Customer Reviews

Every Kind of Light

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

With its special effects intro and faded fuzzy guitars, "It's Great to be Here Again" reminds me of an old James Bond theme. The layered chorus is quite melodic, without being overbearing. The smooth repetitive chorus is what is sure to hook you in on "Conversations". The verses are just as captivating in the own way, with just the right amount of falsetto to emphasize the emotion. A dominant warbling riff sets the pace for "All in a Days Work"; while a catchy chorus helps define the track. This is one of the more up-tempo songs on the disc.

"Second Time Around" keeps the energy flowing with muted riffs and pulsing keyboard tones. The song is a sweet story of rediscovering love with the one you let get away. "Could He Treat You Better" has a jazzy-blues feel to it with its soulful vocals, down beat drumming, and melodic soloing. "I Finally Found a Jungle I Like" is a great mix of piercing keyboards and thick guitar riffs that combine with a vocal arrangement reminiscent of the Beatles.

The Bad
Nothing notable

The Verdict
This was my first introduction to The Posies, and I must say that I was disappointed...that I hadn't discovered them sooner! Every Kind of Light is a great blend of progressive elements and straight-up pop-rock melodies.

The Posies are back, and they are a band again. This is not a Jon and Ken collaboration, it is a set of full-band tunes that should sound great as they take the show on the road this summer, first to Europe and then the US.

The song structures and tempos are as varied as any Posies record. "All In A Day's Work" and "Second Time Around" in particular are high-energy guitar blasts that recall Frosting on the Beater. "Anything and Everything," "Last Crawl," "Love Comes" and especially "Conversations" showcase the gorgeous vocals that are the Posies greatest talent.

The so-called political commentary here is really pretty subtle, not at all unwelcome or out of place. In "Could He Treat You Better?" Ken sings the blues for a woman being mistreated by her man. To the casual listener it might not be obvious that the woman is the USA and the abusive man is known by his middle initial W. Same goes for "That Don't Fly," which could be taken as leaving a lover behind, instead of a reluctant goodbye to the writer's homeland. The final track is the most obvious social comment - "Sweethearts of Rodeo Drive" slams consumer culture, takes digs at celebrity Humvee drivers, and asks "paper or plastic body bags?" just in case the listener doesn't "get" the connection between gas guzzlers and oil wars.

The Posies will never make Dear 23 again, as much as I'd like that. Restless creativity drives them in a number of new directions here - keyboards, horns, etc. I had to listen to this over and over the first week, something I haven't done with a new disc in a long time. It is still revealing its complexity. This is an excellent record - their best since Frosting. Don't miss it.

I'm more than pleased with The Posies' first new studio album in more than 7 years. Sometimes-moody, powerfully melodic guitars? Check. Beautiful harmonies? Check. Thoughtful lyrics? Check.

But perhaps the most pleasant surprise with this disc is that the Posies can write some remarkably strong material about something other than relationships. "Sweethearts of Rodeo Drive" finds them cleverly critiquing America and its infatuation with SUV's at the expense of our boys being sent to die in Iraq. I never would have thought I'd find myself humming along to such a tune, but alas, the Posies made me do it.

"Every Kind of Light" is the kind of come-back album I'd like to see more groups make. Que viva Stringfellow and Auer!

They're b-a-a-a-ck!!! Seven years after their last full length studio album "Success", the POSIES are back and better than ever with their 2005 release "Every Kind of Light". From the time that they crank up the space cruiser on "It's Great To Be Here Again!" to the outro-jam on "Sweethearts of Rodeo Drive", "Every Kind of Light" is the POSIES' most consistent and most varied album to date.

The opening song "It's Great To Be Here Again!" is a futuristic Disco groove with an almost BEACH BOYS' style instrumental breakdown in the middle, and a little bit of Rapping near the end. It's an infectuous party song.

The second song "Conversations" begins with a clear, sweet guitar that sounds like a distant cousin of BIG STAR's "Ballad of El Goodo", but builds to a Hard Rocking chorus that wouldn't be out of place on the POSIES' "Frosting on the Beater" and "Amazing Disgrace" albums. The verse and the chorus are glued together by a very striking falsetto vocal, no wonder this one is their first single. It is an excellent track!

"All In A Day's Work" opens with two driving, powerfull verses before finally moving on to the sweetness of the chorus. It exits the scene of the crime again with a powerful outro.

"I Guess You're Right" opens with a driving bassline and an air-raid lead guitar. The lyrics sound like a "You don't know me like you think you do!" kiss off to someone who has criticized the song's character in the past, with maybe some small measure of sympathy for the miserable so and so, too. The instrumental break sounds almost like an army legion marching to the rescue.

"Anything and Everything"'s verses are built on a space-age Jimmy Page/Zeppelin-worthy riff. It builds to a majestic, dreamy chorus. The album's title: "Every Kind of Light" is also drawn from this song's lyrics. This song has a kind of hypnotic, trance-like quality about it.

"Second Time Around" begins with keyboards that sound kind of like my image of a morning sun rising, on a clear and beautiful new day. Then as soon as it gets started good, it mutates into a loud, punky action-movie theme. Structurally, the song reminds me of some of the excellent Hard Rock/Pop singles that 38-SPECIAL used to do so well. Even though I used the word punky to describe the attitude of this song, this song also posesses some very orchestral almost faux classical instrumental passages. May sound odd, but it works out very well!

"Last Crawl" heartbeats into existence as a gentle, tropical sounding ballad with a cool, mellow vibe. You can almost see Jon Auer sitting on a lawn chair on the beach, having a few drinks, and playing this song accoustically. Very relaxed.

"Could He Treat You Better?" begins with sort of a clavinet sounding keyboard and a Blues bassline. The guitar work sounds like a wicked combination of B.B. King and Jimmy Page. Ken Stringfellow sings a lithe, soulful, high-range vocal that's almost equal parts Robert Plant and Smokey Robinson. Jon Auer's harmony vocal provides just the right amount of extra heat for the chorus/bridge?. This is the Bluesiest song that the POSIES have ever released, and they come through on it with flying colors. A very good job!

"Love Comes" begins with a cheerful Pop melody. It has a half spoken verse and a lively Pop chorus. It has a pretty keyboard solo that's sort of like a distant cousin to the keyboard solo in the BEATLES' "In My Life".

"I Finally Found A Jungle I Like!!!" chugs into life with BACHMAN-TURNER OVERDRIVE guitars and Keith Moon/Jody Stephens'-style drumming. It is a relentless, almost Rock-a-billy style Rocker. The outro give the impression that this space-age keyboard is running breathlessly through the jungle with bass, guitar, drums, and other jungle animals right on its' tail.

"That Don't Fly" is sort of reminiscent of Freddie Mercury's QUEEN ballads. The instrumental break has a quicker pace than the rest of the song. The lyrics seem to protest the war somewhat.

"Sweethearts of Rodeo Drive" lopes along gently, yet powerfully with a BEATLE-sque chorus, and an instrumental outro. The lyrics also seem to deal with social class, and the war, again.

Until "Every Kind of Light", I used to consider "Dear 23" to be the POSIES' best album, but now I give that honor to "Every Kind of Light".

Don't get me wrong, I love the Posies.
I've been a fan for nearly 15 years, and obviously they are one of my favorite bands.

But after a long hiatus, this album of new material in nearly 7 years doesn't live up to Jon and Ken's potential.

I suppose I can understand that they want to stretch out and venture into unchartered territories. However this leads to uneven results.

First off, the political rantings really sour the album. I mean, you've heard one leftwing diatribe- you've heard 'em all.

The songwriting isn't as top-notch and the hooks aren't as sharp.

Granted, the album covers a lot of ground, but it is jarring.
The opening cut is tedious and is probably one of the weakest tracks to kick off a Posies album. The "blues" song sticks out like a sore thumb. And the end song is sort of listless and dull.

Sure, there is a handful of good songs on this album but you have to wade through a lot of filler. Furthermore, these good songs would be the lesser songs on any other Posies album (the best song here is "Conversations", where the Posies do what they do the best- be themselves). Some tracks sound like outtakes from the mid-90's era Posies. Other songs sound like leftovers from Ken's last solo album. And what's further depressing is that there doesn't seem to be a real chemistry between Ken and Jon. It sounds like each record their parts at seperate studios.

The bottomline is that this album is spotty, if not "good" on its own merits, but when you compare it to the previous Posies albums, it just doesn't hold up. This album, hopefully, will be a minor set back for the Posies and they'll bounce back (pray, there won't be another 5-7 year hiatus).

Our long national nightmare is over. The Posies have returned. Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow have reunited, with a new rhythm section, and "Every Kind of Light" is the first new Posies studio album in seven years. Songs like "Second Time Around" and "I Finally Found a Jungle I Like!!!" give the impression that the band may still sound the same live. But the album has a lot different sound than the Posies' earlier recordings, which focused on their dual grunge guitars and Everly Brothers harmonies. Stringfellow plays almost as much keyboard as guitar, and the harmony vocals are mixed down. The result sounds as much like Semisonic ("All in a Day's Work", "Love Comes", "That Don't Fly") as earlier Posies albums. The style and lyrics of opener "It's Great to Be Here Again!" remind me of Crowded House's "Chocolate Cake". Stringfellow's voice has changed a little during the hiatus; he now sounds a lot like Squeeze's Glenn Tilbrook.

The Posies are a band for people who love melody -- they are as melodic as any alternative rock band America has produced. The songwriting here is as great as ever, with at least half a dozen songs just begging to get stuck in your head for days. My favorite is "Conversations", with beautiful slow ballad verses going into a loud chorus. There are uptempo rockers ("I Guess You're Right", "I Finally Found a Jungle I Like!!!"), ballads ("Anything and Everything", "That Don't Fly"), and moody midtempo ("Sweethearts of Rodeo Drive"). The only misstep is the attempted gospel-style blues of "Could He Treat You Better?" It's great to have this band back and recording again; I sleep a little better knowing there are Posies in the world.

(1=poor 2=mediocre 3=pretty good 4=very good 5=phenomenal)

Having just seen the guys play an acoustic set showcasing some of the songs from this album, I'm so relieved to see a new release from them. Without a doubt they remain one of the most underrated and underappreciated bands of the power-pop era. This is a great return to form for them. It's a nice cross between their material from "Success" and "Amazing Disgrace". Obviously, now they have less to prove to the mainstream market and more to show appreciation to their huge and madly devoted underground following. Ken and Jon still sound just as fresh and witty as always. It may not capture the brilliance of "Dear 23" but it's still the Posies back in all the glory.

I couldn't be happier to welcome a new CD from my darling Posies (though Nice Cheekbones and PhD was a lovely bone to be thrown). Though this album is not quite the traditional Posies sound with the soaring harmonies and acoustic gems fans have come to expect from the past, it is nevertheless strong and represents a shift in Ken and Jon's sound towards a broader range of styles beyond just power pop (which no one does better). Several of the tracks shine in particular--the lovely Love Comes (most fans have a preference for Jon or Ken, and I've typically been in the Ken camp--he's never sounded better), Anything and Everything and Sweethearts... which don't quite have the harmonies, but still have the boys singing together and over one another in a way that is simply sublime. EKOL is not the second coming of Dear 23, but that was well over 10 years ago--the band was grown and matured, and this CD reflects that. Please don't let this be the last!

The years went by and we wondered aloud whether or not we would ever hear another Posies cd. After a couple solo cds under their belt and a lackluster farewell cd(Success)before that, one would assume the Posies were all but dead.

And then the Light came out and we could all hear again. Whether its their last official cd remains to be seen with Jon's solo cd that came out this summer.

Tracks 2 and 5 are for the most part what Ive come to expect from them. Even the rockers on this album have a sense of glee to them that you didnt feel on "Success". Normally comeback albums are total water downed retreads and last stabs at glory...this cd however revives what it is that drew us to the Posies in the first place...a sense of fun and irony all rapped up into a pop rock sandwich...no expiration date required.

I'm a huge POSIES fan and was always hoping they'd get back together. EVERY KIND OF LIGHT is a "good-enough" return for me, but I would not say that it is GREAT by any means. This album is just not very consistent. I would rate it about equal to SUCCESS, sort of a twin sister to...I even think the sound of each album is very similar. The best tracks from that record and this one would have made an amazing collection...maybe even as strong as their classic FROSTING ON THE BEATER. I recommend LIGHT for sure but I just can't rave about it. If you're a fan you'll love it. CONVERSATIONS alone makes it a worthy purchase.