Customer Reviews

Hammers and Anvils

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Hammers and Anvils, the first solo release by ex-Verlaines leader Graeme Downes, is reminiscent of his band's best and another artist, Lou Reed, both alone and with The Velvet Underground. A monastic intensity clings to these 13 tracks. Hammers and Anvils opens with the title track: a complaint against love and the industry accompanied by stark solo guitars. It ends 40 minutes later on a vamp, "Mastercontrol", about hedonism's last stand. In between, Downes revs ("Alright by Me", "Cattle, Cars and Chainsaws") and ruminates (the gorgeous "Song for a Hollywood Road Movie") with equal compassion. His attentive, impressionistic lyrics avoid cliché. He delivers salient observations about disparate subjects - Cole Porter, Gucci, aimless Sunday afternoons, AIDS - which never feel fractious or incongruous. Casting his net wide, on Hammers and Anvils Graeme Downes captures a bounty.

Well, I ordered this CD fully hoping to love it... I read about it, and thought that the bits of lyrics I read sounded quite lovely. Well, I will still give him that - some of his lyrics are pretty profound and interesting, but the sound...it's just not very listener-friendly. Everything sounds jangled and unplanned, unpredictable (and not in a good way), uncoordinated. It sounds sloppy and lacks a solid sense of rhythm. None of the songs really even have attempts at hooks. His voice is lacking in quality, which would be ok if he made up for it with emotion, but he does not. I'm just struggling to find a "feel" for this album, because it just sounds more like musical noise aspiring to be something beautiful, and...well, failing. Sorry...would have loved to be more positive!