Customer Reviews

Sights

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

 

 

i am pleased to be the second person from michigan to write a review of this album ...

i've been a sights fan for a few years now. they're definitely one of the best bands in detroit, especially when it comes to live acts. if it's possible, see them live. their albums are great, but nothing compares to seeing them in person. eddie baranek (guitars, vocals) and bobby emmett (organ) have mad skills. at their live show, the sweet 60s pop-rock one might expect after hearing their 2 previous albums is replaced with and soulfull rock&roll and gritty r&b.

so yeah i love the sights.

anyway, the album.

the album opens with a gospel cover which has become a live staple. the next three tracks are ridiculously catchy and truthful and completely lacking the pretention that usually goes with rock'n'roll in cities more polished then detroit, as is the entire album. "waiting on a friend" is a nice break, a quasi-ballad complete with piano.

emmett has a change to shine in "baby's knocking me down" and "suited fine," with the latter being my favorite. mm, organ solos. i love them.

the only reason why i'm giving this album 4 stars instead of 5 is because you have to see them live in their clunky, messy, sweaty, organ-ridden glory. it's not 'til the last three songs of the album that it begins to capture their spirit.

oh, and, i'm not a big fan of their harmonica-laden remake of "can't stand you," originally off their 1999 debut album, "are you green."

but to each his own. those crazy sights.

I'm happy to be the first person from Michigan to review this album for amazon although it is a bit sad since I've just gotten into them and they have a few other quality albums that I haven't heard yet, however, what they have here is brilliantly played rock and roll. I don't think they are the saviors of rock and they wouldn't even say that, but they rock in a way that few in todays rock world do. These guys are so anxious to rock it shows in the speed and chops in the perfomances. They never cease to be impressive song to song. One thing that's the best thing about the album is the lead singer. He's not the best singer by any means, but he sings with an inspiration that's not only right on key, it's loud and energizing. Similarly, his guitar playing and the band accompanying solos are spot on. I wholeheartedly recommend this album to people who like rock and roll and I mean the classic sense of the world, it's music that has a groove you both can, and can't dance to. Whatever the case may be it makes you move. Although it might be wrong for me to ascribe greatness to a band that has just entered the national scene, I truly think they are a quality band and if enough people hear them, they will be great. It's just a matter of those people catching on.

Refreshingly soulful garage rock, quality playing, and a faithful Faces cover. Who could ask for more?

This CD is completely addicting. It's been in my player for the past 2 weeks and it ain't leaving anytime soon.
"Circus" is one of the better songs I've heard in a long time, and I saw these guys play at Spaceland in L.A. about a month ago and they knocked my socks off.
Get this CD immediately.

Like all rock bands from Detroit, from the MC5 and The Stooges on down to the White Stripes, The Sights favor loud, hard and fast. This record is a blazing throwback that could have been released in 1968. It would have sounded as good then as it does now. Lead Sight Eddie Baranek is a deft songwriter, moving between the psychedelic crunch of "Circus" and "Will I Be True?" with the more pop sensibilities of "Suited Fine" and "Baby's Knocking Me Down." He also hides a deceptively cynical streak in his lyrics. To wit: the chorus of "Waiting on a Friend", a seemingly sweet country-pop ballad, is "I don't care what happens to you." The standout track on this album is the aforementioned "Baby's Knocking Me Down", a note-perfect late-60's ballad that sounds like a long-lost Badfinger track. The Sights also show a good sense of history; a thunderous cover of The Faces' bad-boy anthem "Stay With Me" is the album's hidden track.

The Sights kicks off with a Mahalia Jackson cover, of all things. When Baranek belts out "I'm Going to Live the Life I Sing About in my Song" he isn't talking about traditional gospel, it's the gospel of rock. And he means it.

This CD is absolutely phenomenal. There is not one bad song on this entire album. I stumbled upon this band on itunes as I do with many bands and listened to clips of their cd and knew it was solid. I didn't realize just how good until I listened to it on the way to work. Now I can't stop listening to it, all the songs are so catchy and they just have their own unique sound. My personal favorite is "Just Got Robbed." This album receives my highest recommendation. You should not be without it. It's just a matter of time before people catch on and you start hearing their music all over the place.

I'm in Miami where the music scene is worse than suffocating in a room of concentrated dog farts.

Sights, you'd better come to Miami 'cause I'm gonna promote the hell out of you all! You're among the first few bands of the 00s to resurrect my old fire for rock in the face of the stifling political correctness of the (c)rap movement.