Customer Reviews

Como Te Llama (Double Red Vinyl with CD)

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

 

 

Albert Hammond Jr., best known as the Strokes' rhythm guitarist, has really come on strongly since the Strokes have gone on a long (did I say long?) sabbatical following the early 2006 release of their "First Impressions of Earth" album. His first album, the really surprising (in a good way) "Yours To Keep", was released in the UK in late 2006 (and here in the US in early 2007). Now comes the follow-up.

"¿Como Te Llama?" (13 tracks, 46 min.) starts off with a strikingly Strokes-like "Bargain of a Century" and the great tracks just keep on coming: "In My Room", GfC" (first radio single) and "Victory at Monterrey" (reminding me of the Breeders) among others. Regretfully, the flow of the album is almost fatally stopped by a 7+ min. sparse instrumental "Spooky Couch", which goes nowhere and is about 6 min. too long. Thankfully, the tracks that follow restore order: "Borrowed Time", which starts off as an Elvis Costello-like stumper from the 70s, "G Up" (another Strokes-like song), and the closer "Feed Me Jack Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Peter Sellers", a perfectly off-beat but charming way to end the album.

In all, this is a really satisfying album (even despite that "Spooky Couch" clunker), and it makes me really wonder whether this is simply a side-project for Hammond, or "is this it" (given the Strokes' long inactivity, with no sign of new music coming any time soon). The album I got (which I bought here from Amazon) came as a "Deluxe Edition" with an "exclusive sticker" (the cover art but with the guys in the picture) and also a link to download a full length video concert from a show last Fall in New York (which I haven't had time yet to check out).

How does he/she/it call you? is the translation of Como Te Llama in Spanish... So what does that mean? Shouldn't Albert have titled the album ¿Cómo te llamas? This would be asking what's your name? This is all I have read in reviews of this album, and to me, the spanish conjugation of llamar doesn't matter when it comes to this music. Albert has such a distinct voice and style of playing the guitar that you know it's him once you hear him say "It seems it's been such a long time" from the opener Bargain of A Century. You hear the Strokes influences, obviously due to Albert being the rhythm guitarist of the Strokes. But there's something more here...something different than the Strokes. Albert's tails of heartache and happiness can brighten anyone's day. My favorite part of Albert's music is the chord changes. Beautiful melodies and great guitar solos make the music on the album shine. After listening to the album about 20 times, I can't find a song I dislike. I need to look at all of the lyrics to fully understand every song, but if you are looking for a rock-n-roll album that will stay in your CD-player for months, look no further. Out of thirteen tracks on the album, my top 5 are:

5. Bargain of a Century
4. In My Room
3. You Won't Be Fooled By This
2. Feed Me Jack Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Peter Sellers
1. Lisa

This particular solo effort is a sonic temple! Albert and crew are very gifted musicians and it shows. Alberts vocals/lyrics are pretty impressive as well. "Lisa" is a great song. "Feed Me Jack is a great song. Actually numbers 1 through 13 are great! If you like the Strokes buy this album without a listen and you won't be gambling a thing.

I will honestly admit that I did not really like this purchase when I first played it in my car. It is a grower album and I feel that last tracks of the album are more decent than the openers. Don't go in expecting a musical epiphany like YOURS TO KEEP. It is good to sit back and listen to as background music. I also hope there will be a third album in the near future (even if it is a side project).

I buy between 50-100 albums a year, plus i share mix tapes with friends, and combined with my large back catalog of favorite cds - its fair enough to say most albums only get a listen or two before i shelf them for a while and move on. But I listened to this album over and over for a while, and just pulled it out again. Totally worth owning especially for Strokes fans. Its different enough that I am annoyed by people saying "its just the Strokes" (gfc, spooky couch, and rocket are all songs that the strokes wouldn't have done ever; and Julian singing was starting to get boring for me now so a new vocalist is a world of difference), but its similar enough in spirit that if the strokes don't get back together, this album makes me not sad about that. Buy it.

I honestly wasn't expecting a sophomore album from Hammond, mostly because I'd hoped to see a Strokes album drop at some point in 2008. However, I was still extremely excited to hear the good news. Just as good as his debut, ¿Cómo Te Llama? contains 46 minutes of Strokes-like guitar goodness with somewhat better lyrics and more special guests. Hammond's line up for the album consists of Josh Lattanzi on bass and Matt Romano on drums. Marc Philippe Eskanazi also contributed to the album, and supposedly, Sean Lennon plays piano on "Spooky Couch." The album was produced by Albert himself and recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York. I don't blame Hammond for taking some time off from working on the new Strokes album. Also, as long as the rest of the band is off working on their own side projects, he may as well take advantage of the time he has.

No words could do this album justice! Musically, this album is much more complicated and experimental his debut Yours to Keep release. However, Como Te Llama is just as good if not better. I can't stop listening to it! The melodies are so beautuful and infectous that I would go so far as to compare Albert to a modern day Brian Wilson. Don't hesitate to pick this one up!

¿Como Te Llama? (2008, Red Ink) Albert Hammond, Jr's second studio album. ***

I suppose ¿Como Te Llama? can't be too much of a surprise, Hammond hasn't the artistic integrity or genius to stray too far from what the Strokes do without completely changing genres. To his benefit, he did add some electronic sounds, which, somehow, don't sound too out of place. Like anything the Strokes do, Hammond's solo album starts off great but wears down after awhile, for there's nothing we really haven't heard before, and it becomes nothing more than another generic garage-rock revival piece. Granted, the first two tracks are exhilerating, and the long instrumental "Spooky Couch" is, while seemingly from nowhere, a pleasure to listen to. That being said, the rest of the album is mostly a bore. A decent bore, but still a bore. And by the way, are fans of Hammond going to willingly accept the fact that he blatanlty lifted the vocals for "Lisa" from Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars"? It was a pretty popular song, buddy, I think people might notice.