Customer Reviews

Salesmen & Racists

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Some of the teenage kids in the neighborhood were talking about Ike Reilly from Chicago. Well, in the 70s while in college I dated a girl from Chicago(Libertyville)whose punk kid brother was Mike Reilly - a brash, funny, sarcastic, smart ass but very likeable young man. When I would visit I usually had to share a room with the young lad(he must have been 12 or 13 at the time) and he had me listening to Dylan into the wee hours of the night. Incredibly, he knew all the lyrics and their meanings which he shared and which helped me gain a more profound appreciation of Dylan.

So anyway - I get on line and look up Ike Reilly and yep it's the little weasel Mike Reilly now all grown up.

So I get the CD and wow - really good stuff.

One can really appreciate the Dylan influences. Outstanding lyrically speaking!

What impressed me most was how "musical" the music was. Very catchy, pleasing riffs. Almost as if the Beatles met Dylan.

I can't understand why the punk hasn't become a larger national presence. This is better than 99.99% of the stuff out there. The only thing I can figure is that Ike has the same attitude that the young Mike had. He probably doesn't give a rat's ass whether or not he "makes it big". His values are founded in being true to himself, his friends and family.

Bagassosis M.D.

This is really really good. This guy is going to be really big. He is a great lyricist and has a very compelling voice. I love the heavy guitar and the political messages. Ike Reilly is a true musician which is very hard to find in new artists. Some songs give chills to my spine. Favorites include Last Time, Commie Drives A Nova, Hip Hop Thighs #17, The Assassination of Sweet Lou Diablo, New Years Eve, My Wasted Friends, Crave, Cash is King, and God Damn Shame. Highly Highly Recommended.

I am going to keep this short and sweet. I bought this CD after reading reviews on this site and sounded like a must have. After several listens i definately do like this CD. What initially attracted this disc to me was the Replacements/Westerberg references, and they are here just in a different way. The CD is just a little too "new school" for me. Maybe its me but i can't help but hear a little Kid Rock in here and on the whole the writing seems to be "reaching" a bit to a younger audience than a 38 year old should be trying to reach. though its only rock and roll and i do like it.

This is an easy review: its the best album I've bought in 2001, and I've bought a lot! It answers the musical question: What if Bob Dylan and Joe Walsh had a child that was raised by Black 47? The album is smart, well-written, and catchy.....what more could you want?

With all of these new bands that are coming out being declared as the saviors of rock music, this is the only CD I've yet to find worthy of that title. And thank goodess somebody finally remembers how to write good lyrics.

Politically incorrect lyrics mixed with catchy tunes, who would have thought it could work so well. Why can't all debut CDs be this good? "Last Time" "Angels & Whores" "Commie Drives a Nova" "Hail Hail" "Put a little love in it" and "Cash is King" are instant hits. I havent felt this good about a debut CD since the Gorillaz last year, and like them, Ike is destined for success. This is the first CD I brought at full price in about 6 months, and I'm actually satisfied with my purchase, how often does that happen with the music industry these days?

This album simply rocks. Can one word really do it justice ? From "Commie Drives a Nova" to "Put a little Love in it" to "My Wasted Friends"....hell I could name every song as an example as to why to own this.

Brillant lyrics that are far more complex then the ... the record companies are trying to sell us currently, this is the kind of CD that never leaves your player once you put it in. It's the kind of CD that makes you want to crank your amp to "11" and celebrate why you like rock'n'roll music in the first place. Reillys's voice, the driving guitars and awesome rythem section just makes this CD so memorable, so much one of the best albums of the 2001.

If you've been just as bored with the current music scene as I have (you know, nothing but boy-bands and hip-hop) then this one is for you. Who could have guesses that a unknow musician from the Chicago burbs could have saved music in 2001 ?!

Had the good luck to hear songs from Ike's debut during a radio segment where WXRT in Chicago featured local musicians.

Became a fan instantly.

This album made critics and radio stations year end "best of.." lists across the country.

So of course Ike's label dropped him, because Salesmen and Racists didn't move enough units.

More musically adventurous than his follow up albums, and slightly less consistent, S&R is simply brilliant.

Besides being an outstanding speaker-blowing-grinning-from-ear-to-bleeding-ear rock and roll album, S&R introduces us to a talented songwriter and lyricist.

Ike sings about people you know. You recognize them, or yourself, in his lyrics, and you can't help but sing along.

Commie Drives A Nova - the quintessential rock and roll song? It's got my vote.

This is a nitty and gritty album filled with tounge-in-cheek humor and quick wit. If you're looking for glossy pop, this ain't it. Ike and his Assassination reel off real-rock tune after tune. Lyrically rough and sharp, but poignant and intellectual. Hits on this album include nearly every song. "Last Time" is great, along with "Duty Free", "My Wasted Friends", "Cash is King" and "Put a Little Love In It". Not a new CD, but having just discovered them and their newest release, I had to review it. If you like fun, witty, and sometimes coarse (yet still smart) harder alt. rock, then this is your ticket to paradise. Crack open a beer with some friends and enjoy this album from start to finish.

If you like Salesmen and Racists, and didn't think Ike could get much better, wait until the upcoming new release this fall! With an inside scoop on the next CD and recently hearing the band's new releases in concert while in Chicago, you'll find that Ike and the band have surpassed themselves!!! I think they've got it perfected! The lyrics, rhythm, Ike's edge - it's all there. Look out for the new release.

What more can I say? From my first introduction to this fabulous musician on XRT here in Chicago when they played 'Duty Free', I was hooked. I went out and bought the disc straight away. We have seen Ike Reilly twice now and the guy flat out rocks live! I recommend both Ike discs and see him live whenever you get the chance.