Ignition

Shoes | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 14, 2012)
• Original Release Date: 2013
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Black Vinyl Records
• ASIN: B008LUMSA6
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #34,522 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Shoes step out; Free from others' expectations, power-poppers stun with first album since '94. --Mark Caro, Chicago Tribune

Shoes: Ignition (Black Vinyl) Though the very notion of a musical genre called power pop now sounds hopelessly quaint, the music given that designation is often anything but. This new set by much-admired band Shoes, who've been pioneers in the genre since the '70s, is a powerful, wonderful reminder that the best artists in that field often make music that sounds tied to no specific era: It is sharply produced, filled with fresh and dynamic pop songs, and certainly as strong as anything they've ever released. Marvelous textures, great harmonies, and certainly nothing that sounds deliberately retro, Ignition is one of the year's better rock albums--and a good a reason as any to track down every recording this band has ever released. --Dave DiMartino, Yahoo!Music

When we opened up the package and saw this album inside we couldn't believe our eyes... A new album...from Shoes...??!!! We had pretty much come to the conclusion that these cool guys had permanently thrown in the towel because of the world's general hesitation to embrace their heavenly pop music last century. We've always felt that these guys created the cream of the crop in the world of 1970s and 1980s pop music. As such, we were always baffled as to why they didn't attract a larger fan base...? It's probably just a matter of timing and marketing...plus the fact that to truly appreciate Shoes tunes you must hear them at least a dozen times or more before the real meat sinks in. So it's been eighteen years since the last album was released...what has changed? Not a whole lot...thankfully! Gary Klebe, John Murphy, and Jeff Murphy are still writing crystal clear guitar-driven pop tunes and their vocals still sound as mind blowing as they ever did. We were pleased as punch to find that these guys are now keeping their recordings relatively simple and straightforward...since that's what initially drew us to their music in the first place (if you have never heard the beautifully crafted home-recorded album Black Vinyl Shoes do yourself a favor and pick up a copy--it's never too late...). The tunes on the new album rely heavily on those cool trademark Shoes guitars...very reminiscent of some of the band's earlier albums. We were in love with Shoes in the 1970s...and now the love affair continues. Fifteen absolute direct hits here. Our favorite cuts include "Head vs. Heart," "The Joke's On You," "Maybe Now," "Say It Like You Mean It," and "Only We Remain." We can only hope this is the beginning of a brand new series of releases from this criminally overlooked band. Shoes are one of the greatest pop bands of all time. TOP PICK. --babysue.com

Product Description

Shoes, the trailblazing guitar-pop combo from tiny Zion, Illinois who in the 1970s prefigured the home-recording DIY boom of the 90s and beyond will release their first album of new material since 1994 on August 14, 2012. Ignition switches on with 15 fresh, vital tracks from Shoes three founding members and songwriters: bassist-vocalist John Murphy, guitarist-vocalist Jeff Murphy, and guitarist-vocalist Gary Klebe, plus longtime stage drummer John Richardson. Self-produced and released on the band s own Black Vinyl Records, Ignition not only carries on Shoes cult-heroic tradition of edibly tuneful, harmony-honeycombed guitar pop; it ventures intriguingly beyond those comfortable (though undeniably rewarding) borders as well. Altogether the work of seasoned, mature musicians whose singular trajectory as 100-percent self-taught, self-created recording artists has been outside-the-box since it began, Ignition showcases Shoes at their technical and artistic peak.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Turn It On and Turn It Up! July 17, 2012

By Kenneth G. Myers

Format:Audio CD

A great comeback album by one of the best power pop bands of all-time. This album shines from beginning to end. Standout tracks include: Sign Of Life, Out Of Round, Head vs. Heart, Hot Mess, Where Will It End. I could go on and on. There isn't a bad track on this cd. If you loved previous albums by Shoes or are a fan of melodic, catchy pop-rock songs, then this cd is for you. It sounds familiar yet fresh and definitely not cookie cutter like most of today's music. Plus they are some of the nicest people in the music business. Support Shoes!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Power pop legends in perfect form after eighteen year hiatus August 19, 2012

By hyperbolium

Format:Audio CD

First, Redd Kross returns after a fifteen year studio hiatus with the best album of their career (Researching the Blues), and a week later the pride of Zion, Illinois tops that by ending an eighteen-year drought with a new release that's as compelling as anything they've ever recorded. With all three founding members (John Murphy, Jeff Murphy and Gary Klebe) joined by their longtime stage drummer John Richardson, the band has self-produced an album that measure up favorably to their 1970s classic, Black Vinyl Shoes. The new productions are more spacious than the crowded 4-tracks of the group's early years, but the refinements only serve to amplify the best aspects of the band's hook-laden power-pop. Their words have matured, but their voices remain youthful, their melodies uplifting and their harmonies effervescent.

Having originally foreshadowed the DIY movement by a couple of decades, it's no surprise that the band's kept pace with evolving technology. Recorded in Gary Klebe's basement studio, the productions deftly layer guitars (including gorgeous runs of 12-string) and voices on top of sharp rhythm tracks, adding piano, keyboards and handclaps here and there. As the band's sound has grown, they've also expanded their musical and lyrical reach. The Stones-y rock of "Hot Mess" is gutsier than the group's more polite pop, and the usual teenage angst has matured with deeper issues of middle age. This isn't to suggest that they can't still conjure the pain of dashed romance, because they can and do with the eternal quandary of "Head vs. Heart," wounded satisfaction of "The Joke's on You," and the sweet support of "Wrong Idea."

But these are no longer lovesick 20-year-olds; they're grownups with perspective brought into focus by departed friends ("Out of Round") and infidelity at an age where comfort can trump truth. Many of the songs, including "Maybe Now," "Sign of Life" and "Where Will it End" read as both revelation and wisdom, marking songwriters who've held onto the immediacy of adolescence as they've accumulated the pragmatism born of experience. There are nuances to the relationships that typically elude the wounded hearts of younger writers, and Gary Klebe's "Nobody to Blame" drops the finger-pointing altogether. All three principals write and sing lead, and there isn't a favorite between them - each contributes equally to an album that shows a band that's fused the winsome musical passion of youth with the depth of adulthood. [©2012 Hyperbolium]

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Back and better than ever August 19, 2012

By Jerome Horwitz

Format:Audio CD

You never really know what to expect when a band returns with its first album of new material in 18 years. If you like what the band has done in the past, you're hopeful that the new effort is up to snuff.
In the case of Shoes, a band that never has lost sight of catchy melodies, great vocal harmonies and incredible consistency since first releasing its homemade "Black Vinyl Shoes" in 1977, absolutely nothing has been lost in the 18 years since releasing "Propeller."
If you are a fan of songs with more hooks than a fisherman's tackle box, "Ignition" has 'em, staring with the opening track, "Head Versus Heart," all the way through songs like "The Joke's On You," "Diminishing Returns" and the remaining 12 songs on this 15-track album.
This very well may be the best Shoes album ever!
"Ignition" offers the best of what Shoes has always done and takes things a bit further, as several of the songs have more depth than some previous efforts. This also is the best sounding Shoes album ever, and the drumming, provided by longtime Shoes drummer John Richardson, drives all 15 songs.
So many things make Shoes a treasure for those of us who love what many refer to as power pop, not the least of which is that this band that is rare in having three singer/songwriters -- Gary Klebe, and brothers Jeff and John Murphy -- the three original Shoes.
Don't bother trying to find a stinker on this album because you'll have to keep listening over and over in an attempt to do so, and that only will result in falling more in love with "Ignition."
The biggest curveball on "Ignition" is the outstanding "Hot Mess," a song written by all three of the band's members. "Hot Mess" isn't typical Shoes fare in that it definitely has a Stones feel to it, but it is typical of Shoes in that it's a great song and original on its own.
I'd love to hear what Mick and Keith think of "Hot Mess."
And I'm sure they'd love "Ignition."Ignition