Living Thing

Peter Bjorn and John | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 31, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: ALMOST GOLD
• ASIN: B001QE9974
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #106,086 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

US LP pressing of the 2009 album from this Swedish trio. There was always going to be chatter as to how Peter Bjorn and John would follow up their album Writer's Block, a true pop phenomenon. Would they try to replicate their earlier success? Or go out of their way to release a willfully difficult new album? In actual fact, what they have done is a bit of both - and neither--all at the same time. Bolstered by the band's production, the first taster of the album, 'Lay it Down', was a delightfully off-kilter riposte, a jaunty flying-V in the faces of people who thought they'd had the band all figured out, with a harsh, treated vocal lifelessly intoning the threatening refrain before abruptly giving way to an anthemic, full-bodied singalong. The rest of the album walks a similar tightrope of melody and mayhem. Living Thing pulses with life, it is bursting at the seams with energy and vitality, and shot through with warmth and excitement and wonder. --This text refers to the Vinyl edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A turn for the darker, March 31, 2009

By 

Paul Allaer (Cincinnati) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Living Thing (Audio CD)

Side A: 5 stars; Side B: 3 stars

Peter Bjorn & John sprang seemingly out of nowhere on US airwaves in Spring, 2007 with their infectious single "Young Folks", which quickly became "the" song of that season, I mean, who can ever forget the whistling chorus? The album "Writer's Block" quickly became a massive indie-hit with further poppy songs like "Amsterdam", "Let's Call It Off" and "Up Against the Wall". That album was actually released in June, 2006, and now, after a 2008 instrumental album detour ("Seaside Rock"), almost three year later comes the much anticipated proper follow-up album.

"Living Thing" (12 tracks; 47 min.) is a very, VERY different affair compared to "Writer's Block". The album can easily be divided into the old vinyl Side A and B. Side A (the first 6 tracks) represents PB&J as you have come to like and love them from "Writer's Block": the opener "The Feeling" feels like it wants to explode on you, but doesn't. "It Don't Move Me" is one of those irresitable tracks that makes you wanna just get up and dance. First single "Nothing to Worry About" is the most accessible song on here, and I myself keep playing it over and over again, call it the "Young Folks" of this album (not sure how they'll recreate this in concert without the children's chorus singing). The title track concludes Side A and is the last upbeat and hummable song of the album, just great. Then comes the B Side of the album (the last 6 tracks), in which the band takes a much darker approach, not much melody to speak of, but for "I Want You". Just moody tunes, really. Hard to pick out any highlights there, really.

In all, "Living Thing" is a departure from "Writer's Bock", for sure. I keep playing the first 6 tracks, and ignoring the last 6. I've seen PB&J in concert a number of times in the last couple of years, and they've always put on a great show. I'll be seeing them again at Coachella in a couple of weeks, and I can't wait how they'll translate the songs from this album in a live setting.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dreamy synth-Pop!, March 31, 2009

By 

Nse Ette (Lagos, Nigeria) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Living Thing (Audio CD)

Swedish Alt-Folk/Pop trio Peter Bjorn and John return on their new album with a minimal sound; spare sounding beats and synths highlighting vocals and harmonies remniscent of The Beatles, Beach Boys, and even Paul Simon in places (the skeletal guitar/beats-driven ELO-sampling title track "Living thing" especially sounds like it fell off of Simon's "Graceland" CD).

Those looking for more songs like "Young folks" (with its maddeningly addictive whistle) from their superb 2006 album "Writers block" may be sorely disappointed, but what one gets here grows the more you listen. Simple but catchy songs.

"Just the past" is a gently throbbing slice of dreamy Pop. Lead-off single "Nothing to worry about" marries a menacing sounding children's chorus to clap-filled beats to great effect.

Other standouts are the haunting finger-snap filled "Stay this way", "Blue period picasso" (the first song I'm sure done from the point of view of a Picasso painting desperate to escape the walls of a gallery), "Lay it down" ("Hey, shut the f**k off" goes the chorus), and the superb droning melancholic-sounding "Last night" (my favourite).

This is one for everyone, not just the young folks.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I think it's great, October 21, 2009

By 

J Kozy "jkozy21" (Delaware) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Living Thing (Audio CD)

This is more a few random musings about the album than a real review. I think the whole album is infectious. Maybe it's because I like dancy electronic music that I enjoy this. I actually like this better than Writer's Block. Writer's Block was top heavy and this is consistently enjoyable the whole way through. It did take me a little while to like it similar to Passion Pit which ended up being my favorite album of the year. This is really good though, it's not mainstream sounding at all and it may not make my top 10 but it's definitely worth repeated listens. By the way, Blue Period Picasso is a fantastic song and one of my favorites of the year.