Customer Reviews

Indigenous

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

After reading the reviews on this website, I was really scared that I was going to be picking up a crappy CD. But after listening to it, I have one bit of advice: Don't listen to the naysayers. This CD is awesome and tells me that this group is finally living up to their potential.

Up until now, their studio albums have been kind of on the mellow side. Some people like that. Live at Pachyderm Studios however showed you what their live sound is like. They are a very driven blues/rock band with a hard garage/bar type sound. Finally they have come out with a studio album to match. It's incredible music.

And for those people who don't like the distortion, it's obvious the band is using a fuzz box or two. This is not new, folks. Jimi Hendrix used to do it all the time. It gives you the feeling like you are sitting in somebody's garage sitting on a broken patio chair, drinking beer out of a can and listening to really good music from a band that nobody has heard of before. It's intentional and it works.

If you like Hendrix, SRV, Buddy Guy, etc., this CD will not let you down. If you liked this band's mellower studio stuff (which was good in its own way), you may be a tad disappointed. Base your decision on which group you fit into.

First of all, I am a huge Indigenous fan. Mato Nanji is simply
incredible. However, this album is a disaster. It is not in the
same league as Circle or Things We Do. The recording quality is
appalling for a modern recording. It is heavily compressed and
distorted. Indigeous should dump the Davey Brothers as their
producers. I have all Indigenous recordings including their EP
CDs and their video DVD. This album is by far the worst of the
lot. Please come back to your senses Mato. P.S. Indigenous is
just great live. Don't miss them if they come to your town.

A friend gave this cd to me and I went crazy for it. I subsequently ordered all their other cds (circle, things we do, and live at the pachiderm...) but this cd remains my favorite. The guitar work does it for me. And lyrically, [and at the same time] its fun (...).

I must confess something though... The first few times I listened to it, it kept taking me somewhere else... somewhere else, then suddenly --holy shiznit! Its SRV! I am a major Stevie Ray Vaughn fan, and it's like he's channeling him through his voice and guitar. But before you mock or say "oh yeah, they're just a rip off", I don't mean he sounds like he is IMITATING, but he has the same quality in his voice and he knows how to make love to his guitar! The similarities are the most noteable in this cd.

In any case, if you're a fan of that classic blues/rock mix, this is a cd worth buying.

Let me start by saying Indigenous is a fantastic band. I own every CD released by Indigenous and have always been pleased with their offerings. However, this CD is not up to par with their previous work. I have two problems with this CD. The first is that the CD just sounds bad, it sounds as though it might have been recorded in someone's garage; the production quality should have been better. If you can get past this obstacle you will likely enjoy this CD. The second problem for me is the songs, the songs are good but they are not quite up to par with what in the past has made Indigenous stand out far and above the rest in the Blues-Rock genre. If you want to hear Mato & Family at the top of their game buy 'Live At Pachyderm Studio'. Ok, I know what you are thinking.... live recordings $uck, and for the most part you are correct, they do. However, trust me, this one does not. This is an in studio recording with good sound quality, and this music showcases what Mato is capable of on the guitar. I hope that the next time Indigenous is in the recording studio they stop to think what it is about them musically that makes them unique and extraordinary, which I believe is easily made evident by songs like those on 'Live At Pachyderm Studio', which are good songs made great by Mato's unique voice and extraordinary guitar work!

gotta agree that the sound quality could be better, but then so could some early stevie ray and jimi. aside from that there is not a bad cut on this album. with good airplay there should be 8-9 hits for the band. i hope they get it. every song has great guitar licks. this band is close to producing a platinum quality record, maybe their next one, but his one will stay in my stack of favorites for a long time!

This CD really gets better and better as you listen to it.Like all best music it takes a bit of work from the listener to get the full rewards.It has a lot of similarities to Hendrix both in sound and style.The guitar solos are beautifully restrained leaving that desperately wonderful feeling of wanting just a bit more!How very different from so many of the so called guitar heros around.All round the playing and sound is superb.This album has become a fixture on my car player.Thanks.

I'm not sure I understand why there have been so many bad reviews on this album. Out of all the new blues bands out (i.e. Kenny Wayne, Jonny Lang, Joe Bonamassa) These guys have stuck to the gritty blues the best. They play stripped down blues the same kind you hear at the bars. That's what they give you everytime. This album is the same as their other three which I'm glad. Jonny Lang's new album sucks at best, while Mato knows what the fans want and keeps churning out blues hits. Shame Shame Shame on everyone else for giving this a bad review.

First impressions were once again deceiving. On first listen this sucks. After the incredible THINGS WE DO, I was hooked and have bought all their other releases. CIRCLE was about a 20% deterioration and this one didn't even sound that good. They seem to recycle the same basic stylings on each release and their just isn't enough material for 2 releases. Had they combined CIRCLE with this one it would have made one awesome CD.
The lyrics on this release are again the naive BOY / GIRL thing without any real content. Within the formula they work to that isn't all that bad, but after the promise of THE THINGS WE DO, I had hoped for something a bit better by now. Saying all the above, combined with the often mentioned lack of sound quality, this should be a dud. ALAS in the end this still rocks and MATO's uncanny ear for a killer hook / melody wins you over every time. His guitar playing is again excellent and his vocals are as always stunning. There are about 6 great tracks on this CD. They make up for the ordinary to poor ones. If you like INDIGENOUS, you should like this CD. One of the problems for INDIGENOUS will no doubt be the fact that THING WE DO was almost an all time classic and will be hard to follow for any band. I just have to stop comparing their other work to that one and enjoy them for what they are.

Indigenous's new self-titled cd is one of my absolute favorites. Mato is a great guitar player, and the songs on this cd show that the band is evolving, writing better tunes and playing with a confidence that only comes from experience. Most of the songs are hard rocking blues, with a couple of slower numbers thrown in for good measure. The sound on this record is very raw and live, like they just played the songs and released them without any mixing. Highlights are "C'mon Suzie", "You Turn My World Around", "I'm Still Here", "Movin' On", and a smoking cover of Jimmy Reed's "Shame, Shame, Shame".

This album is more raw and edgy than their other albums. I thorougly enjoyed it. It has intensity to it that I haven't always heard in other songs. I find it odd that so many people are complaining about it. Everyone asked them for an album which resembled their live shows. They met that requirement with this album, and now, people are complaining. It sounds very live, very much like a garage band, as other reviewers have said. I love that aspect. Kudos, Mato, Wandbi, Pte and Horse!