Customer Reviews

Cockamamie

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Where has Jennifer Trynin been hiding since 1995, and why didn't anyone tell me to buy this CD? Perhaps I need to pick some new (and smarter) friends.

Cockamamie's musical fury is unrelenting: I was afraid that the band was going to self-destruct (Knock Me Down). The CD roars through the first 4 cuts until I finally got a brief chance to catch my breath during the downbeat cut 5 (Snow). Jennifer assaults music with as much muscle (If I Had Anything To Say, Beg) as the Pretenders debut - she sounds likes she's on a collision course with a freight train. Eight of the 11 compositions rock out of control. On `Better Than Nothing" and `One Year Down' Jennifer delays the impending collision with a sprinkling of 50's doo-wop harmony.

The title `Cockamamie' raised my curiosity and sent me searching for the dictionary: "RIDICULOUS, INCREDIBLE - of all the cockamamie excuses I ever heard." Despite her diminutive size, I'm certain that Jennifer is not a lady who tolerates lame excuses. `Too Bad You're Such A Loser" should be a wake-up call to guys who think that slouches are admirable. On `Knock Me Down' she seductively tempts "Come Knock Me Down." And she goes berserk about someone who tried to break into her apartment (Happier). Cockamamie is brazen and penetrating rock with just enough pop sensibility to make it a pleasure to swallow.

Without a doubt one of the best C.D.'s I've ever bought. I heard one of her songs on a compilation and ended up in search of this album. I stuck it in not knowing what to expect and got something well worth the money I put down. Kind of reminds me of Alanis Morrisette but she brings her angst off in a calmer way and with better music. She should be a lot more popular than she is.

A haunting voice and incredible intensity make Jennifer Trynin one of my favorite artists. This album combines both powerful rock tunes like "Happier" with sad love ballads like "Do It Alone". Her sometimes angry and jaded lyrics remind me of Alanis Morissette, only with much more artistic talent.

Great pop music. Jen has a real, down-to-earth style in both her lyrics and music - nothing pretentious here. She's also a fantastic guitarist - better than most of 'em you hear on alt-rock radio these days I'd say. She may not be quite as technically impressive as, say, Tom Morello of Audioslave, but she plays with more feeling and a wider range of emotions than that particular guitarist.

I just dug COCKAMAMIE out of my CD collection where it's been hiding for years (I've got a lot of CDs and very eclectic tastes, so I've been hearing other stuff). COCKAMAMIE sounds as good as it did 10 years ago when I first picked it up. "Beg" is still one of my all-time favs. Shame on me for not picking up her follow-up record (I'd still like to). Hope she's doing well and still playing.

Here's a breakdown of my impressions of COCKAMAMIE:

"Happier" - not really a particularly happy song, it's about people who can't or don't for whatever reason make it in society. It's one of the most frantic songs on the album, a bit thrashy and also a bit awkward with its lurching rhythm (intentionally so I would say). Great guitar with cool feedback. ***1/2

"Better Than Nothing" - should've been a radio hit. It may have been too straightforward or pop for many when it was released, but it should've found a huge audience among people wfho just like good rock music who aren't trying to be "Goth" or "Emo" or "Metal" or whatever. ****1/2

"Everything Is Different Now" - Jen gets sexy on this dark and slinky track. ****1/2

"One Year Down" - an easy-going rocker and a longing for a love who went away (one year ago). ****

"Snow" - one of the best songs, this one has a fantastic guitar line laden with harmonics. Wonderfully uplifting. *****

Note: "Snow" is the end of side 1 on cassette and there's a very cool hidden segment, just Jen and guitar.

"All This Could Be Yours" - my least favorite track, this song replicates the thrashiness of "Happier" as well as its odd time signature. It's only 1:45 in length, though. ***

"It's Too Bad You're Such a Loser" - this one hits home hard with me because I'm a loser just like the guy she's singing about (had every opportunity in life and blown it - haven't given up though). This song is so heavy and draggy until the chorus takes off in the way Jen imagines this guy is capable of. I never met anyone else who likes this song. *****

"Knock Me Down" - seems to celebrate a rather disfunctional relationship. Sexy. ****1/2

"If I Had Anything to Say" - excellent alterna-rock and I love the changes in rhythm and tempo. *****

"Beg" - this song gets me high without drugs. It has a fantastic etheral quality and the main guitar riff is cutting. "Wanting has had its way with me/ I'm curling up from too much handling/ Wishes rubbed raw and tired . . ." This one kills me. *****

"Do It Alone" - this could actually be the best track. It's so real. Just Jen and guitar, this one is very spare and heartfelt. It's a bit possessive, but a beautiful love song. *****

The extra track is a reprise of the previous hidden track. Jen sings, "I know what it feels like to be down." I believe it. She can do both up and down songs quite convincingly, in a style that's all her own.

It's such a shame more people don't know about Jennifer (Jen) Trynin. She is by far the most overlooked, most underrated artist of the past 10 years. Both "Cockamamie" and "Gun Shy Trigger Happy" received unanimously favorable reviews when they were released, but alas, aside from some alternative-rock success with the single, "Better Than Nothing", Jen unfortunately was overshadowed by Alanis Morissette (whose "Jagged Little Pill" came out at virtualy the same time as "Cockamamie"). Each track on these CDs is a standout; Jen is not only an amazing singer and guitarist, but a fantastic songwriter as well. I had the good fortune to see her perform live twice in 1997 and 1998 (once opening for Paula Cole and then headlining a few months later), and Jen can rock with the best of them. If only she had she been picked up for the Lilith Fair a few years ago! I believe she is now concentrating on prose writing, and she's also performing in a band called Loveless in the Boston area. If you're into extreme rarities, "Trespassing", her 5-song EP from 1988, is well worth searching for (I believe it was available on vinyl and cassette only). In the meantime, do yourself a favor and check out both "Cockamamie" and "Gun Shy Trigger Happy"; these are two hidden gems that are well worth discovering... I promise you will NOT be disappointed!

Cockamamie is almost the perfect record; thematically sound, musically skilled, complex and diverse. It's punctuated with humor in moments, but the overall tone is one of deep cynicism that, with Trynin's wit, is very compelling. Best tracks: #5 "Snow", #2 "Better", #7 "It's too bad you're such a Loser", and #10 "Beg".

One of the best debut albums released.

All of the rave reviews are correct.

Jen released two albums, and you need both.

I found out about this album by total happenstance---Wikipedia whilst verifying the definition of the word "cockamamie" via my computer's dictionary function. My curiosity brought me here, I heard the samples of the tracks and figured I couldn't lose for a penny plus S&H. I simultaneously bought her other album Gun Shy Trigger Happy which is also excellent. Why this extremely talented woman has not been more successful is indicative of the fickle nature of the music business. Sad.

As a Boston-area native, I was turned on to Jen Trynin through some musician friends gigging with her in the late 80s - and from the moment I heard her do "Knock Me Down", I was a groupie. That song, with its heavy-rocking offbeat, is still one of my all-time favorite rockers and a pretty good gauge of her dark, off-kilter often-funny musical and spiritual perspective. I kept waiting for her to break out as a star. That she didn't is frustrating in large part because it means so many people who'd like, maybe love her, will never hear her. It's understandable that she's compared to Alanis, but she's a better writer and musician, and less hysterical (don't get me wrong; I do like some Alanis songs). We can still spread the word, though. Buy both Cockamamie (which includes Knock Me Down) and Gun Shy Trigger Happy (which is on my wish list to replace the audio cassette I've worn out). Apparently she's finally finished her memoir about her roller-coaster experience with big-time music industry....Don't know how much music she's doing these days....

Sorry, I have to depart from what seems to be the consensus here...apart from the "hit", "Better Than Nothing", there's nothing here to recommend this disc...it is, not to be unkind, eminently forgettable. A classic case of a one-trick pony...