Customer Reviews

Boomslang

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Johnny Marr. The name is synonymous with guitar god. When The Smiths called it quits in 1987, it caused a widespread depression that swept across the alternative music world like few band breakups ever could. (Imagine U2 breaking up right after recording The Joshua Tree, and you get the idea). But as much as we all wore out our knees out in prayer for a reconciliation, it was never to be. Oh well, some elements of life just [stink].

The release of Johnny Marr's first real solo project is not one of those elements. Johnny Marr has just given us a good reason to finally put the loss of The Smiths behind us. His "Boomslang" is the best album to come out (by any group except U2) in years.

Johnny is back to his old studio brilliance, stacking multi-guitar layers of varying textures to create soundscapes that only he could put together. As usual, he never adds too much, but just enough, and his guitars only serve the overall arrangement and never get in the way of his unique vision of song structure.

Many people I've read seem to be disapointed that Johnny doesn't write lyrics as clever as Morrissey's, but hey people, who can? Would you expect Morrissey to play guitar like Johnny? It's just not gonna happen. If you want genius lyrics and music together in one place by a solo artist, go buy a David Sylvian CD.

Anyway, I digress...

The big surprise here is how great Johnny's pipes sound. He is a natural singer, and to my taste, his vioce sounds like a better fit to his tunes than Morrissey's ever did. I'm sure there are many who won't agree with that, and I have respect for that opinion.

Alas, the closest Johnny comes to jingle-jangle on this album (my favorite of his many styles) is on the song "Down On The Corner." It sounds a little different in this context because the song is such a groove oriented track, but it is pure Johnny Marr heaven.

Like all of the Smiths' tunes, the subtlety of Johnny's arrangement is only revealed with repeated listening. Johnny's pretty crafty...on a 10th listen to a given track, you might hear a guitar part you never heard before that winds up being one of the highlights of that song for all future listenings.

Yup, Johnny is a genius. The notes he chooses to add color to a chord, or the tone of a guitar for a given line, or any fine detail of an arrangement are utterly unique to him. Now, thanks to the release of Boomslang, we all have the ability to once again celebrate his unique and overwhelming talent.

P.S. I understand that music is subjective and all, but I have read a few reviews here at Amazon that have left me dumbfounded at best. Look Spanky, if you only listened to the first 20 seconds of each of this CD's tracks, said "it [stinks]", then came in here and wrote a poo-poo review, well, your opinion isn't worth a rip. Try listening to it again, all the way through, and do yourself a serious favor. ...

I'll admit that I was very much into the Brit scene back in the early 90s, and that probably makes it very easy for me to love this CD. It's not breaking any new ground, but it is a solid effort all the way through. It's one of the few CDs that I put in and just let it play. Sadly, that's rare these days for me. If you are looking for a good alternative CD that will bring back memories of Stone Roses and Charlatans, get this CD!

I totally dig Johnny's new stuff - I like the electronics thrown in, combined with the acoustic and the dreamy guitars. Don't you dare to compare this to Oasis - it's what Oasis ought to be.

Standouts: Caught Up, Bangin' On, You Are The Magic, Down On The Corner.

Good stuff!

"Boomslang" Johnny Marr and the Healers new release is a revelation to his hidden talents as a front man as well as the brilliant guitarist and virtuoso composer we all know he is. This is an album that requires attention, and time. It is unique and inspired. His guitar and production values soar and the layering provides us with a good lesson in what producers actually do in the studio. I only wish I had the chance to see them live in San Francisco, it would have been a treat.

This is a great rock album pure and simple. It is NOT a punk album, a new wave album, a post-modern album, a retro album, or a self-conscious ironic wannabe revival psychedelic or neo-anything album. This is rock and roll.

Perhaps the reviewers who are slagging this disc forget rock, or are too young to remember pure rock, or perhaps they want to pigeonhole music into some sort of ghetto, and are dissapointed because they cant dismiss it with some journalistic rock critic jargon.

There is some pretty great music on this disc, and while you might hear some overtones of other music such as Jesus and Mary Chain, Nirvana, Oasis/Beatles, T-Rex etc - all of the songs are quite original . One thing the Healers disc does NOT sound like is the Smiths - whether or not that is a good thing is up to someone else to decide (I never was a Smiths fan altho I do like some Morrissey solo material). These songs all stand on their own.
Likewise, any discussion of who used to be in which band, or who somebody's daddy is - is quite besides the point, and is pretty annoying and insulting when compared to what is happening right here and now before your ears.

Boomslang has a classic sound without sounding like a rehash or a tribute. If you can imagine "Classic" rock - as in this is a true classic - not that it mimics the past, you should be well on your way to appreciating this sonic gem.

If you are a fan of rock and roll music - no matter what stripe, fashion clique, political agenda or persuasion, you should check this CD out, cause it quite simply is great music that ROCKS.

This album is great on the first listen! Throw it in you car's CD player and crank it up. It sounds like a mix between the Stone Roses and Supergrass... with a touch of The The, maybe Johnny picked up some influences from his time spent with Matt Johnson. I definetly recommend this CD if you like UK music.

If you are a fan of Mr. Marr's extraordinary playing on any of the smiths albums, this album is not for you. I grew up with his unique and melodic phrasing, and couldn't await the release of his new album...He does not sound like the same guitar player. These songs are predictable with a flat-line delivery. A bit of electronicapercussion and the same sort of flange effect on his voice, on every song gets old. I'm sorry Johnny, you will forever be my favorite guitar player but this new album represents nothing of your days gone by, regretfully.

The thing that surprised me the most were the vocals. They fit the music so perfectly, just as Morrissey's vocals are perfect for the Smiths. Morrissey would sound horribly out of place on this music, just as Marr would with The Smiths. That in itself is a sign of musical genius.

"Something To Shout About" is extremely beautiful. It's the height of the album for me.

"Down on the Corner" was the first song I listened to. I thought, who is that singer? And lo! it was Johnny Marr. This is the song that made me spend money on guitar lessons.

On some of the songs, he sounds suspiciously like Oasis, except... he does Oasis better than Oasis!

All the elements of a great album, the only detractor for some being that it's Not The Smiths. And that's not a bad thing at all.

Unlike many of the reviewers, I am not a fan of Morrisey or the Smiths. I found out about Johnny Marr and this album pretty much through radio play of the song "Down on the Corner." I think this is a great track and extremely catchy, and I wondered what the rest of the album sounded like. This may not live up to the "standars" Smith fans expect, but I thought a number of the tunes were really good and the album as a whole very listenable.

Standout tracks for me were the aforementioned "Down on the Corner," "Last Ride," and the trippy "Headland."

Not being Smiths fan, I don't know how people were disappointed with this CD, but it has grown on me with each listen. I would give this 3 1/2 stars if I could.

OK, it's not The Smiths etc. I don't care. What's wrong with rock solid pop played with style and taste by excellent musicians? I know a lot of people who hate the new CDs by Wire and The Buzzcocks, too. I, for one, am quite happy to have such geezers still very much alive and kickin'