Customer Reviews

Come Pick Me Up

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

At one point I thought there would never be another Superchunk album as good as Foolish, then the next album came out, then the next, and now this. (more or less) If I had a two disc changer in my car it would click between Tossing Seeds and Come Pick Me Up. If you feel the energy is lost in the new music you just aren't listening. When the horns (yes, horns) come in, when the lyrics are accompanied by the strings (yes, strings), it is absolutely astounding. I love nothing more than to go nuts when Precision Auto comes on the jukebox, but the songs on the new album take the cake.

If you find yourself wandering around singing "If you leave this coast..." then you are going to go absolutely spastic when you hear these new songs. Absolutely spastic.

Some people seem to want a band to continually sound the same over their career, while others decry them for doing so. Sure this record is "less edge-y" than most of their previous work, but who cares? Who wants "Foolish II" or whatever? Superchunk started changing things up at the right time in their career and this record shows that they're not a one trick band. Its full of strong melodies and more delicate arrangements (for them) and is a great record to drive to. Highly recommended.

Guided by Voices new album came with a sticker that said "the last great album of the millenium". Were they ever wrong, this is way better than GBV. Mac's singing is really good on this one. The best tracks are 1,2,3,4,5,7. The strongest stuff is at the beginning so it's kinda unbalanced. The whole album is good though. Really Nice instrumentation. "Tiny bombs send bigger waves...." that sends shivers down my spine. Beautifull.

i recently lost my 'travel' cd case, the one that i fill up with 12 choice discs and shove in my bag to listen to on the subway or whatever. so, basically, i just lost 12 of my current favorite cd's. what a drag. in the case were beatles, tortoise, built to spill, charlie mingus and many other MUST HAVE records. i am really distraught. point of story: 'come pick me up' was in there and it is the only one that i have replaced so far. what exactly this means, i am not quite sure, only that this is a dizzyingly good, touching, hold yourself and rock back and forth, squinch up your face and smile record that i could not live without. more so than abbey road, more so than bee thousand, more so than sketches of spain. i have bought 2 copies so far and i still feel lucky everytime i listen to it.

This is a solid effort from Superchunk. I basically like the new direction, although I've always thought Jon's drumming made Superchunk so Chunky, and they've kind of gotten lost on most of the tracks here. Like every other Superchunk album, this one's strongest track is the fastest (Good Dreams), but with only a couple of exceptions these are good tight songs. Mac's subject matter has broadened somewhat, and it's nice to hear him write a relationship song that sounds upbeat (Good Dreams, again).

Not all of the tracks benefit from the studio treatments (Cursed Mirror sounded better on the Hello Hawk single), but overall the band sounds like it's comfortable in a better studio. Play this one next to the debut album or Tossing Seeds and you'll see what I mean.

All in all I like Come Pick Me Up. It's a good follow-up to Indoor Living. Mac's experimenting with singing in a lower register, and I think it works. Despite what the folks at Salon.com think.

I'm really looking forward to seeing them live again, too.

This is a really great record that has stood up to a lot of listening. When I first got it over a year ago, it didn't register right away; some of the effects on the first song were kind of cheesey, to be honest, and it was hard for me to get too deep into it. After getting blown away by "Here's to Shutting Up", however, I decided to give it another chance, and was rewarded with a record chock-full of songs that show that the band is growing up and stretching out, just like regular people do. Some folks want them to keep putting out the same old stuff, but really great bands have to go where the music pulls them, and not try to cater to any "constituency". The music is catchy yet subtle, and the lyrics reflect real life. This is one terrific record--thanks, Superchunk!

I didn't give this CD enough credit the day I got it--I gave it a quick listen and put it away to listen to my Wallflowers CDs.

Well, I just placed it back in now, and...this CD is great. Amazing. Most every song has a great upbeat feel, even the ones you'd think wouldn't. The lead singer's (whose name escapes me) voice, at first, sort of scared me away. It was...different. But the more I listen the more I realize just how well it fits. Everything on this album just seems to tie together, and the result is a very musically pleasing experience.

If you're looking for good music, I would definitely recommend you try "Come Pick Me Up." I have...nothing more to say. This album is just good.

Initially picking up Superchunk's "Foolish" because my other music snob friend played it until it was worn into my brain (first side only... long story), I continued following the 'Chunk through the beautiful noise of "Here's Where the Strings Come In" and the less noisy, more textured (sometimes uneven) "Indoor Living". So of course, when "Come Pick Me Up" came out, I rushed to it.

Two years and a new album later I still rate this as their best. I had always enjoyed the noiser albums, but I still loved the acoustic tracks and demos that would show up as B-Sides and compilation CDs. And this album is the perfect of BOTH. No longer just screaming lyrics and loud guitars (not that there's anything wrong with that), the band seems to have reached a new maturity with this album that was just hinted at on "Indoor Living." Now you can HEAR Laura Ballance's wonderful bass playing and Jon Wurster's FANTASTIC drum accents. Mac McCaughan continues writing some of the best hooks this side of the Cars and Jim Wilbur continues adding tasty guitar parts behind Mac.

I'm still not sure this should be anyone's FIRST Superchunk album. I think one should experience the noise before the mature band (i.e. "Foolish" or "No Pocky for Kitty" or the first singles collection "Tossing Seeds") but it wouldn't be BAD if it was.

Owning the new Superchunk record is a lot like calling your ex-girlfriend; you don't want to do it because the best times are behind you, but it turns out it isn't so bad. Obviously, Mac and the band are not in their prime, and this record won't stack up against On the Mouth et al. But it is an improvement over Indoor Living, and has a good deal of heart, as well as some more complex arrangements. The biggest difference is Mac has abandoned his Chunk singing in favor of his Portastatic whisper. Don't worry some of the songs still rock. Having just seen them live, I feel the songs still fit nicely into the Chunk catalog. The boys and Laura seem to have regained their old enthusiasm on stage, so if you are an old-school fan who refuses to buy the record, you should definitely go see them again anyway.

I have been listening to this CD for the last couple of weeks, and I have decided (actually it was not a conscious choice) this is the best Superchunk album. The songs are short and sweet; most are less the four minutes and I find I want to listen to them over and over again. I caught myself humming "Smarter Hearts" at the grocery store. Songs grow on you. I still can only understand half of what Mac is singing, but I find the songs are more moving than ever. Not just push-up music.