is" rub elbows with ethereal slow-movers like the claustrophobically superb "Trapped In" and "I Walk on Broken Glass," but nothing feels forced or contrived. The rockers move and shake like nothing yet this year, and the slower songs give you a chance to breathe and think for a moment before your head gets rocked again.

This may be a bold statement, but here it is: DOLL are better than the Hives, and I love the Hives. Don't pass this up.

4.0 out of 5 stars buy this cd., November 4, 2002

By 

"themodernage02" (sterling, va United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black City (Audio CD)

to quote the Kerrang review....'Black City' is a tremendous album. Its 12 tightly-wound, retro-punk tracks mix the brooding sensuality of Girls Against Boys with the dark atmospherics of Joy Division and the hip-shaking drive of latter-day Primal Scream. Throw in cool lyrics like ''I'm not your toy for penetration" and smartly subversive titles such as 'The Truth Is F**ked' and 'We've Been Planning This For Years', and - to borrow a phrase from The Hives - DOLL could well prove to be your new favourite band.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good songs..., October 19, 2003

By 

Brooke Davis (Whittier, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black City (Audio CD)

I wasn't aware of Division of Laura Lee's Swedish citizenship when I first heard their music, and knowing that now makes more sense of their garage-like sound. I was expecting more of a punk-rock sound from this band, seeing as how they share the same label as Pennywise and NOFX. Their sound is pretty rock and roll, but in a more ...Trail of Dead, At the Drive-In way. If you like a heavier rock sound with a more moderate pace and stronger melody and clear vocals, you should like Division of Laura Lee.