Customer Reviews

Living Things

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Living Things is very disappointing. The previous CD, Kimi Ga Suki Raifu, was such a powerful collection of songs, written and recorded with such clarity and immediacy, a rock classic that is truly one of his best efforts alongside Girlfriend. Living Things is touted as Sweet's return to a fully produced, thought-out album. It even has Van Dyke Parks...so it must be a slice of Wilson-esque classic pop, like In Reverse...right? There's only one problem: the songs. Living Things rings very hollow musically, and lyrically it is hopelessly bleak, the actual opposite feeling of the album's title. This is not a sunny pop album, it is a dark series of resignations on the hopelessness of life, with almost none of Sweet's humor to balance out the darkness. It just feels like a bad head trip. I have listened intently to this disc, in various settings and states of mind, and have come up short every time. The material is lacking a heart, a center of gravity. Yes, it has all the external elements of Sweet's pop sheen: the overlaid vocals, the guitar textures, the power pop grooves. On the surface, it all sounds attractive, but underneath all the layers is empty, bleak music. It feels like "Matthew Sweet by the numbers."

Moreover, Living Things is supposed to be a more "produced" album than Kimi Ga Suki, and yet it feels sloppy and unrehearsed. Only a couple of the songs have a proper "ending" or even a fade-out. Most of the tracks sound like demos, with haphazard sloppy endings where the music abruptly cuts off as if the band were only rehearsing the song and decided to quit before the end. This is not a well produced album, to be honest it sounds unprofessional. And the fact that there is no booklet, no lyrics, also shows that Matthew wanted to put this CD out "on the cheap," which shows some disregard for his fans, in my opinion. Girlfriend, Altered Beast, 100% Fun, In Reverse, all of these discs have always had some form of lyric booklet. Even with Kimi Ga Suki Raifu, there was a booklet with liner notes by Matthew, a sense of personal involvement. But on Living Things, nothing. Just the tracklist and personnel. I detect a disinterest on Sweet's part, a lack of concern for our reaction to the sloppy song endings, the redundant material, or the lack of any liner notes or lyrics. Matthew seems essentially absent from the whole operation, from the packaging to the songs.

One reviewer compared this album to Altered Beast, which also had a more densely layered production style, a more "experimental" album than, say, Girlfriend. But at least Altered Beast still had a very high calibre of songs: Dinosaur Act, Ugly Truth, Time Capsule, Life Without You, Reaching Out, Falling. There is nothing on Living Things that stands out as a memorable song in the end. It all sounds like a series of hooks and textures that don't go anywhere. Another example of a more "produced" Sweet album is 1999's In Reverse, which has the Spector/Wilson "Wall of Sound" production on some tracks, but again, it works well because Sweet wrote a solid collection of SONGS for that album. Hide, Split Personality, I Should Never Have Let You Know, Write Your Own Song. These are all true gems in Sweet's catalog. And once again, Living Things fails to produce even ONE song that rises above the surface exterior in order to make a lasting impression. Really, I cannot think of even one song that stands on its own merits. "You're Not Sorry" and "I Saw Red" are probably the "best" tracks, but even those songs only sound like hollow imitations of much stronger material by Sweet on previous albums. He's covered all of this ground before, with much better results. For an album called "Living Things," it all sounds lifeless, a collection of dead shells. Attractive containers with nothing inside.

I'm surprised at some of the poor reviews here. Yeah, the steel drums are a bit much, and through the first few tracks I was only intrigued. But as soon as I heard "Push the Feelings" this disc felt like a reunion with an old friend, and it continued in that vein pretty much all the way to the terrific closing track. If you think "100% Fun" is the quintessential Matthew Sweet album, like I do, there's a good chance you'll love this CD too. I hope people give it a fair chance.

It sounds like everyone else wanted to hear Matthew Sweet recreate the old stuff. An artist moves on, experiments and tries not to repeat the same thing over and over again. "Living Things" is full of experimental touches but the songwriting is as strong as ever. Sweet's latest album is a concept album about nature and all the wonder that surrounds us every day that we take for granted.

The use of the steel drum on the opening track "The Big Cats of Shambala" kind of surprised me. " It immediately reminded me of Harry Nilsson's "Sandman" which did many of the same things Sweet tries here. "You're Not Sorry" has the same feel as John Lennon's ballad "Jealous Guy" with a beautiful melody highlighted by lovely piano playing by Van Dyke Parks. "Danelion" has a snarky bass part and piano part that builds into something that might have sounded at home from the "Smile" sessions or "Magical Mystery Tour". That's not to say it's derivative--Sweet plays with melody much as Brian Wilson or Lennon & McCartney might. The only truly weak track I felt was "Cats Vs. Dogs".

"In My Time" uses the guitars to build interesting backing textures against a strong power pop melody. "Sunlight" with a touch of organ that wouldn't have been out of place on an album by The Band but with jangly guitar playing pulls the album towards its conclusion. Like "Good Day Sunshine" this song captures the feel of a glorious spring day. "Season is Over" slides along on a simple but melodic guitar part. The final track "Tomorrow" uses mandolins and accordians in much the same way that the steel drums are used on the opening track--to accent the music and add a slighly different otherworldly feel to a traditional melody. The song wouldn't have sounded out of place on The Thorns album that Sweet did a couple of years ago. With echoes of The Byrds, The Band and Big Star, it concludes this fine concept album on a strong musical and lyrical note.

With excellent playing, songcraft and killer harmony vocals, Sweet crafts one of his most winning albums since "Girlfriend" and "In Reverse". It's the same Matthew Sweet sound trying on some new clothes to give that sound a revitalized quality. It works.

On hearing Matthew would be playing in Toronto, I ran out and bought a copy of "Living Things". I was disappointed to the point where I thought I would skip his live show. Luckily my wife insisted we go. Matthew looked a mess. The band was 3 guitars, a bass, and drum. The volume and the feedback were way up and they burnt through blistering renditions of almost all of "Living Things" plus his other big hits. From that moment on I have loved "Living Things". So if you find "Living Things" disappointing you need to just catch Matthew playing it live. It will rock for you after that.

I am a huge Matthew Sweet fan, but this album doesn't make the grade. The music just feels lifeless and there isn't one song on here that caught me with the usual Matthew Sweet "hooks". I have seen Matthew play several times, I own every stitch of material he has ever released and consider him a "pop" music genius, but I seriously doubt this one will ever make it to the CD player drawer again.

When I received Living Things, I thought I was going to hear more songs similar to Kimi Ga Suki which I bought for like $30 as an import as it was only released in Japan. Yes I took a chance but turns out, Kimi was a great album even if he produced it in his basement. It has since been released in the US.

Well, Living Things is definitely nothing like Kimi Ga Suki. He seems like he's rambling through a lot of the songs. The hooks that Matthew is so known for just get buried in his non-rhyming, melody-less lyrics this time around. I've only listened to it once so far and my first impression is not too good. Maybe it will grow on me but one listen to Kimi and I knew it was a great album. Living Things is too quirky and a little more "out there" than his usual songs. Maybe it's like other people are saying - that this is "experimental". I'd say it's his worst album since Earth and that was before Girlfriend. Girlfriend was the album where Matthew found his "sound". Well, over ten years of good music isn't bad I guess. I will still get his next album but hopefully it will be closer to his tried and true power pop style and not experimental.

I just got Living Things in the mail today and listened to it once through. Here's my impression:
It's a very good album. The one thing I miss is the down and out power pop rockers as this album has none.
However, this gem is pure Matthew Sweet and shows off a lot of his gentler, more reflective side. The arrangements are reminiscent of In Reverse. It is a very "lush" sound. He continues to use unusual instruments like the steel drums and the theremin.
The standout tracks (from just one listen) are I Saw Red, In my Time, and Tomorrow. Matthew has some rather quirky lyrics in Big Cats of Shambala and Dogs vs. Cats.
Overall this is a wonderful album to listen to when relaxing or feeling reflective. I would've given this one five stars if it contained just one rocker like "Ocean in Between," "Evangeline," or "Sick of Myself," etc...
Matthew's music has "matured" as of late but he keeps putting out genius stuff. I hope we see many more albums from him because he's capable of cranking out good stuff.

Matthew Sweet's albums released since 100% Fun have shown an increasing willingness to cave in to his own personal eccentricities. Living Things is no exception. Many of these songs are a little corny, silly, etc. I enjoy his carefree style of songwriting, and his willingness to experiment with different instruments and sounds, but his songs seem more impersonal since the days of Girlfriend, Altered Beast, and 100% Fun. Or if they are personal, they are about matters that are less close to his heart. I find his earlier albums much more emotionally involving. But what hasn't changed is his ability to write a killer tune. And there are about 5 such killer tunes on Living Things, that would rank right up there with his best ever in my opinion, which makes it well worth owning. And while I just criticized the change in his approach to song writing over the years, I must say that this is his best sounding album since 100% Fun. It doesn't sound gimicky or poorly produced, which has really hurt his last few albums.

QUESTIONS...

Does this album break any new ground for him? Not really.

Are the songs a little too long and ragged? Yeah, maybe there's a little too much jamming...a little editing might have helped.

BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY...

Is it packed with the hooks, melodies, harmonies and sentiment that make Matthew Sweet one of the great pop-songwriters of the post-rock era? OH YEAH...

As with all Matthew Sweet albums, the melodies have been sneaking up on me...not leaving my head...until another one takes over.

Matthew Sweet is a GREAT tunesmith...plain and simple...and this is a solid effort.

"Living Things" reminded me a lot of 1993's "Altered Beast" where Matthew threw everyone who loved the tight Power Pop of "Girlfriend" a curve with moodier and more experimental material. It took me awhile to get to know "Beast's" charms and it looks like "Living Things" may be the same way.

There are some fine songs and melodies here but sometimes the spur-of-the-moment arrangements get in the way or bury the hook. This approach works great for short 3-4 minute Power Pop songs that can be easily bashed out, as on the great "Kimi Ga Suki Raifu". But for this kind of experimental material I wish Matthew and company had rehearsed a little more before he hit the "record" button. Many of the songs go over the 5 minute mark and could have used some editing or eariler fades. Some sound like rough demos.

Like Todd Rundgren, Matthew's at his best when he reins in his experimental tendencies and shoots for the good old-fashioned pop song. This rambling CD could have used a few of them.