Customer Reviews

Dinosaur Sounds

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I don't understand what everyone's problem seems to be, honestly.

First off, yes: Dinosaur Sounds is different than, no, scratch that, NOTHING LIKE Keasbey Nights. They've slowed their style down quite a bit, for sure. That's fine. What do you expect after 2 line up changes, both involving the singer?

If you actually sit down and listen to this album, NOT HOPING FOR ANOTHER KEASBEY NIGHTS, you'll realize the musical genius that oozes from most of the songs. Take, for instance, the intro to Track 11 "Regression". The splendid pentatonic guitar riff goes perfectly with the bouncy rhythm section done by Chris and Mingus. If anything, it can be said that the music has gotten a lot more technical, and a lot more complex.

The only peeve I can find with the record is that the lyrics aren't exactly stellar. Not to say they're bad, some of the hooks are infectious and well written, and most of the album's lyrics surely beat the lyrics that Jeff Davidson (Alone in the Crowd) wrote.

So to sum it up, if you're looking for a good rock, ska, reggae, punk album, definitely pick this CD up. If you're looking for the Catch 22 sound from Keasbey Nights, pick up Streetlight Manifesto's "Everything Goes Numb", featuring the three C22 players that left after Keasbey, including the lyrical genius Tomas Kalnoky.

How bad must it be to be the members of Catch 22? Despite having hands-down the best rhythm section in ska today (the dynamic duo of Chris Greer on drums and Pat "Mingus" Kays on bass), great songwriting, and loads of talent, the six-man group is forced to forever dwell in the shadow of their debut, 1997's "Keasbey Nights", admittedly a masterpiece of the genre.

"Dinosaur Sounds" is not "Keasbey Nights". In fact, the two albums are almost as far removed as two albums by the same artist can possibly be. (Of course, the departure of songwriter Tomas Kalnoky following the release of "Keasbey" certainly changed things.) Where "Keasbey" was a full-tilt ska assault, "Dinosaur" is the end result of one band's progression from a bunch of high school kids obsessed with girls and guns into a group of adults facing a very different world from the one they started in.

The album certainly lacks the almost-trademark bleakness of Catch 22's first two releases, with the peppy "Chin Up" almost encouraging... wonder of wonders, positivity! Vocalist Ryan Eldred breaks into an almost Elvis Costello-like sound on this album, which is certainly no insult.

If this album had been released by a rookie band, it still would have flown under mainstream radar, but given some fans' utter unwillingness to accept change, "Dinosaur Sounds" will remain a buried treasure, overshadowed by a single album seven years ago.

Five stars.

-HX

I can understand why alot of people were upset about this album. This is Catch 22's third line-up change, and thier biggest change in sound. While Keasby Nights and Alone in the Crowd were pretty much consistent in style and song-writing, Dinosaur Sounds is totally different from anything Catch 22 has ever recorded.

While listening to this record, the first thing you will notice is that Dino Sounds is more of a "rock with horns" album than a punk/ska record. Sax player Ryan Eldred takes over lead vocals, and trumpeteer Kevin Gunther sings on a couple songs as well. Ryan and Kevin's voices compliment each other very nicely. You can hear the definite influence of weezer, sublime, and NOFX throughout the album. The topics of the songs now focus on rock and roll staples like romance and drinking (although there is also an anti-war song).

So is this a bad album? Not by a long shot. Despite the bieng attacked by many of the band's fans, this album is on par with anything else they have ever recorded, as long as you take into account the fact that this album is a different style of music bieng played by a different line-up. Fans who ignore this record are missing out on a classic.

And there are just so many songs that make this album great. "Wine Stained Lips," is a bouncy love song with a guitar solo (rare for a ska song). "Good Times" sounds almost like a Sublime song. "So Cold" seems to be an attack on Streetlight Manifesto, and "Beguile the Time" is an anti-war song. "Chin Up" contains an uplifting message during the chorus -- "chin up until it touches the moon, sad and forsaken one, it's you I'm talking to."

However, there are three really great songs on this record that stand out above all the rest. "Motown Cinderella" is a beautiful song about bieng caught in a romantic triangle. Ryan's vocals are especially powerfull and heartfelt on this track, which climaxes with a beatiful, almost big band style jazz ending. The horns are all wailing like mad while Ryan is screaming his heart out for this girl who gives him "the kind of love I can sing about."

"Dripping Faucet" contains all the anger and agression that made the first two Catch albums so great. The lyrics are about laying awake at night doing some heavy soul-searching. A "dripping faucet" is used as a metaphor for a problem in your life that you are unsure of how to deal with. Musically, this track is virtually flawless. The horn line is one of the catchiest on the album, the guitar and bass play off of each other with stunning ease, and the song climaxes with a horn break-down so sick that its almost as good as sex.

The last stand-out track on Dino Sounds, and perhaps the best one, is "Lamont's Lament," an instrumental featuring a good 2 minutes of nothing but kick @$$ ska. This is the probably the best horn work featured in a Catch 22 song, and easily the best Catch 22 instrumental. "Lamont's Lament" is pure magic.

There are couple of songs on here that aren't very good, such as "Regression" and "chasing the moon," which don't add much to the album. The biggest flaw of all though, is the track listing. For the life of me, I cannot understand why the band decieded to put "Rocky" and "Beguile the Time" first. Perhaps they wanted people to hear Ryan's vocals right off the bat, but it really doesn't flow very well. During live performances, Catch 22 usually opens with Lamont's Lament, and then plays Rocky. If Dino Sounds was edited this way, it would be a stronger record.

So there you have it -- my review of Dinosaur Sounds by Catch 22. Not a perfect album, but a darn good one. More than anything else, Dinosaur Sounds is a fun listen and it really just grooves. It's laid back, it's inquisitive, and it's got great vocals. Although the album was attacked by many of the bands fans, I still consider it a solid record from start to finish. Recommended for any ska kid or lover of music.

Buy the CD, judge for yourself. If you are looking for Keasby Nights all over again, go get yourself another copy of it and stop moaning. If you want fresh new sounds with the same AWESOME band, go buy yourself Dinosaur Sounds. Catch 22 ROCKS!!

I am very suprised by some of the horrible review's im seeing here. As many have said, the departure of tom and round half the rest of the original c22 has made a huge difference in the bands current song writing. This however is not bad. I think whats really goin on is that people just aren't giving it a chance. I will be the first to admit, i took one listen to "rocky" and said "eww...no horns no beat, no nothing." but if you just manage to get that "its not catch!" mentality out of your head, i think you'll find this to be a premium ska album. and for thoes of you who still hate it, you can't say that the breakdown on the hidden track didn't have your head bobbin'.

Granted,as many of the reviewers here,it took me less than a minute to buy the cd. I listened to it one time,and put it away for a few months. I picked it back up and popped it in my cd player on a long drive and fell in love with it!
The song writing is a little different,and true, Ryan sounds totally different than anyone else (kevin does the lead vocals for most of the older songs). But, Catch 22, and the ska scene itself is never just about the lyrics. The horns are simply amazing on the album. Yes,they are slower than on Alone in the crowd, and keaseby nights, but I'm never let down at the re-invention of the horns by C22.
The lyrics are a little more mature,and reflect a lot more what the band, is facing. I mean, come on, would you expect men to write songs like boys? The daily life is different, and thus songs are going to be too. The shows are still as good with dinosaur sounds as they've ever been.
Evolution of a band is a must have, and I think this album is too.

as a huge Catch 22 fan i do not understand how everyone else doesnt like this catch 22 new sound...after all, the sound didnt change much, it just matured into something better. i do recommend "keasbey nights" as the bands best album...live on Catch 22 and try to catch them on the SKA IS NOT DEAD TOUR (w/ mustard plug and more!) thanx

This cd is definately not keasbey nights....but that is in fact a good thing. it would suck if they didnt change at all. but dont compare it to keasbey nights bc these are 2 different types of music(both are really good). the singer has a better voice and the music is more catchy less sloppy. the horn lines are great and you will find yourself singing along almost all the time. i am so sick of people saying this is no keasbey nights and then going on about how this record sucks. just shut up. this is a AWESOME cd by a great band.

This is a good album overall but there style is kind of weird. The singers voice doesn't sound right because the other singers voices were raspy. But still, I think this is a goos album.

well, i got this cd last night, i had low expectations, because after seeing them play the songs from this album live, i had assumed that they sounded more like weezer with trumpets (which is not neccessarily a bad thing if it's done right). but this cd blew me away! i understand that the main complaint of catch-22's audience is that they don't sound like they did on keaseby nights anymore (hell, they don't even play "as the footsteps fade away forever" at shows), but ya know what, if ya want keaseby nights style stuff, buy the streetlight manifesto cd! having said that, i kinda like catch-22's new direction, alot of this cd sounds really metallic (yea, i mean some of it sounds like iron maiden with trumpets, which is really, really cool). sure there is less focus on ska on this cd, but in the end, it's still good music!