Customer Reviews

Flight & Crash

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As a long time fan of these guys I have mixed emotions about this album. The objective side of me really likes this one, but the biased fan in me is not completely satisfied.

The song writing, musicianship, and energy are all top notch and on par with their earlier releases. There is no filler here - all the songs are good. Each song stands up on its own and also works together well as a whole album. I found it hard to pick "favorites", but I really like 'Paper Thin', 'Choked & Seperated', 'Old Rules', 'Jack of All Trades', 'A Flight & A Crash', and 'She Takes it So Well'.

There are only a couple nitpick things about this album that knock it down a few pegs for me:
First off - there is a lack of the "call and response" type of vocal work that really set these guys apart from the crowd. The two guitarists/vocalists played off eachother really effectively on previous albums. They did a lot of singing under and over each-other. Sometimes singing completely different lines at the same time. This had become one of the "trademarks" of their sound. This album suffers slightly because they don't incorperate this style of vocals nearly as much as they used to.

Secondly - The production of, or over-all "sound" of 'A Flight & A Crash' is a little more polished. I wouldn't go so far as to say that it is "over-produced", but there is something about it that sounds a little more "flat" than I'm used to. At times the music all kinda washes together. There is a little more of that so called "Wall of Sound" quality that seems to happen with high energy rock bands sometimes when they record on a bigger budget with more main stream production. I just felt like I could hear each seperate instrument better and more clearly on the last three albums.

So, overall, 'A Flight & A Crash' is another really good album by Hot Water Music. Some minor flaws in my opinion, but still well worth having in your collection. Still better than 99% of the bands out there.

Love love this band. They are off the hook. Even better live! This album is a must have. Every album HWM puts out is a must have. One of the best base players you'll ever hear,actually follows the drummer. Vocals are awesome. They sound like Men when they sing. Not like chicks like most bands these days. Drums off the hook. Catchy tunes, great guitars.

This album is one of the top 2 best albums from HWM. In 2001 the band underwent a clear change from their older raw style, to a new "cleaner sounding" record. The bottom line is that if you want the best record from their 1994-2000 era, buy "Fuel for the Hate Game". If you want their best record from 2001 until they broke up in May 2006, buy "A Flight and Crash." This record will not dissapoint.

A Flight And A Crash is an amazing album, from an undetterred band always looking to evolve.

So few people in the UK know of HWM and I pity them. They truely are a Jack Of All Trades...As the title track says, "Heart Racing, Head Pounding." Thats precisely what it is until Swinger, which is the bridging point between fast paced tracks and slower, more chilled tracks.

My personal favourite on this album is Paper Thin, the title track is fantastic too...

Im a die hard HWM fan and love most of their works. If I was ranking albums, this may come third. You really should pick this up, matured, melodic yet somehow primitive Punk, dont ask me how they do it, but they do.

This album blows me away. I can't name one bad song on this cd. My favorite aspect of the album would have to be the bass. Jason Black goes absolutely insane with his basslines on this cd. He is probably the best in this style of music along with Alkaline Trio's Dan Andriano. Just listen to the intro of Swinger, track 10, and you will see why I regard him so highly.

First of all, let me tell you that I am very familiar with Hot Water Music's music. They're my favorite band and I own most of their LP's and their split with Alkaline Trio (which is great, might I add).

This album is probably my favorite out of them all because of it's variety. It's essentially the halfway point between their amazingly raw and energetic old style and their polished and intelligent new style. The music is top-notch, and not overly predictable. The vocals are rough, but without being too rough. And it's just an amazing record. It takes a little while to get into, but the replay value is uncomparable.

And I honestly don't care what label HWM is on, just as long as they stay true and keep making good music.

this cd is very VERY good, seriously, you all must buy it now. the vocals are great mix between shouting and singing, the dirty guitars and creative bass lines go really well together. theres a good blend in rhythms and textures on the whole ablum. there isnt a single bad song on the entire cd, seriously, all the tracks complement each other beautifully. i'd be lying if i told you that this cd isnt great. GO BUY IT NOW

I picked this up on a lark, having heard nothing priorly from these Gainesville stalwarts, & knowing only that until a member of Chicago's Tom Sawyer corrected me (when I commented on his Hot Water Music hooded sweatshirt at a show his & a friend's band played & that I organized) I thought HWM was a hippie-jam-band deal since the name reminded me of the 60s band Hot Tuna. But from the word go, the insistence of "A Flight & a Crash" hit me. & though I can't always pick up the lyrics --- I know I should be able to since they're supposed be important for a band like this --- I come away from any listen to this record reinvigorated, my creative juices as an aspiring, perspiring hack (writer) replenished. Oh, & bonus points for the band's presumably unironic crib from Bush's "Everything Zen" for the last cut.

a lot of people hate this album. i think most of those people are the same who subscribe to the theory that "epitaph changes bands" BS... they say epitaph gives their artists complete creative control. BUT-i can see why at first listen most longtime HWM fans wouldn't like it. for hot water music standards this is a very clean and slick sounding record. Okay, i admit it. i didn't like it when i first got it. but...listen to it about 4 times. it grows on you. the songs are very diverse and the lyrics, as always, are really great. i think the guys were just trying out some different things (there is a piano and chimes on a couple songs) and this is like their "let's see if this works for us" record.
'AFAAC' is by no means my favorite hwm release, and it's really not the best representation of the band in my opinion. but, IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR HOT WATER MUSIC TO MAKE A BAD ALBUM. my favorite tracks on this record are: "jack of all trades", "instrumental", "sons and daughters" and "call it trashing".

This band amazes me. They manage to put out an album and a few 7 inches or EPs every year, it seems, and they still are expanding and sounding fresh. With this album, Hot Water Music seems to have decided to mix things up quite a bit. One thing that will hit you right off the bat is the prevalance of guitars. The awesome bass lines are still there, but this is a guitar-driven album like the band has never put out before. The straight ahead rock sound works well, although I do miss some of the odd rhythms and emo moments occasionally. The vocals also sound much cleaner here, probably due to the bigger production budget. The songs here are all great. They're catchy, melodic, and aggressive, with challenging lyrics. For a punk album, there's also lots of variety, something sorely lacking in the scene today. Forget what people say about the band selling out. Hot Water Music simply decided not to put out the same album twice.