Keep on Your Mean Side [Import]

The Kills | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 8, 2008)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: domin
• ASIN: B00008A8KT
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #402,766 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The Kills’ debut is a stark 21st Century blues album, the sort of thing that would have struggled to find an audience before the White Stripes broke into the mainstream. So it’s lucky for them--and us--that they had such respectable coattails to ride on. The duo--Alison Mosshart, a.k.a. VV, and Hotel--play a music that’s blues influenced with a garage rock edge, and that’s where the similarities end. Sure, the Kills use a drum machine instead of a live drummer, but the differences run much deeper than that: The Kills’s blues rock is dirtier and more sex-drenched version of blues rock, a result of the shared vocal duties of Hotel and VV. The sultry "Hitched" says it all ("I’ll get my name stitched on your lips so you won’t get hitched"). These are songs that sweat sexual menace, recalling Boss Hogg or early PJ Harvey (on "Superstition" and "Wait," VV’s voice is a dead ringer for young Polly Jean’s). Best of all, these songs are stuffed with hooks. In a sea of pretenders, the Kills are capable of providing some genuine competition for the White Stripes.--Robert Burrow

Product Description

Japanese version featuring 2 bonus tracks: 'Dropout Boogie (Live)', & 'Gum'. Also includes a live video performace of 'Wait'. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pass me the whip Polly.., October 21, 2003

By 

Takis Tz. (InYourHead) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Keep on Your Mean Side (Audio CD)

When an album like this is considered by many to be the most passionate rock album of the year then that would be nothing less than more evidence that the rock scene has got a major problem.
But such a statement could be easily misunderstood, so, some exegesis is badly needed here.
"Keep on your mean side" is indeed a brilliant LP. It sounds authentic from the get go, and has a pathos that you can't miss even if you've lost all ability to feel.

Musically, it's a simple recipe really, but as it's well observed over the years simple is more than often beautiful. It is obviously influenced -in a -major way- by the likes of P.J Harvey
but it goes beyond that because the whole mix has an intense sexuality, a "dirtyness", and a rockiness that Polly Jean hasn't achieved (at least to that degree).

Having said all that though, it is not to say that listening to the Kills isnt rewarding. It is, in fact, as rewarding as a sin to let "Keep on your mean side" go through your ears. And i'm sure they must be a treat live as well.
If we're trapped to suffer hordes of wannabes, pretenders, untalented copycats and fake hard n tough "rockers" then I'll take the Kills every single time.
After all, this is one case where you cant say "copy Kills music", if you get my drift.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Keep on "repeat play", December 16, 2003

By 

J. Cray (Orlando, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Keep on Your Mean Side (Audio CD)

Even IF the rest of the album sucked, it would be worth buying this record for the song "Wait" which is by far one of the best tracks of the year! It's kinda slow, kinda moody, and very freakin' smooth. Think Kristen Hersch of the Throwing Muses, cross pollinated with PJ Harvey and you have an idea of the sexy, soulful sound of VV's voice. On other tracks she's got that "cat in heat" cry in her vocals that make you fall for her like a kid in the school yeard- even before seeing her picture ( which, by the way, only encourages the attraction!)

...but wait, I got off track... Yes, "Wait" is a killer tune, but the fact remains that the rest of the record lives up to the meter set by that song. Songs like "Cat Claw," "Fried My Little Brains," "Black Rooster," and the final acoustic track "gypsy death and you" stand out as works of mastery. On "BR" and "FMLB" VV's other half, Hotel ( yes, that's his name), create duets that conjure up the sounds of Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore. Their influences seem to be all over the place- from the noise rock of Sonic Youth to the soulful sounds of the Detroit Blues. Yet what they do with those influences is pretty damned original.

My only complaint about this album is that the 3 strongest songs ("W," "BR," and "CC") also appeared on their EP entitled "Black Rooster." So that if you already have that hard to find EP, you may be a bit disappointed that the other songs don't quite live up to what you've already heard.

One last thought for those of you who haven't heard the Kills yet: This is a band you NEED to hear!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Kills riding in on someone's coat tails... I think not., July 17, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Keep on Your Mean Side (Audio CD)

The Kills are an extraordinarily intense band. Alison (VV) and Jamie (Hotel) complement each other well. His guitar playing is catchy and gritty at the same time. Her vocals are passionate and raw. There is absolutely no showmanship in their performances. The track I enjoyed the most was 'Wait', a slower sweeter song. I have always been a sucker for Alison's softer singing even back in the days of her pop punk band Discount. She has a truly amazing voice. With the surge in the popularity of rock and blues music it would be easy to group these two with some of the more widely known musicians making headlines, but they truly deserve a place of their own. The music is honest, chaotic, sexy and above all artistic. It's Brit meets America and it will blow you away.