The Sebadoh

Sebadoh

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 23, 1999)
• Original Release Date: February 23, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sub Pop
• ASIN: B00000I428
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #104,037 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Sebadoh's two songwriters, the tragically inclined Lou Barlow and the testy Jason Lowenstein, have often been at musical odds. Their albums, several of which are indie-rock classics, are sometimes out of balance because of this dueling dynamic of lovesickness and aggression. With The Sebadoh the band finally evens out this discrepancy and strikes a more unified mood. "Color Blind" is an atypically introspective look at race relations. "Flame" faces life changes with a catchy, metronomic chorus, and the rolling dissonance of "Decide" confronts a loss of trust with kickin' rock muscle. Fans of Barlow's hangdog yearnings may have a new standard in the moving "Love Is Stronger," a song that elegantly states the primacy of love. The Sebadoh, you might say, is like Prozac. It has ironed out the bipolar characteristics of a band and left us with a strange but welcome elation. --Lois Maffeo

Spin
The Sebadoh sounds like everyone's been drinking from a very communal well.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars what's not to get ?, March 21, 1999

By A Customer

First off, this is the best Sebadoh album since Bubble & Scrape. Second, they didn't kick out Eric Gaffney. He quit/rejoined so many times that it became tedious with the final straw coming when he decided he was better off as an 'absentee' member - i.e just send me my royalty check and I'll send you my songs. Third, I don't really see how people can't 'get' this album . What's to get ? It's a collection of songs. It ain't 'Sgt. Pepper' or 'Dark Side of the Moon'. There's no interwoven theme or message. There's some loud songs and there's a couple slower ones. Russ Pollard's drumming is great and adds tremendous rhythmic variety that's been missing. They took some chances - 'Flame' is unlike anything they've ever done. They use more keyboards (almost every song) then they've ever done. You people expect too much out of your geniuses.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Things change, evolve, devolve...move on., December 7, 1999

By	"sarah_elizabeth" (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

Of course, not all people who like Sebedoh will think this album deserves 4 stars. Looking back to "3," "Bakesale," and "Smash Your Head On the Punk Rock" (some earlier, wonderful albums), this CD certainly feels strange.

But here's my theory -- as bands grow and shrink and change with the tides of music, and as the Backstreet Boys take over the pop charts, how can we call "The Sebedoh" selling out? It is either an evolution or a devolution, whatever you want to call it, but it is full of the same interesting, cerebral, wearing-stompy-black-boots-to-the-prom songwriting that we have come to love from this band.

If you know the band, you may be cranky about this CD. But I see it as just different, not more nor less.

And if you have never heard Sebedoh, this is a good place to start.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A shame existing fans can't get with it, December 6, 2000

By	Martin (Sussex, England) - See all my reviews

Lou Barlow said in an interview when this came out that it was no longer 'Lo-Fi' but now 'Mid-Fi'. That sounds accurate to me. Jason Lowenstein's songs are still edgy, nervy and powerful, but a little more controlled. It's All You is a particularly superb bouncy, punky, funky epic, with a great insistant guitar line and an unconventional structure. It gloriously ends when you least expect it, making you want to ehar it again. I also loved Decide, Cuban and Bird In the Hand (short but sweet) out of Jason's repetoire.

But I think Lou Barlow is one of the most oconsistantly under-rated songwriters in the world today, and The Sebadoh found him on top form. Flame's rythm sets it apart from so much around today, and Tree has a subtle but memorable melody. When he writes slow songs he connects as well- look at (or better yet listen to) Love Is Stronger is the top proof of this. But its in writing subtle guitar pop like Weird and Colorblind where his real talent is. Sebadoh have moved on from their earlier sound, no queastion. But to me they're still one of the most vital bands going.