Customer Reviews

Sad Clown Bad Fall 10 (Dig)

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So what are we to make of Sad Clown, Bad Fall, Volume 10?

Consumed in a vacuum you have a nice little 5-track EP with a couple solid song, a couple that miss the mark, and nothing mind blowing. For most artists this would be a solid effort, but therein lies the rub; we're not talking about 'most artists'. Slug and Ant have continually raised the bar not only with their full length efforts but with their EPs. Where Sad Clown Bad Summer Number 9 would be aptly described as a five punch knockout, Bad Fall 10 only really qualifies as some good body work.

Most of the tracks feature the deeply personal story telling that we've come to expect from Atmosphere, but there are few lines that are either drop dead funny or mind bendingly clever. 'Party Over Here' could have been a great track, but a cheesy chorus and too many breakdowns in the middle of the song make it impossible to get into the flow. 'Peyote' is the only track on the album where Ant and Slug seem to be firing on all cylinders, but even that never reaches the level of greatness that we saw multiple times on Atmosphere's last EP.

In the end we're given an EP well worth owning, and maybe we should simply be thankful for that. But that's not really how we feel is it? The one that you love always hurts you the most and success can be a cruel mistress.

After Slug & Ant's gorgeous, near-classic "Sad Clown Bad Summer" EP, the duo quickly turns out "Sad Clown Bad Fall" as the second installment out of a 4-season series of EP releases. The "Summer" EP was a lot of fun. It was warm and inviting - classic Atmosphere. It should come as no surprise that for the "Fall" installment, that their vibe has changed. Notably, it is more guitar based; featuring guitar & bass on nearly every track. Also, the synth doesn't get ignored either.

The EP kicks off with "Peyote" - an excellent number with a tight beat, clever wordplay and nice use of live guitar, bass & synth. However, the chorus is a bit lackluster. "Party Over Here" is a nice joint...a little peppier tune with a house party vibe. Unfortunately, the gimmicky call-and-response chorus become redundant. "Makes The Sun Come Out" is probably the most forgettable tune on the CD, despite some decent lyrics from Slug. "The Rooster" has a nice atmosphere to it (no pun intended). Slug's lyrics are nice here. "Lyndale Avenue User's Manual" is my favorite joint here. Nate Collis serves up some tasty guitar licks here, and the vibe is strong.

Overall, I'm simply not feeling this like their "Summer" EP. Although there are a couple decent tunes here, most are easily forgotten. Unfortunately, they have turned in a typical set of tunes that holds strong to the typical definition of an EP - decent tracks that don't hold up as strong as their album cuts do.

Slug and Ant follow up their amazingly smooth "Sad Clown Bad Summer" with the coming of "Bad Fall". Can it keep up the solid performance?

The first track, "Peyote", grabs you with a slick guitar riff frosted over a thick beat that pulls you through the whole song. Slug's familiar storytelling is back and better then ever throughout most of the EP. The next track, "Party Over Here", starts out promising with another light hearted guitar riff but the song never actually gets going. Throughout the whole track it seems like the intro should end any minute, but it never does. It teeters, but never actually goes into the deep end. A decent effort at an upbeat party song, but it falls short. The next track, "Makes the Sun Come Out", sparks curiosity as it starts out with a rubberband like synth. The song never picks up pace and feels like the EP popped a Riddelen and lulled itself to sleep. The next track, "The Rooster", starts with another guitar riff, this one more mellow and flowing, and a no-bones-about-it beat that makes you want to close your eyes and mouth along. The final track, "Lyndale Avenue User's Manual", is an extremely catchy and mellow song that leaves you wanting more.

Bad Fall misses the mark set by Bad Summer, But leaves you with an excellent taste in you're mouth.

Sean & Anthony add another excellent addition to their seasonal collection to keep their fans satisfied until the April release of their next album. The compilation includes a good mix of the duos range of styles from the raucous track "Party Over Here" to the more melancholy tale "The Rooster". "Makes the Sun Come Out" is a signature story that has allowed the group to connect on a human level wiht those fans that empathize in human life. The embossed cover art with fantastic characteratures are an added bonus.

After listening to Sad Clown Bad Summer, I have decided that Atmosphere is one of the best MCs currently in the game. The next installment in the Sad Clown series, Sad Clown Bad Fall is not as good as Bad Summer, but it is still tight regardless. The reason why I like Atmosphere so much is because he is an excellent story teller. You actually feel like your in the bar witnessing the characters, Slug describes in "The Rooster," relate to the story of a troubled girl in "Peyote" & feel his frustration in a day gone wrong in "Make The Sun Come Out." The album ends on high note with "Lyndale Avenue User's Manual," the track shows off Atmosphere's abilities as a MC & song writer. I heard somewhere that the tracks from these Sad Clown installments are throw away tracks from his next album, if that is the case he should be dropping a classic.

Another great EP from this guy/group. Only 5 songs is disappointing, but worth the money. Buy this disk as there are a few on there you will enjoy memorizing.