Customer Reviews

Split

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

 

 

Though Sean Na Na and Mary Lou Lord don't perform together here, this split-EP was a great idea. Both artists sing tales of heartbreak and regret cleverly disguised -- at least at first -- by accessible pop hooks.

If you haven't heard "Princess and the Pony," you're missing one of the best songs of all time. In fact, if I were exiled to a deserted island with the option of bringing only two singles, I would select Jim Carroll's "People Who Died" and Sean Na Na's "Princess and the Pony."

Mr. Na Na's fantasy funeral, he insists on "Princess," would consist of a roomful of revelers drinking whisky and shaking their ... around his casket while listening to "Wire." With its gallows humor and contagious hooks, this track alone -- the misfit anthem of the year -- easily earns the album on which it's found a solid five stars!

Singing Lucky Jeremy's "My Old France," Sean Tillmann is able to wrap his sardonic lips around great deadpan lines, like "Heard any good drummer jokes lately?" Both "Stretch Marks" and "My Old France" have a scratchy, lo-fi sound that may prove to be too much for those preferring studio slickery, but I find the touch endearing.

...And Mary Lou Lord's tracks, of course, are none too shabby either. "Aim Low" is as good as anything she's ever released, and you'll be humming it for days. On the EP's first track, "Bang Bang," Lord adopts a coy, pseudo-rockabilly style. It's playful and fun, even if it comes perilously close to novelty.

With six tracks, a low asking price and a killer album cover, I can only recommend that you give this one a try.

Come for the Lord, but stay for the Princess.

Both artists have very pleasant voices and great song writing skills...Princess and the Pony is one of the best songs in years and is a local hit

As a big fan of Mary Lou's this album is a pleasent treat to tide fans over until her next proper release. "Aim Low" (written by longtime friend Nick Saloman) is a great piece of jangle-pop and one of Mary Lou's finest tracks.

This is a split CD featuring Mary Lou Lord and Sean Na Na on separate tracks.
While Lord has more of a folk/country feel, I would describe Sean Na Na as
rock/folky. Perhaps because Sean Tillman, the lead singer of Sean Na Na, talk/
sings his way through some pretty inane and boring lyrics, I wasn't too crazy
about the second half of the cd. I liked the melodic sweetness of Mary Lou
Lord's voice, however, and the songs were catchy-the last one kind of
reminded me of Nick Lowe.

As a Mary Lou Lord fan, these songs just don't measure up to her previous standards. The opening swing number is rather annoying. And once again, Mary Lou has opted to have a legitimate band playing backup. I'd prefer that she played her own guitar as she's an accomplished player. These songs remind me of the 'Got No Shadow' album, which was a disappointment. To bubblegum.

And I don't care much for Sean-Na-Na.