Customer Reviews

Fast Moving Cars

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

 

 

I have only recently started listening to the Clarks and must say that I have been fully impressed by Fast Moving Cars - their latest album. It simply gets better with each listening. Their rare ability to masterfully combine intriguing lyrics with interesting and diverse instrumentation is what sets The Clarks apart from most of the mediocrity that is played on radio today. Get this album and anything else put out by The Clarks. I guarantee that you won't be disappointed. And catch them live on tour - they really put on a great rock and roll show.

When you are a big fan of a group, in the back of your mind you know your group will peak and then start the downward spiral. I'm here to tell you The Clarks are still rising. I actually had to play this CD a couple of times before I was singing and dancing - but it didn't take long. Though all the tracks are great, Shimmy Low, Happy and Fast Moving Cars stand out. Great work in the bands evolution. I hope the rest of the world hears them soon.

I'm not going to join the debate on whether the Clarks are better now or better then - I don't know if the lyrics are "deep" enough or if the music rocks enough. What I DO know is that this CD is totally fun to listen to! My favorites are songs 1 - 7 and when I'm hitting A1A with the windows down, sunroof back, sun beating down, the ocean at my side and this CD playin', life is close to perfect. This is feel good music - the stuff that makes you sing along out loud. And I can't sing. Doesn't matter...I've worn my copy out and I'm about to purchase another...

I'm waiting for Christmas on this one, but did hear most of the songs at a show in Chester, WV over Thanksgiving. I've been a Clarks fan since 1986/1987. I've seen them over 50 times: inside, outside, acoustic, Dick Clarks, bought them beer and had them buy me beer. I love 'em. Sure their style has changed! So did the Beatles. Somebody mentioned Let It Go as their best release. I think that is when their music took a more sophisticated turn. Listen to the harmonies. They are absolutely INCREDIBLE! They still rock! A solid rock and roll band that continues to grow and try different things. Go Clarks!!!!

Contrary to a previous reviewer, I think Fast Moving Cars is a step up from their previous material. O.K., maybe they rocked a little more in their previous efforts, and they lost some of that raw adolescent appeal, but they show much more mature and developed some writing here (James' lame effort "You Know Everything" notwithstanding). And, I may be in the minority here, but I think the more lush production by Justin Niebank really enhances their sound and those great melodies. In my opinion this is their best album.

I am reading the other reviews about Fast Moving Cars and am almost apalled. If you are a true clarks fan, their music simply cannot sound bad in any form. In fact, it shows how great of musicians they truly are in your being upset, or dismayed over the new sound. Let it Go and Another Happy Ending started the universal "buzz", and now Fast Moving Cars is what has brought them to the mainstream, hence their first appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman 8/31/04. Keep in mind, Pittsburgh's clarks are the only artist to beat Velvet Revolver's selling stats on their first release. (Pittsburgh was the only city to have a band other than Velvet Revolver be #1 in CD sales, and the Clarks just happened to be the band.) All of this speaks for itself, BUY THE CD, and hear the very best of the Clarks yet! If you still are not amazed and pleased, it is simply a problem with your inability to deal with change.

I have 3 of there CD's and I love them all. They are a lot of fun.

After already owning Anther Happy Ending and Let It Go, I was psyched about going out and buying Fast Moving Cars...and then dissapointed. It might grow a little on me in time, but for now it plays through very mediocre from beginning to end, although the tracks "Fast Moving Cars" and "Blue" stand out. Contrary to what you might expect from the title Fast Moving Cars, this is a more mellow album overall than past efforts, with the exception of the song "You Know Everything". The repetition of some phrases was a turn off from the first listen-through, and I missed Scott Blasey's flair in delivering accented lyrics and breaking up the tempo (you might remember "Drums...bass...I said bass!"). If you don't own Let It Go, GET IT!! It's one of my favorite cd's ever.

Fast Moving Cars perplexes me. For the longest time, six or seven listens to the whole CD, I couldn't decide why this excellently played and very hooky music just doesn't rock me. Finally I decided it's the disconnect between the tales of trapped, desperate or lost emotions -- the promise of Hell on Wheels -- and the lead vocals that just kind of lull along. Sometimes they sound a little like quiet del Amitri or Jackopierce, but only rarely do they "lose control" (as Shimmy Low promises) or sound "only saved 'cause I'm tired of sin" (Gypsy Lounge) or otherwise convey the tensions of the songs' written words. Clarks are from Pittsburgh. When listening to them, I wish for a little more of the punch from that other PA band, Marah, where the vocals make every song an edgy adventure. More of that engaged, or even enraged, spark would have made Fast Moving Cars something more memorable than a rock easy listen. Listen to You Know Everything and Train to get an idea for what might have been. Smack between those two cuts is Take Your Time, a too tame example of what Fast Moving Cars is.

Heed my warning music lovers. If you are truly a clarks fan, you will hold on to their old stuff, catch them in concert when you get a chance, and remember a time when they were really making their mark. I must admit, their album "Let It Go" is one of the best in my entire collection. Before that album, they were putting out albums with hits such as cigarette, penny on the floor, and even some ones that are fan favorites such as caroline. After Let It Go, Which I believe to be their peak, they released, "Another Happy Ending." This album was tolerable but much more cheesy with lyrics and just not as powerful as their older material but I must admit, it wasn't a bad album...it's just difficult to follow a really amazing album. I am here to say that if you want to remain a clarks fan, do NOT and I repeat, do NOT buy fast moving cars. I got to about track 8 and was half tempted to throw it out my car window. The lyrics are lame, the music is mediocre and generally, this album may turn me away from the band. They have changed their style and it has taken a turn for the worst. I have followed the clarks for a very long time, and I think it is time they either slow down and get back into their old style or I will stop buying their music. I will still listen to their old material because I have great respect for who the band used to be as musicians. But as for fast moving cars, it has been a waste of my time and money.