Customer Reviews

Float Away With the Friday Night Gods

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Amazon's review pretty much sums it up for me, this album is an incredible let down after "Kids in Philly." I wrote a brief review of this album for my college newspaper and e-mailed it to Marah (you get the e-mail address through their website). This is their response verbatim, edited for language:

"Hey Man,
Excellent......things are working. See, our new album was meant to drive pathetic rootsy music purists to an early grave. You know, people like yourself who think they really know "REAL" music, but who are actually just overweight f--kwits (like you) who never get laid by anything less than a hippopotamus. Anyway, go buy our new one and give it another whirl......it really is our best one yet. Later on, fatboy.
Marah"

Hardly the most mature response to criticism, but I can at least respect them for answering their mail. Don't waste your time and money on this album; in fact, don't even bother checking the song clips. That way you'll be able to still feel good about "Kids in Philly," and maybe hold the band in some degree of esteem.

Being a native Philadelphian and a loyal Marah fan, this review may be a little biased. However, I felt the need to defend the boys since so many of their so-called fans are moaning about this third album. First of all, different does not mean bad. Change is a good thing and I think the songs on this record really define what the band has evolved into...they are a great rock and roll band. The songs are electric and inviting. Yes, Owen gave them a "new" sound, however, the band has put their heart and soul into these songs and you can certainly tell. I haven't stopped listening to it for over a week now and I hope that this is the album that opens the doors for them! It's time that other people are finally able to experience what I have have had the priveledge of listening to for the past four years!! Give it a try...you won't be dissappointed.

A lot of Marah's fans are going to hate this record. I don't. But, I can't help feeling a little perplexed; almost as if I've lost an old friend. This is still Marah, and it's good, but not for the same reasons.

I first saw Marah as an opening act two summers ago, and they blew Steve Earle (one of my favourites) off the stage with their raw, eclectic energy. I bought "Kids In Philly" right there, and it's been one of my favourites ever since. The energy on that record seemed, I guess, more sincere. "Float Away" is energetic, but it comes across as a more manufactured.

To be honest, as soon as I heard "Float Away", I thought, 'Uh-oh, here comes radio.' How selfish is that? Contrary to a lot of fans of bands like Marah, I don't feel they owe me a darn thing. They earned my attention by their live performance, and I choose whether or not to buy the records, and they can do whatever they like.

That said, I'll enjoy this record for what it is -- a hard-driving collection of immediately likeable songs that carry some of the same lyrical irony of their earlier work, even though it sounds like a different band. And, I can't wait to hear these songs next to those from "Philly" and "Cut the Crap" in concert, and see how they fit together.

Wow, amazing to see all the crap flying about over this album. A friend bought it for me, probably thinking because I'm a big fan of Americana and roots-rock that I'd like it... and he was right, except that I love intelligent, beautifully-crafted pop music too. The production is excellent - sounds great and with a lot of punch... and now that I'm about ten years older than the median CD-buying age, I couldn't give a rat's ass if anyone thinks it's cool or not.

If anything I would compare this band to a male Aimee Mann. In fact, they'd be a great double-bill.

I'm interested in hearing their other stuff now too. Nice little CD.

...and falling flat on their face. I do admire Marah's stance of 'We're gonna go for mainstream success' because before this record, they (to me) were one of the top 5 bands in America. 'Kids In Philly' and 'Let's Cut The Crap Tonight' rank among the albums of the year when they were put out. So it seemed like a logical progression to go for it all while the 'buzz' was still on them.

Honestly, the record would have been so much better if it was less noisy. On the lead single 'Float Away' near the end, there are at least four vocal tracks saying something different. It's very hard to make sense what's going on, turning a potentially great song in the vein of Bon Jovi or Springsteen (ironic that he guests on 'Float Away') into a noise collage. There are a few catchy songs on here nonetheless, like 'Shame' and 'What 2 Bring', but they too are buried under layers of noise. It's kind of like there's too MUCH sound on this record. If they stripped some of the background vocals and guitars down (especially on songs like 'Crying On An Aeroplane') this becomes a good, solid disc. Maybe not as good as the first two, but an admirable follow-up. Instead this becomes a potential career-killer. Hopefully the next one will be better.

If you're still interested in hearing it, try to find the version of 'Float Away' w/o Springsteen and then compare that to the album version to see what I mean about too much sound.

With this new CD, Marah has proven themselves to be an embarrassment to Philadelphia. This new release is downright awful - musically and lyrically. It's almost comical. Don't waste your money like I did.

Ahh, what a downer! Marah is (was) the greatest rock band in America (with only two albums to their name) and now this! Whatever this is. Synth pop, I guess. Maybe file this under growth, but growth would imply they were building on their roots-- they aren't. This album has nothing to do with their previous efforts. Also, the songs are weak. A good batch of songs would have diverted me from the new-fangled production, but these songs are utterly wack. Lousy lyrics. Which is such a shame, because their last two albums put them in a lyrical class with Bruce, Lou Reed, and even Townes Van Zandt, and I doubt any rock album ever captured a sense of place like "Kids In Philly" did for thet great city. So, save your bucks. This one blows monkeys.

I had been a Philly based Marah fan since "Let's Cut the crap and hook up later on tonight". Everything I liked about them is what they left off this album; a sound that stood out against the cloning of top 40 radio, distinctive vocals and interesting lyrics. It may be the opinion of some that a lot of the local Marah fans were disgruntled by the band's exodus from philly and their departure from the same old sound. Personally, I don't care where they go or what sound they try for: as a music fan, it is apparent to me that they had a sound that evoked motion,emotion and grabbed my attention and now they've got a sound that is about as appealing, interesting and unique as white castle hamburgers. Way to go, boys. At least you're not claiming to represent Philly with this crap.

I'm a fan from the Kids in Philly days. I won't pretend this album doesn't confuse me, but I'm giving it five stars just because I think all the people panning it aren't judging it on its own merits. Yes, the thing is bombastic as hell, a quality I rarely tolerate in bands (except for the Dictators, that is!). But however much it freaked me out at first, I can't stop listening to it. Mind you, some of the things I used to love about Marah aren't so apparent here, Dave Bielanko's voice being among the most missed. But what is, is the giddy clatter and spirit and lyrics with an actual reason to exist (the latter of which, by the way, is what makes Marah FAR better than Uncle Tupelo ever was or Wilco ever will be). I recommend this album. It's ballsy, huge, fun, strange, beautiful, sometimes annoying, sometimes brilliant. And live in concert, they're even more soulful now than they were then.

This is a very good CD. I am not a new fan of the band. I own their first 2 CD's and love them both. I think the critics and fans alike are being way to hard on the band. There are some great instantly hummable songs on this CD. What is wrong with a band wanting to be more popular anyways. I think the band has kept its integrity and made a CD they wanted to make. The fact that they may have targeted a larger audience is OK too. I would much rather hear any song off this CD on the radio than most all the ... that is played on radio today. To all the alt country purists out there, lighten up and enjoy a very good rock CD.