Named & Shamed

Flaming Stars | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 16, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Alternative Tentacles
• ASIN: B00061QJIK
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #386,755 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

A decade after they first fell from the sky, the U.K. quintet the Flaming Stars continue to shine and stun on their seventh studio disc, Named and Shamed. Sounding like Lloyd Cole fronting the Bad Seeds, writer/vocalist Max Decharne steers the versatile group through a set that is at times loud and riotous ("Where the Beautiful People Go"), soft and brooding ("She's Gone"), or ber-cool and jazzy (the piano and finger snaps of "The Marabou Shuffle"). Rarely disappointing, the title cut embraces flamenco while "Spilled Your Paint" barks and bites like vintage Mark E. Smith. Tack on the fact that this disc was completed in just over eight days, and Named and Shamed can't help but qualify as brilliant. ~ John D. Luerssen, Rovi

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sad Songs for Drunks and Misfits, December 22, 2004

By 

J. Norris "sleepydog" (Boston) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Named & Shamed (Audio CD)

Soulfull baritone crooning enhanced by alchohol and ennui, overlaying a remarkably diverse array of musical styles - all played in a very "Nuggets" primitive garage style fashion. There's slow dirgy laments, surfy spy rock melanges, speedy punk gems, all held together and made cohesive by a constrant stream of delicious, timely guitar and vocal hooks. Though some of the singers lyrics may strike one as a tad trite (lots of maundering over lost love in the tradition of bands like The Cure) his voice is gorgeous and more than makes up for it. Rich, deep, and strained, it perfectly offsets the deliberate distortion of the guitars and the punky roughness of the production. This is a VERY good album, but it doesn't necessarily give the listener anything (s)he hasn't already gotten from their earlier material. If you liked the older records, you'll like this - but don't expect any new ground to be broken - this is totally consistent with everything else the band has done. That said, the Stars are a criminally underappreciated group and this record would serve as a perfect introduction to anyone who has yet to hear them. Fans of stuff like Morphine, the Cure, the Screaming Trees, or even the Buzzcocks would all be well advised to give listen.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I should use the kids review form for this., May 17, 2005

By 

Brandon C. Grover "everyman" (washington DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Named & Shamed (Audio CD)

The Camdentown toughs return with another frothy headed brew. And no, they really don't break new ground. But most of us have gotten tired of those upscale blueberry foofy-lambic constructions and want to toss our towel back in with what works. Whilst this Stars outing is more consistant than those past, we still dont have a trappist ale we might have wanted--think more a Budweiser over the head but more philosphical than that.