Customer Reviews

The Harsh Light Of Day (Limited Edition)

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

 

 

Well who here besides me is worried about the state of american music? Well i care even though i'm not american. If you are looking for some good music to hear i suggest picking up a copy of fastball's newest cd. They do everything right in this album. The only flaw with this album is it's been done before. You can hear a heavy influence from past musicians mostly from the sixties, but hey the sixties were the best time for music. All the tracks range from alternative style rock to catchy pop. I'm glad i found out about fastball,because i was tired of listening to korn and limp bizkit. Also check out their prior release because it's just as good.

Fastball could be a throwback to 10-15 years ago, when bands actually matured and improved album after album. When compared to their previous releases, "The Harsh Light of Day" is a lot more consistent. There is still some filler on the album, but the gems far more than make up for it.

At its best, Fastball delivers really well crafted pop music. Although the Beatles influences are present and clearly audible, they are filtered through the best of 80's pop (think "Imperial Bedroom" or "Punch the Clock" era Elvis Costello, Squeeze and Crowded House).

Miles Zuniga and Tony Scalzo mostly write about relationships. They can be bitter and angry as in "Love is Expensive and Free", looking for redemption as in "Dark Street" or cleverly tongue in cheek as in "You Are an Ocean". But what distinguish them is the musicality. Their best songs are rich in memorable hooks, supported by impeccable harmonies and a solid production. The guest musicians include Brian Setzer (from the Orchestra and the Stray Cats), keyboardist Billy Preston (who played with the Stones and the Beatles) and Michael Ward from the Wallflowers. Finally, if you are going to buy this record, get the limited edition. You will get an extra version of their previous hit "The Way" and a couple of solid outtakes.

If you're looking for any retread of "The Way", once again: Don't expect it. Do expect, however, a well crafted CD filled with melodious pop songs ranging from soft to slightly rough-edged, each with unmistakeably catchy hooks and excellent song structure. The trade-offs of lead vocal credit between songs between Tony Scalzo and Miles Zuniga provides yet another injection of variety into an already excellent album. Aside from the single "You're an Ocean", the most stand-out tracks are "Morning Star" and "Love is Expensive and Free", perhaps one of the most to-the-point and true-to-life songs written on that subject I've heard in a while. And back to lead vocals, I tend to lean towards Tony Scalzo as the better of the two, but to each his own. You won't be disappointed with this album. Fastball does what they do better than any band out there in this day and age, and 3 albums into the game, they are strong as ever.

Their versatility with so many different styles of music is truly amazing! From the modern/alternative sounds of "This is Not My Life" and "Goodbye" to irresistable 60s-pop in "Dark Street" to kick-butt classic power-riff rockers "Morning Star" and "Time" to southern rock "Don't Give Up On Me" to Mariachi-flavored "Love is Expensive & Free" to the beatiful, haunting ballad "Vampires" etc. they experiment (successfully!) with just about every genre of music out there. And you still get the great deal of 2 bands for the price of one, since Tony Scalzo and Miles Zuniga sound so different from each other. They each have some great strengths to offer. I'd say Tony is the better singer and he's also great at writing clever, catchy lyrics. But Miles is the one with the real sense of adventure when it comes to trying different styles of music, and his cryptic lyrics always keep you wondering what he's really saying.

Overall, the biggest difference between this and their previous 5-star "All the Pain Money Can Buy" is that this one is more of a "Total Album" experience. ATPMCB was so dominated by the incredible "The Way" that it took me a while to get past that one to learn to appreciate the rest of the CD. With "Harsh Light" I can't really pick any particular favorite so I have to listen to the whole CD repeatedly instead of playing one track 3-4X before listening to the rest of it.

FASTBALL IS THE GREATEST BAND AROUND!!!!

It seems so many reviewers think "The Harsh Light of Day" is so much better than all their other albums. Its an excellent collection of vintage sounding pop songs, but it doesnt come near as good as their Sophmore release "All the Pain Money can Buy". Whereas on ATPMCB every song was amazing and melodic, I somtimes find myself skipping tracks on the new release. On the upside their are the good songs like the super upbeat "Your and Ocean", with some great Southern piano by none other than Billy "Get Back" Preston. Also there is "This is not my Life", "Love is Expensive and Free", and "Funny How it Fades Away." The collectors edition features a pretty dull live version of "The Way" , but the two unreleased tracks will definitely get your foot tapping. It also features a cool book.

With their third full-length album, Fastball continues the maturation process in the songs and songwriting. Overall, this is easily their best album yet. "Make Your Mama Proud" is good, in an anonymous garage-band kind of way, but you can tell what was to come with their second album. "All The Pain Money Can Buy" is the next step. This one got them big, and has many good songs, but is a little patchy - there are some great moments, but as a whole, there's a little something missing. With "The Harsh Light of Day", Fastball has concocted a real impressive collection of songs, and there are very few weak spots visible here. They've even thrown some curveballs thrown into the mix (Brian Setzer's guitar work on track 4, drum loops, horns, strings, keyboard, organ, piano, etc.). Here are the highlights: "This is not my life" is the opener, and brings to mind the Stones (some of the riffs), and The Who (the sheer power and the line "Only you can see the real me"). "You're an Ocean" is the first single, a bouncy, poppy number featuring piano from Billy Preston. "Goodbye" and "Love is Expensive and Free" are similar, both nicely crafted slower songs with great lyrics. "Time" is a real rocker, I love it. "Dark Street" sounds like it might be the next single, it's poppy, yet has some dark lyrics, and a killer hook. "Whatever Gets You On" is great lyrically, and the song is strong. As for the bonus tracks: "The Way" live is a nice addition, yet seems out of place. It's a good rendition, rivaling the original. "Emotional" is a fast-paced rocker, and "Love Doesn't Kill You" (a demo) is awesome - great, occasionally funny lyrics. I can only imagine the next Fastball album, if they continue the trend of maturation, will be a dynamite, knockout classic. This comes close to be sure. There are hooks galore, it sounds great, and it's one of the best poppy-rock albums I've heard in a while, I'm putting it slightly above the newest Everclear and it's right on par with "There is Nothing Left to Lose" by Foo Fighters. If you're a fan of classic rock/pop from the 70's or the later stuff from the Beatles, "The Harsh Light of Day" is essential listening.

If you enjoyed Fastball's last release, "All the Pain Money Can Buy", you're sure to like "The Harsh Light of Day". The writing has improved (both music and lyrics), and they try some interesting new things such as the mariachi band on "Love is Expensive and Free". For the most part, these new experiments work! I would definitely recommend buying the limited edition of the CD while it is still around for the song "Love Doesn't Kill You" alone which is excellent.

This EXTREMELY talented band is unfortunately one of many that contributed to a CD called Stop Handgun Violence, a benefit album for a "charity" group of the same name. One of the avowed purposes of the organization is to infringe upon the rights and freedoms of the American people. Please do not support any band that works to make the American people less safe and less free.

This edition is the ultimate Fastball - from 'the way' live to 'youre an ocean' you cant lose! Billy and Brian Setzer add SO much! and than the background orchestra.......wow!

If you like The Beatles, Dylan, or Tom Petty you will love this album. Check out tunes like "Time", "Dark Street" and the Pop classic "You're an Ocean". They have a cool website [...]