Customer Reviews

Hello Pig

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

 

 

This album is very disappointing. I am a die-hard Levellers fan. I grew up listening to 'A Weapon Called The Word', 'Levelling the Land', and 'Levellers'. They are all great albums, combining aggressive tunes with hard hitting lyrics. The live album, and 'Zeitgeist', only served to back that they could seriously rock. However, in my opinion, they have changed beyond recognition. Love songs have slowly replaced protest songs, pianos and FX have replaced haunting violin melodies and non-stop energy from the rhythm section. The simplicity that was so beautiful has gone from their sound. The repackaging of the band is really quite impressive, considering how thouroughly they have re-invented themselves. Some might say that they have sold out, by becoming a great deal more main-stream. I would agree, and I know many other fans who do also. We have all found the last couple of albums disappointing, as they have lost the edge that made them so interesting before. Some people may well love this album, but play them the first albums, and they will not recognise that they are by the same people. The voices are covered by FX, and the song content is not so obviously politically driven. All the tracks also lack an energy. The opening song 'Happy Birthday, Revolution' is a very lethargic opening compared to their other opening songs, such as 'World Freak Show', 'One Way', and 'Hope St.', which really grabbed you by your throat, and made you sit up and listen. This just sums up what the band seems to be about now. Maybe they have grown old. Whatever it is, they have lost that edge that they had before. For me, the album is a collection of dreary songs, none of which reach you with any of the energy and drive that there was before. Even the lyrics seem half-hearted, and with so little energy in the delivery, they just don't grab you anymore. It is quite possible to put the whole album on, without being aroused by anything. There is no drive, so soul, no guts. I feel quite sad about it. Of course, some people might prefer the new set-up, but I fear that anyone who liked the band from a few years ago will be disappointed.

I still don't agree with the negative reviews for this album. I was a massive fan back in the 90's and thought A Weapon Called The Word, Levelling The Land and Levellers were all kick-ass albums that were gutsy and had more ballsy folk-rock anthems than you could shake a stick at.

But then again, every artist or group has to progress at some point. The previous album to this one, Mouth To Mouth, started to see the Levs add more production and knob-twiddling effects into their work and it spawned Beautiful Day - which is now perceived to be one of their "classic" songs.

Hello Pig just takes it a step further along this direction and, contrary to popular belief, it isn't bad at all. I'll accept that the first track is very Beatles-esque, but after that it becomes a little like stepping into a surreal - yet not unenjoyable - dream.

Tracks like Edge of the World, Red Sun Burns and Voices On The Wind are truly great tunes, while the Beefheart-like Modern Day Tragedy is thoroughly intriguing. There are vocal harmonies, fiddle effects and introspective lyrics a-plenty and it's well worth sticking with for a few weeks to get the full benefit.

I think the problem is that far too many fans went out and bought it, realised it wasn't Levelling The Land mark II, and then didn't listen to it ever again. Their loss - once it grows on you you'll come to love it far more than some of the twaddle on Zeitgiest.

It's a bit 'harder' than "Mouth to Mouth," which is not a bad thing. This has a bit more of an edge. The first song, "Happy Birthday Revolution" sounds as if it's being sung by John Lennon himself. "The Weed that Killed Elvis" is pure brilliance. They experimented a lot with this album with voice-manipulators and things, and it does lack those fiddle licks that I love so much in their previous albums. Overall-- classic Levellers. A very fine album.

I admit that I only have 3 other Levellers CDs--> Levelling The Land, Levellers, and Zeitgeist. That is also the order of my favorite to less favorite. :) This new album is GOOD, but some long term fans might be surprised with the loss of a lot of the "folk" sound that the band was known for. This album still sounds very "Levellers" to me, but they've explored other sounds with this record. Some songs come out sounding like Suede, while Happy Birthday Revolution sounds extrememly Beatlesque. I personally love both those sounds just as well as the Folk/Rock jammin' fiddle playing of the classic Levellers. This album is much more mainstream. I think it would be a great way to introduce someone a little wary of the phrase "Folk/Rock" to the Levellers. You still have some of the Folk/Rock sound but you also have a lot of mainstream Rock as well. This album now ties with Levelling The Land for my favorite Levellers album. I hope they break through the American market with this one. I would love to hear them on the radio!

Some become disappointed when the bands they love come up with something new, different and innovative. I am a Levs fan since their 2nd album, "Levelling the Land" was out, but have to admit that it took me more than one time to listen to "Pig" and understand it. This may be probably their best-done effort. Musically, it is incredibly rich, the production impeccable, and the lyrics poignant and touching. Interesting the way how it is put together with beautiful connecting melodies and sounds/effects. If you listen to it from beginning to end you will be submerged in a mind blowing experience (this is one of those works where art and music melt to create a masterpiece). This remastered version includes some additional tracks (probably B-sides or album outtakes) and that's a plus. The sound quality is fantastic. Listen to it with your headphones if you will ... you'll fall in love with it.

This is by far the Levellers worst release. I have all their other CD's and like every song with many being considered great, others being real good, while just a few are considered to be merely good. This latest CD though has 4 songs that are flat-out bad. The remainder of the songs, compared to the other discs, do fall into a range between my merely good and real good categories. So, if you're looking to purchase the Levellers for the first time, I highly recommend you follow through. But, choose one of the earlier releases. Although 'A Weapon Called A Word' and 'Levelling The Land' are the first ones I ever heard and fabulous, I'm kinda partial to 'Zeitgeist'. If you're a diehard fan and don't yet have this CD, do consider buying it. You can always improve the listening experience by recording just the good songs while discarding the very bad ones.

What is this? What is this horrible retro Beatles garbage that starts off this disc? There is nothing worth listening to on here which is sad since I've played all their other albums to death. What happened to the celtic anarchy? There's no sign of politics anywhere on here.
This seems like a bid for mainstream acceptance, and every great band deserves to have at least one stumble forgiven, so ignore this, and seek out Levelling The Land, Zeitgeist,and Levellers Just treat this one as a cautionary example of what happens when you lose sight of what gave you your heart in the first place.