Customer Reviews

Comfort Eagle

5 star:		(145)
4 star:		(54)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I purchased this CD after both my husband and my 12-year-old daughter agreed that "Short Skirt, Long Jacket" was a pretty jammin' tune. Trust me, they never agree on anything--which makes listening to music in the car an adventure in family trauma.

Imagine my surprise when we found that "SS, LJ" was merely the tip of the iceberg: probably the most mainstream (dare I say, "derivative"?) track in the package. Cake is a clever, hip, musically-friendly group with a style that's indefinable. Mix elements of country, jazz, disco, funk, salsa . . . hey, that's a TRUMPET in the background!

"Opera Singer" was hilarious in its self-deprecating, deadpan delivery. If you haven't heard Cake, you can't understand why McCrea intoning "I am an opera singer" is so funny. Just trust me. I laughed. "Shadow Stabbing" has a lovely melodic line, striking lyrics, and a bouncy rhythm that has me pushing that back button on the CD player. "Symphony in C" and "Long Line of Cars" have a melancholy feel, some great guitar, and again . . . love the lyrics.

Special mention must be made of "Comfort Eagle." Wry, rhythmic, off-beat, and . . . yes, everybody in the car was screaming out "Dude!" right along with McCrea. That's everybody--from my 50ish husband, to my 9-year-old daughter who usually listens to nothing but bubblegum pop. "Do you believe in the one big song?" This just may be it.

I didn't know much about Cake when I bought this CD, but I'm going out to buy the whole catalog.

Cake rocks.

Although on the surface these songs might appear to possess that classically funny Cake allure, with their seemingly crazy titles, this just might be their most accomplished release yet. And smartest. Earlier smashes like "The Distance" and "Never There" seemed to carry the weight of their respective CDs, but on Comfort Eagle that doesn't quite hold true. "Short Skirt/Long Jacket" was greatly received by almost everyone who heard it; and the `Orange County' soundtrack song "Shadow Stabbing" also seemed to help boost this album's sales. But unlike their previous albums, Comfort Eagle does not have a song that can be considered bad. It's very solid all the way through. And to be perfectly honest, some of the lesser-known tracks here are actually better than the singles. Here's an overview of the 11 songs:

1. Opera Singer - 4/5 - the beats here are a little more pop-ish compared to most of Cake's previous work. But the lyrics and overall feel really get you pumped for the entire CD. Although I heard it a few times on the radio, I'm surprised it never hit it big(ger).

2. Meanwhile, Rick James... - 3/5 - this is actually my least favorite song, but still I agree with other reviewers in saying it's a very intriguing song. It's more reminiscent of a Motorcade Of Generosity song; which is hit-and-miss.

3. Shadow Stabbing - 4.5/5 - with a very similar approach to "Opera Singer", it might actually be slightly better. The background beat is something that portrays the many talents of singer John McCrea. Very catchy and very memorable.

4. Short Skirt/Long Jacket - 5/5 - it may be ill-advised to label this track the CD's best, but it's indisputably close. The lyrics are just so out-there (for example: `I want a girl with uninterrupted prosperity / who uses a machete / to cut her red tape') that you can't help but relate to them. I don't know how it works, but it works well.

5. Commissioning A Symphony In C - 4.5/5 - this one blends the pop beats of tracks 1 and 3 with (maybe) something from Fashion Nugget. It's not quite as catchy as some of the others, but it's very enjoyable to hear and is entertaining, to say the least.

6. Arco Arena - 5/5 - whatever your take on instrumental tracks, you have to love the melodic magnetism this 1 ½-minute song gives off. It's so melodic it almost kills you. It is NOT a filler song. Do NOT overlook it. Awesome!

7. Comfort Eagle - 5/5 - I have to say this is my favorite song on the album. And it's right up there when ranking Cake's best ever. The song starts, brilliantly, `we are building a religion / we are building it bigger...', and just "builds" off that. The background sound is just so amazing that you'll end up coming back to this one (first) after playing the CD through.

8. Long Line Of Cars - 5/5 - perhaps Cake's most pertinent track to date. Anyone who's ever been caught in your everyday traffic jam will absolutely love this one. If it weren't for the overly entertaining lyrics in "Comfort Eagle", this might've been the best song.

9. Love You Madly - 4.5/5 - this one starts a lot like Oasis' "Fxckin' In The Bushes' (go figure); only to finish with the bang that is (a lot like) Prolonging The Magic`s "Sheep Go To Heaven". Nevertheless, the title is repeated a few too many times to call it perfect.

10. Pretty Pink Ribbon - 5/5 - oddly enough, this one is, essentially, better than "Opera Singer" and "Shadow Stabbing". The rhythm just comes off sounding somewhat superb compared to those two tracks. I don't know what the `pink ribbon' actually is--in all reality--but then again we shouldn't pry.

11. World Of Two - 3.5/5 - one of the more straight-forward songs on Comfort Eagle. It does capture the overall hum of the album quite nicely, but the simplistic lyrics and repeated verses don't allow for it to stand out, nonchalantly.

Even though Cake's Comfort Eagle doesn't sound very similar, as a whole, to either Motorcade Of Generosity, Fashion Nugget, or Prolonging The Magic, it does manage to continue their ever-so-popular, astounding songwriting abilities. The cleverness of many of the songs (particularly the title track) is far greater than anything Cake has ever produced. And that's saying something. If you've heard the singles "Short Skirt/Long Jacket", "Shadow Stabbing" or possibly "Opera Singer", then you get a pretty good idea of what to expect. The catchy-beat backgrounds and unpredictable-but-amazing lyrics are continually used; yet the songs only seem to get better as you move along through the tracks. My favorite track is easily "Comfort Eagle", and even the one song I didn't find great, "Meanwhile, Rick James...", as I said, is rather intriguing. When it's all said and done: you'll love this CD if you like Cake. And who doesn't enjoy Cake in habitually regular settings?

Comfort Eagle can be seen as a return to Cake's roots. Gone are the overly catchy melodies and radio singles of Fashion Nugget; Cake keeps the music dry but never sparse. Guitar is used again for rhythmic ideas that complement the varied and interesting bass lines. The melody is once again brought to us by John McCrea and his unique style of speeksing (you try to catagorize it =) and harmonized with the occasional trumpet or keyboard line.

I will compare this album to Motorcade even though it introduces more of the electronic drum machine and sound effects found lightly in Prolonging the Magic. Don't worry, the drum machine is used very carefully and is only really prominent on the first track. The songs are traditional Cake fare with the metaphorical lyrics and syncopated rhythms fans expect. Again the rhythm of the lyrics is more akin to the first release and less like the almost randomness found in Fashion Nugget.

The CD has 11 tracks that include one instrumental (6 - Arco Arena). The tracks are of a decent length though the total album seems short comapred to previous releases.

To Cake fans and those who love the first album I recommend this new release.

If you love Cake for their radio tunes I would listen to the sample tracks before purchase.

If you know Cake only from their string of unorthodox, snarky spoken-wordish hit singles ("The Distance", "Never There," and this album's delightful "Short Skirt / Long Jacket"), you can be forgiven for considering them a one-trick pony. What surprised me upon first hearing this disc was how little that distinctively dry, sarcastic sound truly represented this band's work.

Turns out that, when he's not spitting out witty lyrics over the sound of Vince DiFiore's brassy trumpets, front man John McCrea has a truly impressive voice, full of arid yearning. He's equally capable of wistful romance ("World of Two") or sardonic menace (the title track, whose slyly apocalyptic overtones sound like a lost track off the "Fight Club" soundtrack.)

The second half of the album loses a little steam compared to the string of gems in the first half, but there's really not a bad song on the disc. The musical complexity and wit of "Opera Singer" and "Commissioning a Symphony In C" favorably recall the Beatles, "Shadow Stabbing" is a tasty slice of '80s pop nostalgia, "Pretty Pink Ribbon" intriguingly mixes venom and sympathy, and "Arco Arena" and "Long Line of Cars" are nicely ominous.

All in all, a very pleasant surprise from some highly underrated musicians.

I have come to Cake late, and circuitously: I wound up buying Comfort Eagle sound unheard, having stumbled across the lyrics to "Comfort Eagle" itself, which I thought justified an outlay of a fiver by themselves (except the actual reference to "living comfort eagle", which I can't fathom for the life of me - if anyone knows, do write and let me in on the secret).

The album is pretty much what I expected: It's neat, quirky stuff, crammed to the gills with that particular sort of uber-irony that afflicts all rock musicians who are given to social comment these days. Pop singers don't wear their hearts on their sleeves any more, and John McCrea is no exception: his lyrics are very clever, very wry, very arch, but they give nothing at all away: the irony is almost defensive in its refusal to admit to any real feeling: we know what McCrea thinks is silly but not what he *likes*. That would be much more revealing, but that, I suspect, would give the game away.

The instrumentation confirms this impression; long on chirpy horn lines, kooky keyboard hooks and cheeky little guitar riffs which come not from the class bully but from the scrawny kid who hangs out with him, wisecracking at everyone but never letting himself get caught alone, and fundamentally not putting anything on the line.

And the drum tracks are all either programmed or sampled - which strikes me as the height of laziness from guitar-pop band, to the point of being disrespectful to its audience: could Cake not be bothered to even hire a session drummer? With a running total of a shade under thirty seven minutes, it's a wonder they bothered to record the album at all.

All that sounds like I'm pretty down on this album, but I'm not: these are, at the end of the day, fairly superficial complaints, and they wouldn't, by themselves, put too much distance between this album and greatness. For what it is - within its ironic genre - Comfort Eagle works well, and repays repeated listening.

Still, it's not quite great, but it has some very nice moments indeed: the title track is irresistible, and the track which follows, "Long Line of Cars" is a cracker, and - maybe - refutes my complaints above.

Olly Buxton

Great album. More radio conscious than previous Cake stuff. I fully expect this one to produce multiple hit singles. "Love You Madly" and "Comfort Eagle" will get airtime.

Personally, I thought the band was slipping a little with "Prolonging the Magic". Started to get a little on the repetitive side. But they've really put some creative energy into this one, and it shows. McCrea has scrapped the whole "Allllright, Ahhhh no, ohhhh yeah" routine (and thank God for that). They seem to be experimenting with a more aggressive, feel good style. The tone is as dark and cynical as before but a lot more adventurous and fun, too. Short Skirt, Long Jacket is a good example. Opera Singer, Symphony in C and Comfort Eagle also have pretty fantastic themes.

Make no mistake, though, these tracks are very tightly done. The lyrics are every bit as creative as before and McCrea's command over the timing and intonation of his voice is impressive, to say the least. If you think you *might* want to buy it, but you're not sure, buy it. Its better than you expect.

Perfect to cure a bad mood, grim day, or long car ride. This CD helped remind me why I like music.

If you've been a fan of previous Cake CD's, to me this feels like it picks up somewhere between Fashion Nugget and Prolonging the Magic, and is as addictive as any other. I've still got "Love You Madly" stuck in my head, and I love it.

A few songs into the CD (Opera Singer, Meanwhile Rick James...), old fans like me will see the same clever rhythmic catches that were on previous albums. If you're on the fence about whether to buy this, just know that this cannot well be summed up in the just one single "Short Skirt/Long Jacket". It much surpasses that. This is a solid album that actually engages a variety of styles beyond that, and does so with amazing talent and wit. In fact, it has so many inventive hooks with guitar and rhythm that I'd say it's actually hard not to like, even for a wide range of tastes. This one's worth hearing the whole album and it's a very worthwhile buy. It's hard for me or my friends to stay in a bad mood after listening to this.

Ever since 1994, the Sacramento band known as Cake has been making excellent music. Form John McCrea's different and sometimes criticized, but always great vocals, to the sound of Vince DeFiore's trumpet playing smooth melodies to reinforce the sound of the band's terrific musical styles, Comfort Eagle is a reassurance that Cake is as good as ever. With a musical style that sounds much like their Fashion Nugget album, Cake does not disappoint. Songs like Meanwhile Rick James... and Pretty Pink Ribbon offer smoothly flowing melodies with some of Cake's smoothest vocals yet while Comfort Eagle and Commissioning A Symphony In C venture forth into a newer brand of music for Cake, concentrating more on what the band might call "Big Guitars". The track I thought was awesome was Arco Arena. An instrumental song that Cake describes as "Viking Rock" features comforting yet riveting guitar lines. More energetic than their last album Prolonging The Magic, Cake's Comfort Eagle is nothing less than perfect.

I discovered Cake quite by accident and probably several years after everyone else who really loves the band. But, I adore this album and really can listen to it again and again and be amused anew each time I hear it. If an album can make me smile and dance at my desk at work, it is a keeper and this is certainly one of my favorites. While I really appreciate good music, what really catches my attention is clever lyrics and this album is full of those. Great, fun songs.

I love my Cake. I am a 37 year old mom who has a few Black Flag and Husker Du and Jesus & Mary Chain albums stuck back in the closet but I've turned around(somewhat). I love Cake because they are different and fresh and no one else sounds like them. Comfort Eagle is a great CD. I love the rest, though, as well.

Love the tounge in cheek sarcasm and really downright funny lyrics. Ever think about the true meaning of the lyrics "Sheep go to heaven/Goats go to hell"?