Hurrah

Versus

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 3, 2000)
• Original Release Date: October 3, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Merge Records
• ASIN: B00004Y6U0
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #247,711 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect pop - "laced with cyanide", October 5, 2000

By A Customer

After two brillant EPs ("Afterglow" and "The Shangra La Ep"), Versus has released yet another masterful full length album.

Like their contemporaries Yo La Tengo, Versus write beautiful, slightly bitter pop songs fortified with sparkling harmonies and just enough noise to make things interesting. On this album, the band has taken the helm for most of the production, and the result is a definite departure from the sound they established on the slicker "Two Cents Plus Tax". Many of the songs on "Hurrah" have arrangements that at first seem rather sparse, but in fact are rich with subtle touches.

Richard Balyut's has one of the most interesting voices on rock, and it really shines on this disc. His forceful but tender delivery really shines on "My Adidas" and "Shangri-La", and assumes a menacing growl on "Fredrick's of Hollywood".

Bassist Fontaine Toups makes the most of her turns on lead vocals, particularly on the lyically simple but effective "You'll Be Sorry". Her harmonies with Balyut are perfect for the bittersweet pop gems on this record, and her bass playing is simple but highly effective

On "Hurrah" second guitarist James Balyut has added duties as chief engineer, but he excels at both, and Patrick Ramos' drumming perfectly complements these songs without being overbearing or showy.

In short, there are few better ways to spend $14 then to but this CD (or *any* Versus CD!). In a time where the pop song seem to be a lost art, Versus excel with melody, intelligence, and versatility without resorting to mimicry or cliches. In a word, Hurrah!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not their Best, July 29, 2005

By	Christopher Bowers "cbamity" (buffalo, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is by far Versus's worst album. (Keep in mind, all their other albums are fantastic) Everything sounds good on here, but most of the songs are lacking in one way or another when compared to any of their other albums. 'Stars are Insane' 'Secret Swingers' and '2 Cents plus tax' are all great albums. Versus won't blow you away when you first listen to them since their approach is not unique, but they do it better than most. I'd give 4-5 stars for all of their albums but this one.
Unfortunately this album sounds like a band going through the motions. There are a few great songs on this: "Play dead" and "Shangri-La" are great... and "mermaid Legs" and "walkabout" are good as well. Since its been 5 years since this, I'm curious to hear the next Versus album...I hear that there will be one

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Last hurrah?, December 15, 2002

By	Justin B-H "Justin" (Sydney AUS) - See all my reviews

This album is a real divergence for Versus- they recorded nearly the whole record on a hard disk recorder, using keyboards extensively for the first time. As a whole the album is really good, and certainly a lot better than the critical backlash from some quarters would indicate, but on a couple of tracks they did fall into the common trap with home-studio recorded albums of not quite knowing where to stop. For example, on Play Dead the whole song is clearly driven by an acoustic rhythm guitar part which has been all but mixed into inaudibility-probably because the band got sick of hearing it again and again in the mix-and the song suffers as a result.
That aside, Fontaine Toups' two songs are standouts, and Richard Baluyut's lyrics are as thoughtful as ever-he manages to write songs about the Heaven's Gate cult and suicide bombers without ever sounding flippant or tacky, and provides love song lyrics that are still skewed enough to avoid sentimentality. James Baluyut's growing influence in the band, apparent in the use of electronics and his My Bloody Valentine guitar stylings, adds a new dimension.
So if you're looking for a warm-sounding guitar-drenched follow-up to Two Cents Plus Tax, you'll probably be disappointed with this CD (Check out Less Than The Needle, More Than the Shotgun by third Baluyut brother Ed's band The Pacific Ocean instead), but listen to Hurrah on its own terms and you won't be disappointed.