Open Your Heart

Men | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 6, 2012)
• Original Release Date: 2012
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sacred Bones
• ASIN: B006WAF14M
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #78,262 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Ironically referred to by Timeout NY as "Thurston Moore & the E Street Band," The Men have never been a band to play by categorical punk subgenre rules. Instead, over the last three years, this band has dabbled in everything from hardcore punk to psych to shoegaze to black metal; and they have done all of it effortlessly, and for the most part, flawlessly. Totally removed from the current climate of a.d.d-youtube-blog-hyped generation of musicians under 21, The Men stand out from the pack as both scene elders and actual record collectors.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Men - Jammed packed with piledriver arrogance March 29, 2012

By Red on Black TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Audio CD

What do you want from rock music? If the answer is blistering, incendiary post hardcore by a bunch of musicians hell bent on testing the limits of the noise tolerance of near neighbours and threatening the internal gubbings of your audio equipment then "Open your heart" ticks every box. The Men are from Brooklyn the new music capital of the US and comprise noise terrorists Mark Perro and Nick Chiericozzi plus Rich Samis on drums and bassist Ben Greenberg (aka Hubble). They are a band who are at their thrilling best on this beast of a third album "Open your heart" with its echos of the Buzzcocks, Husker Du, Japandroids, Sonic Youth and a dash of Thin Lizzy. Yes its an eclectic list but all these bands understand the role of rock n roll as a redemptiive destination and the need to blast through brick walls to get there. Thus you would be well advised to start at the end and seek out the track "Ex-Dreams" with its massive monster riffs which thrash and pound with a harshness and ebullient energy that could be an alternative to nuclear fusion. The vocals when they come are lower than a snakes belly in the mix but actually add to the tracks raw power. Its also great fun and anyone with a computer can check it out for free on a variety of American music blogs. The seven minute plus perfection of "Oscillation" alternatively is powerful slow burn which builds up sequentially to a huge anthem which should have squatting rights on your stereo and a place in your heart. Equally for the sheer brass neck of stealing the Buzzcocks riff from "Ever fallen in Love" the title track to the album is classic piece of mosh pit mayhem which could lead to a long queue in the local accident and emergency ward.... The band however are no mere one trick hardcore ponies and any one listening to "Candy" will recall the Stones on one of their many country outings in songs like "Sweet Virginia".

Following on from the uber intelligent hardcore of last years brilliant "David Comes to Life" by Fxxked Up, we again have a band prepared to mix an acute pop sensibility with diamond hard riffs. The albums opener "Turn it around" is Exhibit A in this respect showing how effective testosterone fuelled rock music should be done. As vocalist Nick Chiericozzi declares that he "wants to hear you write a love song," you pause to wonder why he doesn't practice what he preaches but move on quickly. All in all "Open your heart" is a tremendous album which forcefully bludgeons its way into you affections, it is raw power revisited and jammed packed with piledriver arrogance. Read more ›

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars consistently weird and inspired May 3, 2012

By Charlie Quaker

Format:Audio CD

While this Brooklyn band's 2nd album, "Leave Home", had spotty moments of revelation, "Open
Your Heart" is consistently weird and inspired. Oh, and did I say unpredictable? You get:
machine gun blasts of ripping pop-punk guitar noise / country psychedelic instrumental
atmospheric twang / building, loping, post-punk Krautrock with a West Coast hippy twist / soaring
shots of fast-paced shoegaze power pop / high speed staccato punk rock / straight-up country
rock-pop / slow-building choral-drone psych rock / cranked-up wails of high energy wah-wah
guitar drone party rock and more. Recalls bands like Husker Du, Buzzcocks, Negative Trend,
Cave, Sonic Youth, Human Eye, Led Zeppelin, Rocket From the Crypt, Neu! A power-packed,
brilliantly diverse and challenging album.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars You can hear the influences, but they are well-chosen July 3, 2012

By John L Murphy TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

"Turn It Around" starts with a "Suspect Device" riff from Stiff Little Fingers, and then expands into a rama-lama punk-pop song reminiscent of the Buzzcocks. As I like those two bands a lot, I liked this. That shows the strengths or limits of this album. For those of us who heard the bands thirty years ago, it's a solid homage to a variety of punk styles. To take that first song, it does wander even in a few minutes as the guitar does not seem to know where to go, and it feels as if editing might have helped. The Men lock into a direction for a few seconds, and then they shift. Not sure if this is restlessness or inspiration. Yet, for this time and place, this music fills a niche even if it's not groundbreaking.

Shorter songs can be traced back. "Animal" in its spareness reminds me of Feedtime, a little-known Australian blues-punk trio from the '80s (See my review of their "The Aberrant Years.") "Please Don't Go Away" loads on the layers, as if a fast shoegazing tune.

"Open Your Heart" could fit into American college rock from the early Dinosaur Jr. era, or the Replacements. "Cube" pushes towards a hardcore style, tinged with poppier touches, as those same bands once delivered. "Country Song" uses effects to sustain its guitar, and this textural experimentation shows a movement towards structure that may bode well for future albums. "Ex-Dreams" closes the album in similar fashion--the longer songs take time to experiment for a few seconds to their benefit--blending however the Krautrock with a Sonic Youth-filtered "Daydream Nation" vintage vocal mood.

Speaking of longer songs, the appeal of the Brooklyn (of course) band's style deepened for me as it was for the original punks by nods to Krautrock, as in the longer songs such as "Oscillation...." I'm a sucker for Krautrock, I admit. "Presence" does this with more of a Spacemen 3 or Loop hint, an obsessive build-up akin to another band who returns to such sounds, Oneida.

"Candy" apes a countrified or fried Mick Jagger too much for me. Still, even as the weakest track, it's not awful. These days, such qualifies for praise in a music scene where such bands as The Men mash together the best of their record collections. It's fun for those of us who had been there, heard that, and it may blend in well with a mixtape of their inspirations. (I also reviewed their earlier album, "Leave Home," which is rawer, fuzz-driven, and bolder.) Read more ›

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I can't get enough of this album July 19, 2012

By Archer

Format:Vinyl

Very original. Really knocks you out. Genre-defying. Really incredible. I know nothing about this band, where they are from, anything. It's refreshing to come across an awesome band that you know nothing about.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Krikey!!! Good Stuff!!!! April 25, 2012

By Chakaconcarne

Format:MP3 Music|Amazon Verified Purchase

I was very lucky to run across these guys. Just picked up both of their albums and they ROCK!! They're all over the place GOOD. Can't stop listening to them and even though I've listened to them for less than 24 hours.. I want more!!!! Paid $4.00 for one of the MP3 albums....seriously? RAD! They're touring the NW in June '12. Can't wait to see them!!

3 of 27 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Open your heart, and let nothing in, nothing out... June 6, 2012

By mickey

Format:Audio CD

No. I want to stop there, with just "No" and call it a review, but, since the album title could be seen from the perspective of a question, I feel the need to not let my "No" be taken as a response to that question. Okay, so, the other kiddies here are all diggin' on this album, and, I will not tell other people what they shouldn't listen to, but, I will say that -I- did not enjoy this album. And I would've let mom's advice, well, not my mom, but -somebody's- mom's advice about "not saying anything if you don't have anything nice to say" stand as it is, yet, these other reviews list so many worthy bands that I feel they may be a bit -misleading-.

Pearly wisdom aside, this band, at least on the album in question, has no place to be mentioned with some of the actually great groups, with actually great songs who are actually worth checking out mentioned in several of these reviews who seem to remind those reviewers of things they like. Good for you, kids. And good for you for probably composing better sentences than I seem to be vomiting up here. Simply put, what I see is: a decent opening track "Turn It Around" (sure, I'm feelin' groovy at this point, piqued) followed by go-nowhere jams that you and your mates could probably bash out after some Jager and a good busting from your boss, and beyond that, maybe a strum or two of bemused faux-country that only endeared me to itself because: a. it had a semblance of something vaguely song-ish amidst the monotony (and not in a gradual, satisfying way like Godspeed! or even, I dunno, heck, maybe Philip Glass might offer) of the wide swath of "who-cares" that is in the wake of the, maybe a bit standard but at least groovin' and given conviction (although don't know when to let it die) first song--- sorry, I can't compose when I'm annoyed, hmmm...... ... ... I'm talking about the song "Candy" here. Okay, b. it has the redeemable and honest enough ol' lyric "quit my job, now I can stay out all night" kinda stuff. ... Alright, I'm feelin' the Great Recession, too, so, eff it all, good toe tappin' toss one back-er. And, c. I have a fond memory for Candy Loving, Playboy's Jan.'79 and 25th anniversary model. But there's a better song for that... ahem... anyway... Pop is not a four letter word. Maybe it should be. Any of the bands mentioned in the other reviews could surely give it an extra P.

Closer "Ex-Dreams" has some good riffing, undeveloped, and there is some solid crunch throughout but nothing ever goes anywhere, coalesces into anything, develops a riff into a cycle, a cycle into a song, a song into a movement, has a memorable tune, exists as just simply music for music's sake or goes beyond filling hard drive space or plastic disc. You can check it if you want, but any second of Zep, Husker Du, Sonic Youth or what have you that you might get is so totally fleeting and buried within rubbage so deep it gives me hope that indie bloggers might like my band... ... ... ... ... Wholly s____... ... ... hmmm... Gotta send that off, now... ... See ya. Read more ›