Customer Reviews

Mercy

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I thought "Buried in your Black Heart" was a great album, but "Mercy" is even better. I really enjoy Shine, Still, Everybody is Easy, I am a Cancer, and Daughter of Science. However, every song on this disc is very listenable, and I don't have to skip any songs, whereas I would find myself sometimes skipping tracks on the last album. Great step up for the Burden Brothers. I'll hopefully be seeing them in tulsa this weekend. Should be a blast just like the last time I saw them. They put on a great live show. 5 stars.

I've seen the 5 star reviews of this CD and decided to pick it up. Now let me say that I bought the Burden Brothers EP's and promos when they first came out and I enjoyed them very much; I never bothered to pick up "Buried in Your Black Heart" because it was a compilation of the songs that originally appeared on the EP's and promos. That being said, I had high hopes for this CD, especially since it had nothing but glowing reviews. Well, I am somewhat disappointed. Vaden's voice is great, and I've always liked Taz's drumming, but this CD just sounds over-produced. It's a basic rock and roll record that has been made accessible to the masses, so I would classify this as pop rock. I was happy to find out they had 3 guitarist in this band (Vaden included), but by listening to the music, you really can't tell. There's just not enough virtuosity, progression, or layered parts to justify the need of three guitarists. I should have known by the back photo on the CD that this wouldn't be to my liking. Trendy haircuts, clothes, and every band member wearing thick eye liner - just screams sell out to me. But I'm not deeming them as such. Maybe they need the $$? Who knows? I loved the Toadies and I really liked a lot of Reverend Horton's Heat music, but in comparison, this CD for the most part, is lacking...ummm...balls. Even compared to the earlier Burden Brother's stuff, this lacks balls. It's a safe record that really doesn't take too many risks. Don't get me wrong; there are some good songs on here, but to my ears, most of it sounds generic or filler. Maybe if the CD was 10 songs instead of 15, it would be a more impressive release. I really wanted to give this 3 stars considering how much I respect and like the music the main musicians in this band have put out over the years, but my conscience is leaning towards a 2. I wish I could give it a 2.5. I needed to be a little harsh in this review for two reasons: 1. The people who reviewed it before me all gave it 5 stars and I don't think this album should be classified as an ALL TIME CLASSIC. 2. Previous efforts dictated that this CD should have rocked hard, and with 3 guitarists, I expected this to be a loud "in your face"record. It's quite the opposite.

The Burden Brothers most recent album 'Mercy' rocks hard. It plays over and over and I never get tired of it. Vaden's voice is still as strong as ever, and much like the Toadies, his voice is the signature of the Burden Brothers. Mercy is barely released and I'm already anticipating their next album, as it's sure to be as great as the first two!

The Burden Brothers "Mercy" is an absolutely smoking set of songs. This album relies less on catchy melodies and more on powerful riffs than the last disc did, although that album is plenty catchy. Overall, it's a great, old school rock and roll record, with a nice combo of great melodies, arrangements, and lyrics.

Love,
Jables

I was instantly hooked after the first listen. I am a huge Toadies fan so that was one of the main reasons on getting this CD. The sound is different from the Toadies, but it still hooks you in. The songs stay stuck in your head for days. "Still" is one of the best songs Vaden has written.

As several people mention, the production on some songs is much slicker than the Toadies, but that isn't necessarily bad. It changes up the sound of the CD and makes it that much more enjoyable for me.

The songs themselves range from sounding just like Todd's former band to sounding nothing like them. There are a few songs that seem to have very similar chord progressions and rhythms, but overall I think this blows away about 90% of the other music released in the past couple of years.

Somewhere along the line we, the audience of pop music, singled out the frontman(woman) as the sole identity of the group. To be fair, there are several occurences of the lead guitarist with public image clout as well, garnering attention as part of the creative force that drives the ensemble (Page/Plant, Jagger/Richards, etc) And even rarer still, one of the other members of a group gets 'face time:' Flea, Nikki Sixx, Mick Fleetwood, Neil Peart, etc. Why is this important, you ask? Because it is flawed thinking - the ensemble creates the sound, the essence, the being - which brings us to the Burden Brothers.

Vaden Todd Lewis is not the Burden Brothers.

Now, having said that, we see him, we hear him, we know he is there - but this is a BAND, and a damn fine outfit at that. They are a tight bunch of players who sling their sonic fortitude at the listeners with a casual, slack precision that embodies pure attitude. Taz' Drumming, Casey/Corey/Zack doing their thing - all makes up a part of the end result - which brings us to shocking truth number two:

The Burden Brothers are not the Toadies.

I know, I know, Vaden's voice, and his singing, for that matter, are featured prominently in both ventures. While Burden can, from time to time, venture into near-Toadies territory, they are their own band, and should be viewed as such. That said, let's get into Mercy.

This album starts off with a hauntingly breathy piece called "Its Time," which, frankly, this reviewer just doesn't get. So, onto the next tracks: the uptempo rockers "Shine," "Still" and "Everybody is Easy (We Sink, We Swim)" - good solid rock and roll, no two ways about it - simple construction of melodies, excellently arranged and executed.

Burden kind of takes an interesting turn with the remainder of the record though, as it pumps up the gain, the chunk, ad the 'sludge factor' for "Good Night from Chicago" and "I am a Cancer," the latter being a sultry, riffing delivery, wrapped up neatly with a venomed tongue lyrical ribbon. "...Find another break up song, and sing it to yourself..."

Following the heavier turn, Mercy gets lighter, and more airy with uptempo tunes like "in my Sky" and the bouncy "On our Own" featuring a bassline from Zack that'll be sure to have your head nodding.

The album closer, "Liberated" is a slow building rage-ballad that serves as a great way to finish this album's journey, befitting, as the lyrics house imagery of hopping in a car, and rolling down the highway.

The sophomore album effort from the Burden Brothers is a fantastic rock and roll record, and it should be judged as such - its not Toadies-quirky, nor is it a raucous as Burden's own 'Buried in your Black Heart,' but it stands on its own, and doesn't let you forget it or regret ;) )

This is an album you will listen to for ever. It has something for every mood, going from ear-damaging rockers to deliciously dark melodies with ease. It is an album that will surprise you with its depth and provide a welcome reprieve from the angsty affectations of the lesser talents forced on us by mainstream radio.

These guys certainly didn't get the memo. Their sophmore album keeps it fresh but still retains the bar band feel that 'Buried in you Black Heart' had. Todd's voice is still as powerful as it was back in his Toadies days and the rest of the band holds up to thier history as well. So if you are in the mood for some straight up rock n roll buy this album it will get you through a long night. It is just a delight to hear them still making music and I already look forward to their next outing.

I am a huge fan of the Toadies and the Burden Brothers' earlier release, "Buried in Your Black Heart". I very much wanted to love this album. Alas, my initial impressions of "Mercy" were almost entirely bad. I gave it a half-dozen listens in the hope that it would grow on me. It did not. In fact, I liked it less with each pass. The whole album strikes me as contrived and tired. The sound production is technically correct, i.e., loud and you can hear all the instruments, but uninspired and devoid of dynamics. In retrospect, none of this should have come as a surprise. The cover and promotional posters feature a photo of the band that looks exactly like this album sounds.

All that said, there are two or three good songs buried deep within this bag of...filler.